Event Details

Natural hide tanning is a traditional method of transforming raw animal hides into a durable and usable textile (leather). The process utilizes many age-old techniques, practiced by various cultures for centuries, to result in leather that is pliable, resistant to decay, and suitable for crafting a variety of goods. In this workshop, we will explore a few main natural tanning methods as well as touch on why some chemical tanning methods are not sustainable for our environment. In this hands-on workshop, participants will walk away with a basic understanding of the will needed to tan various types of animal hides and have small bite size pieces of each to explore and take home. Suitable for beginners and anyone who wants to dive into talking about sustainable leather as textile.

This Bite Sized tanning crash course combines some slide show presentations with hands-on work.

Note on accessibility:

This workshop includes some repetitive hand and wrist motions for scraping, stretching and softening of hides and leather. This may be difficult for folks with carpal tunnel or other conditions that impact one's hands and wrists. Physical participation is not required and folks may still participate without working on hides.