Leatherworks of Jerovitz

[LuxyLucy 691]

Spoiler

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ISSUED BY THE COUNTY OF JEROVITZ

c. [567] E.S.

 

 

 

Leatherworking has a long and storied history spanning countless generations of artisans and craftspeople. From small villages to bustling cities, the creation of leather goods has been an integral part of communities for centuries. This ancient craft connects us to the past while continuing to thrive in the present day. We as a people rely on animal hides for warmth and shelter. Leatherworking provides crucial protection against the elements for societies. For centuries, leatherworking has been about creating practical items for daily use. Leather is often fashioned into utilitarian objects like shields, waterskins, harnesses, and storage pouches. Skilled artisans' hand-stitch functional leather clothing, belts, and sandals. Beyond basic necessities, leatherworking is continually evolving as an art form. These decorative touches include the likes of woven leather, gold ornamentation, and jeweled accents. Along with embossed leather for book covers. Artisans have experimented with new methods like dyeing, gilding, inlaying, and Koravian leather stamping.

 

 

 

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On Leather

The process of making leather hasn’t changed much over the centuries, however the process of leather production is lengthy and complicated, relying on skilled artisans known as tanners, to turn animal hide into a valuable product.

 

Fleshing

This process turns a raw, unruly hide into a workable material. It is important to determine the hide’s top and bottom. If it still has its tail, identifying the bottom is straightforward - the tail is at the bottom, and the neck is at the top. This distinction matters because, beginning with the neck facing you makes fleshing a lot easier, because removing flesh goes more smoothly when you work your way down from the neck. To begin the process, firmly pin the hide under your body, using your weight to keep it steady and with a sharp blade begin cutting in a downward motion, scraping the flesh from the hide. You do not want to move sideways as that will lead to gouges or cuts in the hide.

 

 

Curing

The process of curing prevents putrefaction by preventing bacterial growth on the hide between procurement and processing. It greatly reduces the moisture content of the hide. The hides will be heavily covered in salt before being left out to dry. This will also lead to the hide stiffening as a result.

 

 

Soaking

Once the hide has been cured, it is left to soak in water for several hours - sometimes even days. The objective in this step is to rehydrate the hide, as well as to remove any excess salt or dirt.

 

Liming

After soaking, the hides and skins go for liming. This means soaking the hides in a drum or pit filled with milk of lime, an alkaline solution. Liming results in the removal of natural grease and fats as well as keratin and hair. It also causes the swelling and splitting of fibers to the desired extent and prepares the collagen in the hide to a condition that is ideal for tanning.

 

Deliming

This step is where the alkalinity of the hides is reduced by adding acids to the hides in the drum or pit. The swollen fibers of the hides shrink once more in preparation for the bating process. The deliming process takes around two hours for cattle hides.

 

Bating

The process of bating involves adding enzymes to the hides to soften them, this process will lead to the now shrunken hides to flatten and relax.

 

Pickling

After bating is the pickling process, which involves treating the hides by salt and then acid. The salt prevents the adverse effects of a sharp increase in acidity from the acids used in pickling. This process is important as it prepares the collagen to take in the tanning agents fully.

 

Tanning

After the preparation stages comes tanning. There are many ways to tan hides, but the end result is that the hides will not putrefy and are ready for dyeing and other uses such as manufacturing goods.

 

The most often used of these methods is vegetable tanning, it is where you take the tannins from the bark and leaves of trees and plants. After the preparation phase, the hides are placed in the tanning pit, where there are drums containing tanning solutions of various strengths. Over a period of two to three months, the tanners move the hides from drum to drum, with the solution getting progressively stronger. The tanning agents soak into the skins and the fermentation and deposition process leaves the hides with a distinct color and appearance. The use of vegetable tannins will have a distinctive sweet, woody fragrance that is normally associated with leather.

 

 

Another method is brain tanning which is a labor-intensive and specialized way of tanning hides. It is usually practiced by hunters to preserve the hides of fresh kills. Animals such as deer, elk and moose have enough acids of the right type to tan their own hides. The process varies from person to person, but the method involves first cleaning the hide thoroughly by scraping off the flesh, fat and membrane covering the inside of the hide. After this, the tanner washes the hide thoroughly, wrung and stretched on a frame. A tanning solution, made by mixing warm water and the mashed-up animal brain, is applied by rubbing it onto the hide. Once the hide is ready, it is smoked to complete the process. 

 

Once a pelt has been tanned, it is now considered leather.

 

 

 

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Shoemakers

Shoemakers are a well-respected trade within society, Cordwainer is the title given to shoemakers, while Cobblers are those who repair shoes. All shoes are made from a wooden mold from which the shoe is fitted and stitched over. Wealthier families pay cordwainers to keep wooden molds per each family member's footing.

 

Cordwainers and Cobblers without established shops often travel from town to town, exchanging shoe repairs for room and board, along with circulating news and gossip. Many families will apprentice a son to a Cordwainer or Cobbler, so that shoes and repairs could be made with little cost.

 

Boot making is the most sophisticated and prestigious branch of the trade, Riding boots and Jackboots are made especially for those of the warrior class. They’re not intended for walking, as the tight leather around the calf makes it easier to feel and control a horse.

 

Mules are a type of slip-on, generally used for walking around inside. But some versions of mules are made to slip over the shoe to protect it from mud or muck. Patens, usually made for women, are clogs with wooden soles intended to increase the wearer’s height or keep them out of the mud.

 

A recent innovation by the Koravian Cordwainers is the high-heeled shoe. They require a modification in design, the shank in the arch of the shoe needs to be strong and stiff enough to keep the shoe from collapsing forward, while the sides of the shoe need to be molded so that the foot does not slide down into the toe area. Due to their intricate design, only the wealthiest find it feasible to acquire this style of footwear, along with are adept enough to hide the discomfort of wearing this symbol of style over comfort.

 

 

Girdler

An occupation heavily ingrained within Koravian culture, most notably in aiding those who seek to complete The Bond of Bulls. A ritual in which a man must produce a decorative item made of bull leather to present for the woman he desires to court. 

 

Belts have transformed from a strictly utilitarian item to a fashion accessory. Leather is the most popular belt material due to its ability to withstand being bent, folded and tightened without being damaged. Pouches to carry objects, such as coin purses, scabbards and a list of many other things can be attached to belts and used instead of a garment’s pockets.

 

 

Buckles were almost exclusively worn by the wealthy. It wasn’t until recent manufacturing techniques have made it possible to produce them through Moulds allowing them to be made available for the general population. A conventional buckle has a frame, a bar, and prongs. It’s reliable rather than aesthetic. If a buckle consists of two separate pieces, one with a hook and the other with a loop, it’s actually called a clasp. Clasps cannot be adjusted easily. A trim or slide is a buckle without a chape or prong. This type of buckle is used in home dressmaking and purely for decoration purposes.

 

 

Spoiler

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Saddler

A vital occupation in revolutionizing how our societies would be able to grow from a small collection of towns to vast Kingdoms with metropolises like New Valdev. Horse saddles are more than just functional equipment; they are a testament to centuries of innovation and refinement. A nickname given to this vital component in developing transportation, agriculture and warfare is the “Seats of Empire.” 

 

 

A saddle tree raises the rider above the horse’s back and distributes the rider’s weight on either side of the animal’s spine instead of pinpointing pressure at the rider’s seat bones, reducing the pressure on any one part of the horse’s back, thus greatly increasing the comfort of the horse and prolonging its useful life. Within recent centuries the saddles were improved upon, as the Marian Retinue needed saddles that were stronger and offered more support. The resulting saddle has a higher cantle and pommel, to ensure prevention of the rider being unseated during battle, when riding in these war saddles, the leg is really close to the horse, as the upper leg is not impeded by a broad tree or lots of padding and leather, yet the surface area in contract with the horse is large. A surprising factor with these saddles is how light they are, around half the weight of a regular saddle. Which is a needed bonus with the already added weight of generally large riders wearing heavy armor.  They’re padded with wool or horsehair and covered in leather. It has since received modifications for use in tending to cattle as well as Koravian bullfighting.

 

 

Though in the lands of Koppány, historically a semi-nomadic and semi-militarized people, have formed their own unique saddle culture. The Koppány saddle is a simple and strong design. They do not need integral padding and can be left as just bare wood; it sits on several layers of wool or fur to protect the horse. It does not need breast or breeching straps, although they may be of use over long distances and rough terrain. The horseman's shanks stretch back, and he raises considerably higher over the horse’s back. The influence of the legs over the horse is much less. As a result, the riders of Koppány manage their horses mostly by means of the bridle, the bending of the body and the whip. When standing still or cantering they put little weight on the stirrups, however, at a trot they have to lean forward, bend their legs more, pressing against the stirrups. At a gallop one almost does not need to press against the stirrups, and the rider sits deeply in the saddle.

 

 

Leather Dyers

Dyes come from a lot of different sources, some of them far more expensive than others. Still, even the humblest of people can afford to have colorful clothing. Using plants, roots, lichen, tree bark, nuts, crushed insects, mollusks, and iron oxide, virtually every color of the rainbow can be achieved. However, adding color is an extra step in the manufacturing process that raises the price, so clothing made from undyed leather is very common among the poorest folk. A dyed leather would fade fairly quickly if it wasn’t mixed with a mordant, and bolder shades required either longer dyeing times or more expensive dyes. Thus, the leathers with the brightest and richest colors cost more and were, therefore, most often found on the nobility and the very rich. One natural dye that does not require a mordant is woad, a flowering plant that yields a dark blue dye. Woad is used so extensively in both professional and home dyeing that it is known as “Dyer’s Woad,” and garments of a variety of blue shades can be found on people of virtually every level of society.

 

 

 

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HER LADYSHIP, PRIMROSE EMELYA KORTREVICH,

The “Rose” of Kortrevich

[prophetisms 982]

Dszamila read over the missive with great care and a smile upon the latter contents. She’d definitely be heckling Jerovtizian leatherworkers for a new bridle soon!

[Toffee 2843]

Erika Kortrevich read yet another of her sister's publications, fondly glancing at a pair of Koravian leather riding gloves left discarded on the desk. She added this work next to On Haeseni Agriculture and An Agricultural Revolution, which had pride of place on her bookshelf.

[Wrynn 1349]

do you make boots?