The Leather

While MARBLED was conceived directly from marbling, I couldn't help but fall in love with the world of leather, especially when I decided to merge between the two worlds.
I have fully immersed myself in the craft, and for that, I wanted to go back to the basics, by using leather made with the oldest and most intricate method: vegetable tanning.

 

What is Vegetable Tanned Leather?

Vegetable tanned leather is the traditional method of tanning leather using natural dyes and pigments. A carefully guarded secret handed down from father to son, it requires the expertise of skilled craftsmen who have mastered this elaborate and months long process from generation to generation.

The tannins used are extracted from plants and trees, making vegetable tanning safe to our health and to the environment as well.

 

 

Patience & Craftsmanship

Vegetable tanning takes place in large containers where the leather is left for weeks bathing in dyes. Unlike the cheaper and faster method of chrome tanning, the leather is not colored using a homogeneous topical spray coating of colors, but instead it is left soaking in the dyes. This causes slight tonal variations and nuances that are unique to each hide.

It takes immense patience and craftsmanship to produce high quality vegetable tanned leather. This less common method of tannage, mainly done by hand, can take up to 1-3 months, making it more expensive than mass produced chrome tanned leather, which usually requires little skills from the tanners.

 

 

"A leather that ages well"

Although chrome tanned leather is used for its more or less waterproof and stain resistance capabilities, it requires a faster and cheaper method of tannage, and lacks the many added values and quality of vegetable tanned leather.

The most coveted characteristics of vegetable tanned leather are its unique deep fragrance, its extreme durability that surpasses chrome leather, and its ability to develop a rich silky patina that darkens with use and exposure to sunlight.

This leather is constantly evolving with time and wear, becoming unique by itself, and tells the personal story of its owner.

 

 

Quality Trademark

We wanted to use the best quality leather we could find out there, so we made sure to buy the hides ourselves, directly from the source in Italy. Our tannery is tucked away in Tuscany, a territory rich in history, culture and artisan traditions.

Our tannery is also a member of the "Consorzio Vera Pelle Conciata al Vegetale", which is a proud trademark of quality.

The Consorzio regulates, preserves and guarantees the production of vegetable-tanned leather made in Tuscany, carefully crafted by the skillful hands of the Tuscan master tanners, repositories of ancient traditions.

All members of the Consorzio use rawhides from animals that were a sub-product of the meat industry. They are also strictly monitored to ensure a low impact on the environment. 

 

 

Full Grain Leather

Full grain leather is the highest quality of leather and the best you can buy. It is the top layer of the skin, right under the hair.

It is not sanded down or buffed or painted over to remove any imperfections or marks from the hide. Instead the natural grain is preserved making each hide completely unique.

Because it is the strongest and most durable part of a hide, all of our cowhide leather products are made from full grain leather.

Visit our product care page for more on how to take proper care of your leather article and enjoy it for many years to come.

You can also learn more about our brand here.

 

 

For more information, please write us here or send us a Direct Message on our Instagram handle @marbled.beirut