Ever wonder why some leather looks, feels and smells so much better than others? It's all down to vegetable tanning
At CARV we use only the purest top grade and high provenance vegetable tanned leather to make our British made leather goods.
Leather tanning is the process of turning hide into leather. It can be undertaken using a variety of methods, broadly categorised into either vegetable or chemical tanning.
The vegetable leather tanning process is a technique that has been around for centuries and there are only a small number of tanneries today in the UK practising this traditional craft. Read on to find out why we love vegetable tanned leather and believe it is a genuinely sustainable material.
At CARV we use only pure natural vegetable tanned leather in our British made bags and accessories.
Natural, Beautiful, Long-Lasting
There are two key factors that distinguish vegetable tanning from chemical tanning; the liquid type and the production time.
Vegetable tanning uses gentle, chemical-free liquids, derived from natural products such as tree bark, leaves, berries and other organic matter, to transform the hide. The process can take up to 14 months and, owing to this gentle approach, the natural fibres of the hide are protected, resulting in a more natural looking, beautiful, strong and long lasting leather.
It also retains that lovely smell and feel associated with traditionally tanned pure leather.
More Environmentally-Friendly
The chemical-free process of vegetable tanning is more friendly to the environment and the health of people working in the tanneries, and this is just another reason why we love vegetable tanned leather. It uses natural ingredients and man power, rather than the machines and harsh chemicals used in modern methods.
But sadly, there are only a few remaining traditional leather tanneries in the UK today. The long and labour intensive production process is costly, making it difficult for traditional tanneries to compete, and these skills are increasingly being lost.
