1. The smell. Everyone loves the smell of leather, right? And it's a smell that lingers, it doesn't really fade. Walk into the room where I store numerous hides (half a decent sized herd at the last count) and the smell hits you - boom! And I love it.
2. The perfect imperfections. No two hides are the same - obviously. This isn't a man made material, so every piece of leather is different. I love to see the natural scars and veining on a side of leather. The ragged edges. I study each hide I buy and it tells me what style of bag to make.
3. The substance. A piece of leather is not like a piece of fabric. It is thicker in places. Softer in others. That's why bag making is an art - it's knowing that parts of the hide should be used for straps, but never for gussets and vice versa.
4. It's green. Not the colour green, I mean it's environmentally friendly. Contravertial maybe, but no-one ever bred a cow for it's hide. Leather is a by-product of the meat industry (or fishing industry if working with salmon or carp leather - yes, really!) so using it is actually a form of recycling.
5. Its' versatility. Give me a piece of leather and I'll show you the bag, the journal, the belt, the phone case, the dog collar, the cuff, the manuscript cover etc etc. A good tannery offers a wide range of hides and with skill, the right tools, some creative flair and a bit of knowledge you can make all sorts of amazing things!
See our work in our Etsy shop - ScissorSistas.etsy.com
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