Leathercraft in the 21st Century - Ancient Materials in the Modern World
Leather has been a part of human history for as long as humans themselves.
But how does it fit into life in the digital age? In a world full of new gadgets and high tech products, why and how do we still use it? What can it do that plastic or carbon fibers can't? Up until these new options came into being, humans and leather were absolutely symbiotic.
In other words, one could not exist without the other.
We made almost everything necessary for survival with it: clothes for our bodies, shoes for our feet, containers to ship and store our good, cases for our weapons and tools, and in many instances the tools themselves.
So what will become of leather now that so many things are around to replace it? Are we now past our leather addiction? In a word, the answer is "NO".
We still need leather.
Why? Because it can give us something no substitute can - a link to our past.
It also allows us to glimpse our future.
The links to the past are everywhere.
They are dug up from old battlefields in the form of boots and belts, holding the gold coins from some long sunken treasure ships, or helping to explain prehistoric life at an archaeological dig site.
How does it reflect the future? As humans we age at a predictable pace and so does leather.
We seem to take comfort in knowing that a new piece of leather will move through its life in a way that mirrors our own.
Just as the skin on our bodies will dry and crack, so with time will the leather.
With use and time our skin will stretch and so will the leather.
And yet we also understand that it will outlast our bodies by many, many years.
We also feel a kinship with leather because we understand that like ourselves it was once a living breathing creature.
Many would say the soul of the beast still can be felt in the lifeless hide.
No piece of plastic can offer that.
But is it "better" than the alternatives? Just put your hands on a real leather football or baseball and ask yourself the same question.
Aluminum baseball bats may be great for ease of construction and cost effect, but they don't feel or sound like a real maple or ash wooden bat.
One ever present truth about leather is that it is not cheap.
Since man first discovered how to tan skins, it has been a slow, costly process.
But in modern times, the cost may be much less than that of plastic in the long run.
Even though leather has been known to last for a couple of thousand years or more, it will still biodegrade at some point and it does not owe its existence to fossil fuels the way many of the other options do.
The current world of leather is more fantastic than ever, for while new materials can never replace it, they can enhance it.
A world of new products gives the modern leather crafter options their grandfathers could have only dreamt of.
Vibrant colors, synthetic finishes, and digital design applications offer whole new realms of possibilities.
So the next time you need a pair of boots, a pair of gloves, saddle, or guitar strap consider the "real thing" and get your hands on the unmistakable feel of leather.
But how does it fit into life in the digital age? In a world full of new gadgets and high tech products, why and how do we still use it? What can it do that plastic or carbon fibers can't? Up until these new options came into being, humans and leather were absolutely symbiotic.
In other words, one could not exist without the other.
We made almost everything necessary for survival with it: clothes for our bodies, shoes for our feet, containers to ship and store our good, cases for our weapons and tools, and in many instances the tools themselves.
So what will become of leather now that so many things are around to replace it? Are we now past our leather addiction? In a word, the answer is "NO".
We still need leather.
Why? Because it can give us something no substitute can - a link to our past.
It also allows us to glimpse our future.
The links to the past are everywhere.
They are dug up from old battlefields in the form of boots and belts, holding the gold coins from some long sunken treasure ships, or helping to explain prehistoric life at an archaeological dig site.
How does it reflect the future? As humans we age at a predictable pace and so does leather.
We seem to take comfort in knowing that a new piece of leather will move through its life in a way that mirrors our own.
Just as the skin on our bodies will dry and crack, so with time will the leather.
With use and time our skin will stretch and so will the leather.
And yet we also understand that it will outlast our bodies by many, many years.
We also feel a kinship with leather because we understand that like ourselves it was once a living breathing creature.
Many would say the soul of the beast still can be felt in the lifeless hide.
No piece of plastic can offer that.
But is it "better" than the alternatives? Just put your hands on a real leather football or baseball and ask yourself the same question.
Aluminum baseball bats may be great for ease of construction and cost effect, but they don't feel or sound like a real maple or ash wooden bat.
One ever present truth about leather is that it is not cheap.
Since man first discovered how to tan skins, it has been a slow, costly process.
But in modern times, the cost may be much less than that of plastic in the long run.
Even though leather has been known to last for a couple of thousand years or more, it will still biodegrade at some point and it does not owe its existence to fossil fuels the way many of the other options do.
The current world of leather is more fantastic than ever, for while new materials can never replace it, they can enhance it.
A world of new products gives the modern leather crafter options their grandfathers could have only dreamt of.
Vibrant colors, synthetic finishes, and digital design applications offer whole new realms of possibilities.
So the next time you need a pair of boots, a pair of gloves, saddle, or guitar strap consider the "real thing" and get your hands on the unmistakable feel of leather.
Source...