Lesson #1) Leather Basics: What It Is and How It's Made

Leather begins at the source: usually a domesticated farm animal raised for meat such as cow and sheep, but alternative leathers are also made out of plastic, vegetables, and even fungi. 

We discuss the different sources in Lesson #2.

With animal hides, particularly cowhide, leather can be "split" into different kinds of thicknesses or structures. These are are labeled full grain, top grain, "genuine", suede, or bonded. 

We'll explain structures in Lesson #3.

Tanning leather had been done mostly the same way through history, using plant tannins such as oak bark. But during the Industrial Revolution, new chemicals and processes were discovered to speed up leather tanning and reduce the cost: mineral (or chrome) tanning. 

We'll talk more about these and other tanning methods in Lesson #4.

Another leather innovation during the Industrial Revolution, was new ways for finishing the leather: acids, dyes, paints, waxes, and coatings. Each of these different treatments affects the drape, color, and durability of the leather. This makes the different kinds of leather suitable for different kinds of products. 

We'll explain some of the finishing methods in Lesson #6.

Ancient Egyptians valued leather as highly as gold. Historically, in Europe, leather was used as both a functional material and an artistic material, and fine art examples survive of leather being used as wall coverings, ecclesiastical objects, and decorative coverings on wooden boxes and furniture.

In Asia, leather is best-known for its fine art use in shadow puppets, decorative boxes and bottle coverings, and in Africa, leather was used in decorative figures as well as the shields of the Massai.

Functionally, leather has been used for everything from drinking vessels to boats to, of course, footwear. In fact, ancient Romans judged a man's rank by the quality of his sandals.

Leather has unique functional properties, being both flexible and durable. But it also has a certain cachet. From ancient times to today, leather is considered a high value material. Because of its unique properties, leather is still the material of choice for shoes, furniture, sport, and book bindings.

Modern mineral tanning methods expanded the number of ways that leather is used, but it also introduced more perishability to it, even gaining a reputation for being a fussy, difficult material, such as with a suede jacket (a certain episode of Seinfeld comes to mind!).

The variety of leathers available today mean that leather is used for more products and applications than ever, but also that the match between the type of leather and its intended use is more important than ever. Leather can now be made to last a lifetime, as was always historically done, such as for a high-quality equestrian saddle, or it can be designed to tear and wear out within a year, as in fast fashion.

We'll talk a lot more about leather and craftsmanship quality - including its sustainability and ethical considerations, and how to recognize it in the store - in Lessons #7-9.