Modern Leatherwork for Makers

1 Understanding Leather

Image courtesy of Tandy Leather

While all-natural leather starts as some animal’s skin, it’s clear that there are differences between living skin and tanned leather. Given that skin will normally decompose if untreated, leather is something different. Understanding what makes leather different, and its basic qualities, helps greatly in knowing how to use leather effectively.

Figure 1-1: Collagen fibrils and fibers

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Skin is made of millions of tiny collagen protein fibrils (100–200 ...