Sustainability - The natural way
Sustainability is a big subject.
It’s great that we realise now we need to make changes to look after our plant. It can sometimes feel a little overwhelming and difficult to know how we can make a difference.
I recently listened to Holly Tuckers podcast “Conversations of Inspiration” where she interviewed Yeo Valley CEO Tim Mead (It’s really interesting and I highly recommend listening to it.). He spoke about how a simple way of thinking about sustainability is thinking of things in the natural way - the way things have been done for centuries. For example thinking of food that hasn’t been too processed before we eat it.
(Am I allowed to admit that I love Yeo Valley natural yoghurt and have it most days for breakfast or do I have to include…. that other brands are available??)
Around 90% of leather is Chrome tanned, using a solution of chemicals, acids and salts (including chromium sulfate). This method only takes up to two weeks to process making it a cheaper option but it’s not very gentle on the environment.
I only use vegetable tanned leather. This is the natural way of tanning leather and the way it has been done for centuries. The leather sits in pits with water and tree bark for months. The tannins from the bark, preserve the leather. It takes longer to tan leather this way, for example my belt leather tanned using oak bark can take up to 15 months, but it makes a stronger leather. Also, the fibres of vegetable tanned leather are still flexible which means I can mould it and hand-tool it. I love how the natural way of tanning leather gives me the ability to be creative with leather and make unique products.
Unfortunately this type of tanning in the UK is on the Heritage Crafts Endangered Crafts Red List. Sadly, I received an email just last week telling me that another British tannery, that used vegetable tanning, had closed.
We know we need to be more sustainable with our purchases, be careful about the resources we use and making what we have last longer. Traditional crafts, like leatherwork, by nature are slow fashion and more sustainable.
Here are some examples of how I work my business sustainably
I use vegetable tanned leather which doesn't use chemicals in the tanning process.
I use British tanned leather so a low carbon footprint.
I use as much of the leather as possible. The offcuts from bigger items are used for smaller items.
My business cards, swing tags and notecards are printed onto British paper made from recycled cotton (no trees cut down for it).
My packaging boxes are made in Scotland using British paper again low carbon footprint.
I reuse paper and bubble wrap when posting out orders.
Everything is made by hand, so use less electricity.
Traditional hand-stitched leatherwork is mendable.
Leather is a by product of the food industry.
Leather is durable and when you're finished with it, it's 100% biodegradable.
We can’t change everything but if we can make small changes and considered purchases.
Heritage Craft Association Endangered Crafts Red List
Click here to listen to Holly Tucker’s podcast with Tim Mead the CEO of Yeo Valley.