Beyond its strength, leather allows me to incorporate functional, high-end details that elevate the entire carrying experience.  From the hand-cut adjustable straps on The Barra to the reinforced leather zipper overlays and cell phone pockets found inside The Isla, leather provides a level of professional structure that fabric alone cannot achieve.  It transforms a simple bag into a "forever piece," creating a functional work of art that feels substantial in your hands and sits perfectly on your shoulder.

As a craftsman, I start by knowing my materials.  My handbag designs are rooted in both heritage and long-term durability. While textiles like Harris Tweed® provide the soul and color of a piece, leather acts as the structural foundation, offering a "rugged and refined" quality that only improves with age. I specifically select premium 3oz to 4oz leathers for their tactile feel and ability to develop a unique patina, ensuring that high-wear areas—like the base and shoulder straps—can withstand years of daily use while maintaining their sophisticated silhouette.  

Chicago's Century-Old Tannery - Horween Leather Company

The Tannery Row Leather is about tradition and heritage. Their tanneries are inspired by the tradition of old-world craftmanship and heritage of consistently providing the highest quality leather.  The Horween Leather Company is renowned for its rich legacy and commitment to producing high-quality leather since 1905.

Derby

Derby is a vegetable tanned infused with a rich blend of waxes and tumbled to emphasize the natural highs and lows in the leather. This leather is a rugged leather with a soft temper. The leather is highly distressed and exhibits a rugged appearance as a result of the tumbling process. Derby exhibits great tonality with a rich pull up and will age beautifully by developing a rich patina.

Splenda Kansas

The Kansas vegetable tanned line is characterized by a waxed grain that exhibits a rich pull up. The leather has a beautiful grain appearance that is aniline in nature and highlights the natural character of the leather.

Splenda Classic

This Classic vegetable leather is tanned using extracts from Mimosa and Quebracho trees. This tanning formulation for the Classic line produces a leather with a compact fiber that is both flexible and adaptable and is characterized by a smooth grain and feel.

Treatments

Lanolin, also called wool yolk, wool wax, or wool grease, is a wax secreted by the sebaceous glands of wool-bearing animals. A lanolin coating adds both a waxy texture to the surface, but also provides a natural oil to the leather protecting it from drying out.

Oil tan leather where the product comes in contact with hard surfaces or where durability is needed.  These leathers are hot shot stuffed with waxes and oils giving the leather a rich pull up and smooth feel. For products that need flexible, durable, and water resistant leather that holds up over time

Tanning

There are two main methods of training chrome (chromium) and veg (vegetable) tan and these processes largely differ in which chemicals are used in the tanning liquor.

Chrome (chromium) tanned leather is one of the most common types of tanning. It refers to the chromium used in the tanning process. It's a popular method of tanning because it's quicker than vegetable tanning and results in a softer, more pliable leather. Chrome tanning is a relatively new approach, dating back to 1858, as tanneries looked for ways to expedite the process and save money and can take as little as two weeks to process and costs considerably less than vegetable tanning.

• Fairly water-resistant making it best for products that may be subjected to heat or humidity.
• Can produce a wide variety of colors from black to bright pink and teal.

Veg tan or Vegetable tanned leather refers to the method of tanning a hide into leather. It's called “vegetable” because of the all natural tannins used in the tanning process like tree bark. Vegetable tanning or veg tan as it's sometimes called, is one of the oldest methods of tanning known to man.

• With proper care, vegetable tanned leather can last for many decades.
• Known for deepening the natural colors and fibers of the hide and with time and use the leather caramelizes with a beautiful patina that only enhances its rich, natural beauty.

Leather Terminology

Aniline:

Dyes and finishes that contain no pigment. When used on leather they provide a rich, clear stain that allows the natural character of the article to be seen.

Aniline Finish:

Leather finished with a clear top in order to show the natural grain of the leather.

Buffed:

Leather that has been sueded; it can also be referred to as snuffed, nubuck or grain-sueded leather.

Cementable:

Refers to leather(s) that can be glued as a means of final attachment during the construction of leather goods.

Combination Tanned:

Leathers that are tanned using both chrome and blends of vegetable extracts along with emulsified or unrefined oils and waxes.

Corrected Grain:

Leather that has been sanded to make its surface more uniform.

Crock: 

Color that rubs off finished leather.

Crust:

Leather that has been tanned but not finished. Crust leathers are often colored/dyed, but no finishing oils or treatments have been added.

Draw:

Shrunken, shriveled or wrinkled grain surface of leather.

Emboss: 

To give a flat piece of leather a pattern or texture that stands out in relief through pressing with tremendous pressure.

Fat Liquored: 

Leather that has been nourished and conditioned with emulsified oils.

Finish:

 Surface applications on the leather to color, protect, or mask imperfections.

Full Grain:

Leather that has its surface left completely intact, showing all natural characteristics of the hide.

Hand Glazed:

Leather that has been polished with a glass rod.

Hot Stuffing: 

Hot stuffing is secondary to the re-tanning process (for leather that is not fat liquored or wet stuffed) involving unrefined fats and oils, that are solid at room temperature, with a goal to give moisture back to the fibers. The fats and oils are pounded into the skins while they tumble in heated barrels, without the use of water and emulsifiers, and gives the leather a much richer feel. Hot stuffed leathers typically exhibit pull-up, good water resistance and superior durability over time.

Mill-Dyed: 

Leather that has had dyes introduced during retannage. Also referred to as drum-dyed.

Pasted: 

Leather that has been dried by fixing it to large glass or ceramic plates. Pasted leathers have very little stretch and smooth grain character.

Pull-up: 

The temporary lightening of certain leathers when folded. This is caused by displacing oil and waxes.

Retan: 

To impregnate and condition preserved hides with tanning liquors and extracts. 

Shell:

A dense fiber structure found only in the hindquarters of equine animals.

Toggled: 

Leather that has been air-dried after being stretched on a metal screen and clamped into place.

Vegetable Tanned:

A tanning method that employs vegetable liquors derived from tree barks. This method of tanning is very traditional and takes longer to achieve than chrome tanning.

Weight:

Also referred to as thickness or substance. Leather is generally sold in ounces or millimeters, and in increments of 1/2 oz or 0.2 mm, respectively.  For example, 5 – 5 1/2 oz (or 2.0 – 2.2 mm) is a typical footwear weight produced.

Wet Stuffed:

Similar to fat liquored, wet stuffed leathers are nourished and conditioned with heavier emulsified oils and waxes.

Leather Terminology By John Culliton & Tyler Culliton