Tag: full grain leather

Benefits of Full Grain Leather

Leather Construction

There has been a lot of interest and questions about ‘Vegan Leather’ in both my industry and the news and social media lately and I wanted to provide a little education on this product.

Full grain leather offers several advantages over vegan leather:

Hand carved leather belt with floral design and silver and turquoise buckle
Hand carved leather belt with floral design and silver and turquoise buckle

Full Grain Leather Advantages:

  •  Better Environmental Impact: While leather production has environmental concerns, full-grain leather can have a lower overall environmental impact than most types of vegan leather, especially those made with petroleum-based materials. The animal hides used for tanning are a byproduct of the food industry and if they were not tanned to make leather they would most likely end up in a landfill.  Thus natural leather is actually a form or recycling or up cycling of a waste product. The manufacturing processes of vegan leather usually involves synthesis from a petroleum product that adds to the carbon footprint and also created a waste issue as vegan leather in general cannot be recycled.

  • Durability and Longevity: Full-grain leather is significantly more durable than most vegan leathers. It’s more resistant to scratches, tears, and wear, lasting much longer with proper care. This translates to a better return on investment in the long run and possibly (with personal items like purses or handbags for example) and item that will be handed down to future generations.

  • Natural Beauty and Character: The natural imperfections and markings (like scars and wrinkles) give full-grain leather its unique character and a more luxurious look that many find appealing. Vegan leathers often try to mimic this, but rarely achieve the same authenticity.

  • Breathability: Leather is a natural material that breathes, allowing for better air circulation. This is particularly beneficial in items like shoes or gloves, preventing sweating and discomfort. Vegan leathers are generally less breathable because they are usually made from petroleum products..

  • Aging and Patina: Full-grain leather develops a beautiful patina over time, creating a unique and desirable aged look. This characteristic adds to its value and charm. Vegan leathers typically don’t age in this way; they may crack or peel.

  • Water Resistance (with proper treatment): While not inherently waterproof, full-grain leather can be treated to become water-resistant. Many vegan leathers are less water-resistant and may stain easily.

Important Considerations:

  • Cost: Full-grain leather is generally more expensive than vegan leather.

  • Maintenance: Full-grain leather requires more care and maintenance than vegan leather. It needs regular cleaning and conditioning to maintain its quality and appearance.

  • Functionality:  Vegan leather doesn’t have the same properties as the vegetable tanned leather I use for carving and stamping, so it can’t be used to make most of the products you will see on my website.

In summary, full-grain leather offers superior durability, natural beauty, and potentially better longevity, but comes at a higher price and with ethical considerations. Vegan leather provides a more affordable and cruelty-free alternative, but often compromises on durability and longevity and potentially has higher environmental impacts.  

What does ‘Genuine Leather’ mean?

Business, Leather Construction

What’s up with Genuine Leather?

You will often see the term ‘Genuine Leather’ on items you find a stores, but what does this really mean?

If you go to a department store or other big box retail store, you will often run across leather items like belts or wallets that are stamped with the term ‘Genuine Leather’ but is this really any kind of quality guarantee?   Not really.  In fact it is one of the lowest grades of the types of leather you can purchase.

Genuine Leather is usually made from the lower quality parts of a hide that are removed from higher quality leather hides.  Often it is made from the parts shaved off of the back of a leather hide that are then glued together for strength and have a leather texture embossed onto the surface.  These are basically rejected parts from higher quality items that are recycled into something useful for the mass consumer market.  This kind of leather doesn’t have much strength or the ability to wear well because it doesn’t include the grain surface of the leather from the original hide. The grain surface is where most of leather’s strength resides.  Thus items made from ‘Genuine Leather’ won’t hold up well and tend to wear out or break down quickly.  It’s only suitable for items where strength and durability are not required.

 

Other Types of Leather

Top Grain is the next step up and while it’s better, it still has some drawbacks.  Top Grain still has the grain surface on the leather but that surface has been ‘corrected’.  Leather naturally has slight imperfections on the grain surface.  These are usually marks or scars the animal picked up on its hide over it’s lifetime.  On Top Grain leather the gain surface is sanded to remove these marks so it looks like a higher quality leather but this removes some of the strength from the leather.  To repair the damage to the surface, paints and sealants are sprayed on the surface.  Often a grain design will be embossed onto the leather as well.  These treatments can make this leather hold its color well and be water resistant, but often lower quality hides are used because the finishing steps mask the imperfections.

Top Grain leather is the kind of leather used in most luxury brand handbags, wallets or briefcases.  It wears better than Genuine Leather but that’s partially due to the surface treatments that are added to it.  It doesn’t have the strength and resistance to wear that Full Grain leather does because the top of the grain surface has been damaged by the sanding.

 

Full Grain Leather

Full Grain leather is the highest quality of the types of leather used in making personal items.  This leather has the original grain surface of the hide intact which gives it all the strength and wear resistance leather is known for.  It may have slight blemishes and imperfections but a skilled maker can work around them in the hide.  Full Grain leather is preferred for heavy duty items that need to be rugged and wear resistant.  However in a skilled craftsman’s hands the same leather can be used for handbags, wallets, belts and other personal items that will wear very well and last for many years.  If you want an item that will be durable and last a long time, this is the leather you want to use.  Full Grain leather is usually more expensive because it has to be a higher quality hide to start with.  This initial expenses is usually more than offset by the lifetime the finished product will have.

 

Understanding these differences helps to explain why hand crafted items from a reputable maker like C and B Leather cost more than the mass produced items you find at a department store.  The quality of the full grain leather we use is one reason for a higher price, but the experience and skill we bring to your project are also a factor.  If you have a personal item you would like custom made out of high quality full grain leather, please contact us to make your idea a reality.

 

5×8 Floral Carved Notebook