Leather and Colorway Guide

  • Leather from some of the world’s best known and highest regarded French, Italian, and Japanese tanneries are offered.
    • For general information about leather types and finishes, please see my Leather Guide.

Chèvre Crispé

Chèvre Crispé comes from century-old French tannery, Relma, which specializes in vegetable tanned goatskin for use in bookbinding and luxury leather goods. Chèvre Crispé has a wonderful subtle texture, vibrant colors, and is lightly finished for better color fastness, as well as providing some scratch and water resistance. It works great for both the interior and exterior of items.

 

Article:

Chèvre Crispé

Type:

Goatskin

Origin:

France

Tannery:

Relma

Tannage:

Vegetable

Finish:

Semi-aniline

Temper:

Medium

Aging:

Gets smoother in areas of wear


Shell Cordovan


Shell Cordovan is an equine leather that’s prized for its resilience, its luster, and its graceful aging.

I stock shells from renowned Japanese tannery, Shinki-Hikaku, as well as those from dyeing specialist, Leder Ogawa*. I believe these two companies produce the most refined and beautiful shells on the market today.

Shinki shells have a glossy finish thanks to undergoing a glazing process, where the leather is polished with glass. The colors have pleasant natural variation and subtle marbling.

Leder Ogawa’s shells are hand dyed and finished. Compared to Shinki’s, they are less glossy, more uniform and have fantastic depth of color.

Shell wears extremely well over time and, like other vegetable tanned leathers, develops a lot of character with use.

It should be one of your top contenders if you’re considering a smooth exterior for your item.

Note: While shell is an exceptionally durable material, it is not a resistant material. Its waxy surface will scratch fairly easily. However, scratches will become less apparent and blend into the character of the leather as it ages. Another bright point is that it responds to reconditioning (i.e. scratches, etc. buffed out) very well.

*Leder Ogawa is not a tannery. It performs the dyeing and finishing on Shinki-Hikaku “crusts”, or unfinished shells.

Article: Shell Cordovan Type: Shell Cordovan
Origin: Japan Tannery: Shinki-Hikaku
Tannage: Vegetable Finish: Aniline
Temper: Firm Aging: Absorbs character from use, darkens

Museum Calf


This is one of the most recognizable leathers in the world, thanks to its extensive use in fine footwear. Museum calf is characterized by it’s mottled color. It has a pleasant soft hand, yet firm temper. Softens wonderfully with age and brushes up beautifully.

Article:

Museum Calf

Type:

Calfskin

Origin:

Italy

Tannery:

Ilcea

Tannage:

Mineral

Finish:

Aniline

Temper:

Firm

Aging:

Softens, develops sheen


Sherpa


Sherpa is buffalo calfskin produced by French Tannery, Remy Carriat. Compared to other bovine leathers, it has a more exotic looking grain. It also is a very tough leather that resists wear very well. Despite its toughness, it still retains very pleasant, soft feel. Works great for both the interior or exterior of items and there’s plenty of colors to choose from.

Article:

Sherpa

Type:

Buffalo Calf

Origin:

France

Tannery:

Remy Carriat

Tannage:

Mineral

Finish:

Semi-aniline

Temper:

Medium soft

Aging:

Develops slight sheen


Pueblo


Pueblo is classic Italian vacchetta, vegetable tanned cowhide, with a twist. Its grain has been gently sueded, which gives it a beautiful vintage look.

It will develop lots of character with use. Colors will darken and fibers will compact, as well as the development of a slight sheen. A great leather for patina lovers.

Article: Pueblo Type: Cowhide
Origin: Italy Tannery: Badalassi Carlo
Tannage: Vegetable Finish: Aniline leather with sueded surface
Temper: Medium Aging: Color darkens, develops sheen, absorbs character from use

Vono


Vono is traditional pit-tanned cowhide from Japanese tannery, Tochigi. The open pit-tanning is said to give extra toughness to the resulting leather. Compared to the absence of grain on Shell Cordovan or the fine grain of Museum Calf, Vono has a bit more rugged character as the grain is more apparent. This leather will show interesting character as it ages, but thanks to its robust nature, will typically do so more gradually. The dye is also beautifully done with nice depth of color.

Article: Vono Type: Cowhide
Origin: Japan Tannery: Tochigi
Tannage: Vegetable Finish: Glazed aniline
Temper: Very firm Aging: Color darkens and absorbs character from use

Epsom Calfskin


Epsom is calfskin that is well-known for its extensive use in luxury goods. Its printed grain provides a clean, modern look, and provides excellent resistance against wear like scratches and dents.

Article: Epsom Type: Calfskin
Origin: France Tannery: Tannerie d’Annonay
Tannage: Mineral Finish: Semi-aniline
Temper: Firm Aging: Excellent resistance. Will lose some texture in high-wear areas.

Exotic Leathers


Sharkskin


Sharkskin is characterized by deep ridges in the skin, giving a wild texture. It’s regarded as one of the very toughest leathers there is, but despite that, this Japanese sharkskin has a wonderful soft and luxurious texture.


Crocodilian


No other leather says luxury quite like alligator and crocodile leather. Crocodilian leather is known for its striking texture, wonderful feel, and excellent durability.

I have a limited stock of skins. Please contact me for availability.


Python


Along with crocodile and ostrich, python is one of the quintessential exotics. The texture is quite striking from the array of scales, giving it its alluring dimensional look. Unlike most snakeskins, python is actually quite durable.

The python used is sourced from Japan and has a soft matte finish. You can expect it to see it patina. The color will darken and, it will absorb character from use. Scales are securely attached, although they may fold somewhat with use.

 

FAQ

Colorways

While there are near endless possibilities for color combinations, many of the nicest looking examples will:

  1. Use a lighter colored leather on the interior of the item.
  2. Use thread that is either the same color or lighter than both leathers.

There are, naturally, many exceptions. In the case of exotic leathers, for example, subtle contrasts work best (especially as threading is concerned) as to not detract attention from the leather itself.

Note: The method of hand sewing I employ, saddle stitching, doesn’t allow for different color exterior and interior thread, as the needle passes through both sides of the perimeter.

Suggested Colorways

  • Several examples of the suggested colorways follow, categorized by exterior color.
  • Please choose the exterior and interior leather types based on the suggestions provided above.
  • If you have further questions or would like to request input on your chosen colorway, please add an order note or contact me.

Green

Suggested pairings: tan, brown, gray, yellow, burgundy

Blue

Suggested pairings: orange, brown, tan, gray, yellow, green

Brown

Suggested pairings: natural, brown, olive, blue, turquoise, green

Dark Brown

Suggested pairings: taupe, natural, orange, yellow, blue, green

Black

Suggested pairings: red, green, yellow, taupe, turquoise, beige

Red & Purple

Suggested pairings: natural, taupe, brown, turquoise, green

Gray

Suggested pairings: orange, turquoise, maroon, yellow

Monotone

Monotone pairings are, of course, welcome. Use contrasting textures for an extra bit of flair.