How leather is made
Leather starts as the hide of an animal. Almost all hides used for leather are a by-product of the meat industry. Directly after slaughter, the hides are salted so they keep during transport, and they are often traded between countries before they reach a tannery. In the tannery, the hide goes through four stages:
- Cleaning. Salt, dirt and remaining flesh are removed, the hair is taken off and the hide is degreased. Thick cattle hides are split into two layers: the outer layer with the natural grain, and the lower layer, which is called the split.
- Tanning. Tanning stabilises the protein fibres of the hide, so it no longer rots and stays strong for years. Most leather is tanned with chrome salts. After this step the leather has a pale blue colour and is called wet blue. Vegetable tanning uses tannins from bark and wood and gives a firmer leather. There are also chrome-free methods.
- Retanning, dyeing and fatliquoring. This stage gives the leather its character. It is dyed, and oils are worked into the fibres to make it soft and supple. Leather that has reached this stage is called crust.
- Finishing. The surface gets its final look and protection with coatings, waxes or oils. This is also where leather is given a high gloss coating or an embossed pattern.
The finished leather is sold to shoe factories, often through a leather supplier. In the factory it is cut, stitched, pulled over the last (the foot-shaped mould that gives a shoe its shape) and fitted with the sole and heel.
The leathers in our shop
Nappa
Nappa is a soft, smooth full-grain leather, usually chrome-tanned and made from lamb, goat or calf. The name comes from Napa in California, where a tannery developed this supple leather in the late 19th century. Because nappa follows the shape of your leg, it is the leather we use most for knee boots and crotch boots, such as the Isadora knee boots and the Juliette crotch boots.
Vitello (calfskin)
Vitello is the Italian word for calf. Calfskin comes from young cattle and has a finer, tighter grain than leather from adult cows. It is smooth and strong, and it holds its shape well. See the Diana knee boots and the Holly ankle boots.
Goat leather
Goat leather is light and strong, with a fine natural grain. It is resistant to scuffs, which makes it well suited for pumps, such as the Valentina pumps and the Valerie pumps in matte goat leather.
Patent leather
Patent leather is leather with a thick coating, today usually made of polyurethane, a type of plastic. The coating is applied in layers: a base coat, a coloured coat and a clear, hard top coat that gives the mirror shine. In the 19th century this was done with layers of linseed oil lacquer. Because the coating closes the surface, leather cream cannot reach the leather underneath. That is why patent leather needs its own care products. See the Valerie pumps in patent leather and the Vesta knee boots in bordeaux red patent.
Embossed leather
Embossed leather gets its pattern from a heated metal plate that is pressed into the leather with a hydraulic press. The combination of heat, pressure and time decides how deep and sharp the pattern becomes. This is how a croc pattern is made, as on the Vanessa sandals and the Vivier pumps. Cocco is the Italian fashion term for crocodile.
Suede
Suede is made from the inner side of the hide, or from a split. The fibres are sanded until the surface has a soft, velvety nap. Nubuck looks similar, but is sanded on the outer grain side and has a finer nap. Suede has no protective finish, so it absorbs water and stains more easily than smooth leather.
Caring for your leather
- Smooth leather (nappa, vitello and goat leather). Remove dust with a soft cloth or brush, and use leather cream a few times per season. The cream replaces the oils that were worked into the leather during tanning and keeps it supple. Our 1909 Leather Cream and the 1909 Leather Care Set Basic are made for this.
- Patent leather. Wipe it clean with a damp, soft cloth and restore the shine with a patent polish, such as the Collonil Patent Leather Care Kit or Collonil Lack Polish. Do not use leather cream: it stays on top of the coating and leaves a greasy film. Store each boot in its own dust bag, because patent surfaces can stick together or take on colour from other materials.
- Suede. Brush it when dry, always in one direction, and treat stains as soon as possible. The Feraggio Suede Care Set contains what you need.
Sanctum Shoes: made in Italy
Every pair of Sanctum Shoes is made in our factory in Italy. This is where our boots and pumps are cut, stitched, lasted and finished.
According to our factory, the leather for Sanctum Shoes comes from Italian leather suppliers and is processed by tanneries in Italy. Most of our nappa leather comes from one supplier that is certified by the Leather Working Group as a leather trader. We checked this ourselves in the Leather Working Group’s public register. This certification applies to the supplier, not to the tanneries they buy from.
Where the hides come from
As described above, hides are often traded between countries before they reach a tannery. Our supplier cannot trace which farm or country the hides come from, so we cannot tell you where the animal came from.
Why we share this
We want you to know what we know about your shoes, and also what we do not know yet. We keep asking our suppliers for more information, and we will update this page when we learn more.
More information
Would you like to know more about the leather of a specific model? Send us an email at [email protected] and we will tell you everything we know about that pair.