Creating fine leather has been an artform for millennia, and its rich feel and luxe quality remains as covetable today
Walk into any modern living space and you will likely encounter leather, be it the upholstery or in a decorative material. Leathercraft has gone a long way since ancient times. While modern designs have emerged, the art of leather making is still a time-honoured tradition that dates to the BC era.
Creating leather pieces is an intricate process that has evolved over thousands of years. Despite employing many technological advancements, the craft still begins with the humble animal hide. Most leather nowadays are made from the skin of cattle, horses, aquatic animals, buffalos, or pigs. More exotic animals like crocodiles and snakes have also been used in leather making. Ostriches, kangaroos and lizards aren’t exempt either, being rare and more highly prized. Despite the variety, all hides are the same in composition: thin epidermis, a thick corium and a subcutaneous fatty layer. The corium is often what makes the leather we know of today, after it has gone through the tanning process.
There are currently a multitude of leather purveyors in the market, but not all carry the same standards. For most leading furniture brands, quality starts way early, even before the curing process. “Our study initially starts with a research on materials: we go to the smallest tanneries, recovering ancient traditions and deviating from the ordinary path,” says Paolo Bestetti, CEO of high-end Italian brand, Baxter.
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Other brands source all genuine full-grain leather and use them to create unique pieces that often transcend expectations. “One distinctive feature of many Flexform designs is woven patterns,” shares Saul Galimberti, head of Flexform’s Research and Development department and director of the Flexform Design Centre. These patterns can be seen in their Cestone sofa and the Filicudi ottoman. Meanwhile, the luxurious Fendi Casa brand, distributed locally by Living Innovations, also uses all-European leather that is soft to the touch, with a distinctly natural appearance that is pleasing to the eye.
Artisans from luxury brands and suppliers must follow a strict process to achieve the best results. But while each maker has his own nuanced methods to follow, all products are expected to go through the same laborious procedures.
The first step is to preserve, or cure rawhides, often done by freezing, salting, or drying. It’s crucial for this first step to be done properly to avoid wasting quality hides. After it is cured, the leather is limed to remove hair from the animal’s skin. Fleshing follows, the step of separating any extra tissue from the hide. Sometimes, makers split the hides to separate the top grain side from the bottom. These two sides are used for different applications—the top side is used for grain leather, the bottom for suede.