Eighteen hours, one bag
Tanning, cutting, saddle stitching, edges: four slow steps, no machine seams, and the same two pairs of hands from start to finish.
From hide to seam
Four steps, no shortcuts
01 · Tanning
Forty days in bark
Our hides come from a family tannery in Santa Croce sull'Arno, where they rest for weeks in chestnut, oak and mimosa tannins. No chromium, no plastic finish.
02 · Cutting
Read the hide, then cut
Every hide is different. We cut handles and straps along the spine, where the leather is strongest, and keep the softer belly for linings and card holders.
03 · Saddle stitching
Two needles, one thread
Holes are marked with a pricking iron, then sewn with waxed linen thread passing both ways through each hole. Seven stitches to the inch, about 1,400 on a tote.
04 · Edges
Burnished until they shine
Each edge is bevelled, sanded, dyed and rubbed with beeswax and a wooden slicker. It is the slowest step, and the one you feel every time you pick the bag up.
What goes into a piece
The materials
Nothing synthetic, nothing glued where it can be sewn.
