Intro to buying a leather journal

Depending on its intended purpose, leather can be strong and durable, or soft and pliable.  If you are looking for something to withstand rugged daily wear, you will want something strong like goatskin or cowhide.  For more occasional handling, a soft leather like lambskin will satisfy.

When looking to purchase your leather journal, check to see which animal the leather came from.  They rank in order from cow, sheep, goat, and pig as far as quality.  The next item to look for is the quality of leather used in making the leather journal.  Look for natural markings on the leather; the fewer the markings the more expensive the hide as it will be full grain. The larger the pieces of leather in the pattern the more high-priced it is to make the item.

Types of leather for leather journals:

• Cowhide is the most common leather used to make jackets because it is durable, easy to care for, and resistant to water and dirt. Cowhide is affordable and functional.
• Lambskin is a very soft, luxurious leather.  It has a naturally light weight, velvety touch and finishes beautifully.  Lambskin is very wearable and is the ultimate luxury.
• Ostrich leather has a characteristic “goose bump” look because of the large follicles from which the feathers grew.  It is one of the toughest, yet more pliable skins in the world.  It resists drying and stiffening as it is brimming with natural oils. Ostrich Leather is currently used by many major fashion houses such as Hermes, Prada, Gucci and Louis Vuitton.
• Goatskin is perfect jacket leather because it is durable as well as supple, soft to the touch, and very comfortable to wear. Goatskin jackets last so long they are passed down from generation to generation.
• Horsehide is rugged enough for military wear. Italian-tanned horsehide is supple and comfortable, but still tough enough for a military jacket.

After you ascertain the animal, you should investigate the grade of the leather.  Let’s discuss some terminology that will assist you in making a wise purchase.

Terminology with leather journal materials:

• Top grain – Top grain leather is the outermost layer of a hide that is prized for its durability and texture.  The outer layer of a hide will usually have natural markings in the leather. To create top-grain leather, the outer layer of the hide is processed or sanded to get rid of the natural markings that occur.
• Full Grain Leather – Full grain leather is made up of the outer layer of a hide. The natural look of the leather is left untouched and the imperfections remain. This leather is prized for its strength, durability, and appearance.
• Saddle Leather – Sometimes known as crazy horse and is made from applying special waxes to surface of the leather. The effect here is that when rubbed the color will change and does not immediately reverse giving it an antique look.
• Split Grain Leather – A step up from bonded leather. Split grain leather is the inner most layer of a hide. Making it out of one full piece of leather makes it more durable than the bonded leather but not as durable as the top of the hide due to looser fibers. It also has no natural marking that would normally give the leather its unique look.
• Italian leather – The primary distinction of Italian leather is its quality.  Many Italian producers specialize in full grain leather — leather from the top of the hide, which is famous for its suppleness and quality.  Leather producers in Italy consistently produce very high quality products, in contrast with sometimes spotty production in other regions of the world.  Italians have been working with leather for thousands of years, and Italy has been famous for leather production for centuries.

The novice leather bound journal shopper may also encounter words like bonded leather or patent leather.  Hey, it’s got the word ‘leather’ in it, so must be good, right?  Here is a quick cipher:

Type of leather used in leather journal making:

• Patent – leather given a high gloss finish
• Buckskin – type of tanning process, usually smoked heavily to keep it from rotting
• Bonded – lowest grade; scrap leather bonded together with latex binders

Another deciding factor for a leather journal is the quality of the stitching and the hardware.  The grade, cut and quality of the leather may be good, but if the threads are loose or you see glue streaks, the overall standing of the item suffers.  Even with good leather a book is inadequate if it has loose stitching.  A jacket is substandard if the zipper binding is sewn incorrectly.  A bag is defective if the handle falls off.  Take these points into consideration when you need to discover the overall value of a piece.  If you do, you’ll find a wonderful leather journal that will last you for years to come.