Ateliers Fourès: what type of leather?
At Ateliers Fourès we have opted for a young bull leather, which is a leather from a young male bovine. It is a very high-quality and resistant leather. We refine it to 1.5 mm thick and work it with a technique called “diving” to make it extremely supple. These are large skins, ideal for cutting large pieces to make bags. In addition, it is a smooth skin that will develop a patina over the years and therefore become more beautiful! It is the ideal material for a quality product that will accompany you for a (very) long time.
How to recognize quality leather?
In leather goods, we mainly find two types of leather of very different qualities
- Full grain leather : this is the Rolls Royce of leather, the noblest and most beautiful leather (spoiler alert: it is also the most expensive).
It is made with the outer part of the skin and can sometimes be nubucked in order to have a velvet appearance and an extremely soft touch. -
Split leather : it is made with the inner part of the skin. Much less expensive than the flower, it is the most used on the market. But, it is of inferior quality visually and mechanically.
It can sometimes appear as velvet and take on the appearance of a full grain nubuck. However, it is much less beautiful than a nubuck and much less resistant.
The crust can also be covered with a thick layer of "plasticizing" paint on which an assisted grain is applied (mechanical hot grain printing: crocodile, lizard, grained leather, epi grain, etc.). This gives a crust that has the appearance of a full grain, but it is much less resistant than the grain, has no flexibility or roundness, and has a "plastic" feel.
As you may have guessed, for you, we only choose the best and it is quite natural that we only opt for high-quality full-grain leather on a daily basis. We work with a local tannery , used to producing skins for luxury leather goods .
Our full grain leather, 100% aniline: the Rolls Royce of Ateliers Fourès
Our leathers are "naked". They are not covered with a layer of resin, plastic or paint like the majority of leathers on the market. They are mass-dyed and 100% aniline. This means that no artifice (resin, plastic, artificial grain) is used to mask the roughness. It is therefore quite natural that only the most beautiful skins are reserved for this use. This gives an extremely supple leather, with an unrivaled natural feel.
This also means that your full-grain leather bag or wallet will be in contact with the outside and will be subject to friction. And… you may not believe it, but that's exactly what we want! Leather that develops a patina is leather that will darken, smooth out, and start to shine slightly. The more an area is in contact and rubs, the faster it will develop a patina. That's what makes our leather so charming: it becomes more beautiful over time!
What is the difference with other products on the market?
Most leathers found on the market are covered with a layer of synthetic pigments on the surface, like a kind of paint, more or less thick. This will completely cover the skin and hide all defects such as scars, bites and stains.
Then the leathers go to the finishing stage during which a mechanically assisted grain when hot will add a tumbled appearance, imitate another animal species (crocodile, lizard, etc.), or add fantasy (dots, spikes, etc.).
These two techniques allow to hide all the defects of the skin and to make it completely uniform. This makes the skin much easier to cut: it limits the scraps of leather, it goes much faster, and the cutting requires much less know-how. It is also a financial gain because it allows to buy much lower quality skins, with many defects.
On the other hand, this type of leather has many disadvantages.
- First of all, it is a leather that is not very durable and ages very badly. On all areas of friction, the thin layer of pigments ends up coming off and then leaves areas of leather of a different color.
- With these treatments, we will lose the natural touch of the leather for a plasticized sensation.
- We will also say goodbye to the natural details that make the material so beautiful.
- Finally, the final product is much more rigid.
Do not hesitate to visit our dealers to discover and touch our leathers. We are sure that the sensoriality and quality of these will transport you. 😊
