ALL OF THE LEATHER I USE IS VEGETABLE TANNED.
Tanning is the process that turns animal skin into leather. There are a variety of methods used to tan leather, but many of them involve harsh chemicals and waste resources. Vegetable tanning uses natural tannins found in vegetable matter, like tree bark and leaves, which react with the animal proteins to turn the skin into leather.
Vegetable tanned leather patinas with age. Much of the appeal of this type of leather is that it molds to the user's lifestyle and habits. Exposure to the elements and general wear will darken the leather and mold it to the contents (in the case of a wallet or bag) or to the wearer (in the case of belts and harnesses).
As of February, 2021, I’ve been transitioning where I get all of my leather from, to provide consistent leather of the top-most quality. In the past, I’ve sourced leather primarily from Tandy Leather, a nationwide leather craft store. They have a variety of leathers and a range of quality, but are not always consistent. In 2020, I started to source leathers from Wickett & Craig, a world premiere leather tannery founded in 1867 and now operating out of Curwensville, Pennsylvania. Their leather is the absolutely beautiful and gets better with age.