LEATHER, LEATHERS

I wanted to do a little summary on the leather. In all modesty because I am not an expert. For TiNNSON boots I mainly choose full grain calfskin: full grain calf. Full grain means that the upper part is preserved in the state with all the imperfections resulting from life in the great outdoors: various bites, scratches. All TiNNSON linings are entirely in calfskin: natural calf. Beyond exotic leathers, most of the leather used in the shoe industry is cowhide. What is the difference? The cow is a mature, older animal. The calf is the animal in its youth, in its best shape and the skin is logically more robust, more resistant, more toned, more dynamic. Now, insofar as veal consumption has dropped considerably worldwide, with beef remaining more or less stable, veal is becoming a scarce and therefore more expensive commodity. In summary, we can say that calfskin is finer for equal resistance: more flexible, more comfortable and more durable, therefore more noble. For the soles we use exclusively cowhide: thickness and robustness. For the uppers, calfskin remains the noble material and it is now treated in a healthy way with a minimum of chemistry. Obviously we all seek to be clean and respectful of the Earth. Like everyone else, I want to be respectful of nature and I discuss this regularly with the workshop. We are all aware and moving forward. No one can ignore the massive problems on the horizon anymore. I am also studying alternative solutions. Today we use the leather that is made available through the consumption of meat. Tomorrow… I mentioned leather processing. There is the essential tanning to make the leather usable, but there are also countless treatments to obtain a specific appearance, look, texture. For example grained leather. And this is where we see the greatest diversity because the treatment can make it possible to camouflage defects and mediocre qualities, very low-end leathers which will be plasticized for example to give them a shiny side. So, like everywhere, there is a big difference between low-end high-volume products and the quality resulting from meticulous, artisanal work in small quantities.