Highland Goatskin -- What Is It, Really?

We've been wondering for awhile now about Highland Goatskin. In our minds, we imagined sweet little kids rolling on the grass on Scottish hillsides. Considering the post we did earlier about French Morocco and leather lingo, we should have known, oui?

We heard that these critters were softer than most. We saw pictures that showed remarkable flexibility. And we read that this is the only kind of goatskin that is so soft because it's 100% natural -- not embossed or impressed.

So we finally decided it was important to get the skinny on the skin. We asked our supplier, who in turn asked a tanner. This is what the supplier said:

I asked the question of the tannery about highland goat. He says it's generally just from some region in Africa, but more of a selling tool than meaning anything. It is leather that is not embossed.

They were right! We read on another website that the famed Highland Goatskin was not, in fact, made in Scotland -- it was imported from Nigeria. (So much for our over-active imaginations!)

Then she confirmed what we knew in our hearts. The leather we were buying from her was also all natural, not embossed. Same thing. The larger hides were from Africa, and the smaller ones were from the U.S. Only we didn't give it a fancy name. We're calling it "Premium soft-tanned goatskin."

If you want the same kind of soft, flexible, but durable goatskin that's called "Highland Goatskin" by others, you've come to the right place. Here are a couple of pics of two Bibles we just shipped out yesterday, in black premium soft-tanned goatskin. Look familiar?

This is the difference: Leonard's isn't a publisher. We do rebinding. That means, you can choose your own "insides." If you want the text block of your Bible to be your grandmother's Bible from the 1920's, or your own heavily-used Zondervan Study Bible with a glued spine, or a brand-spankin' new smythe-sewn Thompson Chain Reference, or a Gideon's pocket Bible, you can do it. We can put that premium goatskin on any of your Bibles. What's more, we'll soon be expanding your options to include more colors. Stay tuned and we'll introduce you to the color line.

~Margie L. Haley, Partner
Leonard's Book Restoration Station
(574) 652-2151
http://www.leonardsbooks.com/

New Leathers In -- Old Leathers Out

Hi!

It's been awhile since we've posted anything, but things are good here in Indiana -- no earthquakes or tsunamis, no record snowfalls, just a good blanket of snow that waters the fertile soil for the winter wheat crop.

And yes, we've gotten over the Christmas rush, but we still have plenty to do. Our theory is, every book or Bible that we do right is our best advertisement. And the Lord has blessed that approach.The news is, I've gotta get the website changed soon. We have several leathers not available anymore and other new leathers that you might want to hear about. Until I get the website changed, here's the scoop.

Not available anymore: bomber jacket lambskin. I know, that's all over the place. It was nice while it lasted. Another leather, aviator sheepskin, is just not meeting our standards. We are also not going to be able to get several of the pigskins anymore: notably, the teal, plum, and deep burgundy.

But here are some new things that we believe you'll really like::-)The first is a top-grain cowhide. I know, in other posts, we've mentioned that top-grain cowhide is the uppermost portion of a piece of older leather, and that we prefer using a full-grain younger leather. But these cowhides look very nice indeed. Each has a pleasant light pebble grain, is soft and supple, and should be good and long-lasting. The best part is they come in 25 different colors. No, not black or burgundy, but 25 other colors like peacock, ivy, mocha, bright red, yellow, and purple. We like the combination of the thickness (durability) and the softness (flexibility).


The second is that we have some good flexible calfskins in several more colors now. We have them in a thicker black, brown, navy, burgundy, and forest green. These have the same nice grain I called "rustic" on the website. (Someone asked me what "rustic" meant recently. The answer -- it's not slick-smooth!) These calfskins look and feel wonderful on a Bible. The grain is mostly a small pebbly grain.


One more bovine option: burgundy sculptured Italian calfskin. It only comes in burgundy, looks "pre-wrinkled" and is wonderfully thick and flexible. I know, we were just teasing about the nationality of leathers in our last post, but then this stuff came in, and it really is nice. (The picture looks lighter than it really is, but shows the texture.)


Now, about the deerskin. We have done lots of really nice deerskin Bibles lately. They are very soft and flexible, and many people are looking for that feel nowadays. But there's a color you may have seen, both on our website and on other sites, called "natural tan" that's really not what it seems to be. The pictures of "natural tan" are actually a leather that's been hand-dyed to a glossy medium brown. Natural unfinished deerskin has more of a matte finish and could be even an eggshell color. So if you like the pictures, you would want to order "natural grain deerskin, hand-dyed to a glossy medium brown finish."


We also have burgundy, brown, and gold, that we can leave as is if you like, without that hand-dyed glossy finish. Here's a pic of some natural brown deerskin Bibles:

That's the scoop for now. We'll try to post more often.

Blessings in Jesus,
Margie

www.LeonardsBooks.com
Skilled bookbinding, restoration and repair services
P.O. Box 52***Burrows, IN 46916**U.S.A.
Phone: (574) 652-2151

New Leather and Paper!

Working with genuine leather can be interesting! As we've said before, genuine leather is not like Pringles, where everything is guaranteed to be the same size, nor is it like toilet paper. It's the real thing, and there's waste along the edges, real marks of originality on the skin itself (we do avoid holes!) and variation in the thickness of the leather.


But sometimes, we get some really wonderful stuff in, and we want you to be the first to know it. In the last week, we've picked up some beautiful skins of pink, brown, or turquoise, partial hair-on cowhide. This is for the guy or gal who really wants something different for Christmas! The effect is a sky-and-clouds look for the turquoise, a Neapolitan ice cream look for the pink, and a rocky road ice cream look for the brown.


Sometimes we'd wondered what it would be like to bind Bibles in a skin with the fur still clinging to it, but we'd always decided it really wouldn't work well. But this is flexible enough for a Bible, does show some of the skin, and gives us room to fold over the corners without getting hair on the glue. You can be the first (and only) one on your block with this fabulous skin covering your Bible! (Think of the animal skins on the tabernacle.)



We also got in some great new lambskin in black or navy, and a wide selection of special papers, marbled, printed, and satin that can be used for end pages or a very special leather & paper hardcover binding. If you have a special children's book you've been storing from your past that would be a good Christmas present if it were fixed up or restored, now's the time to brush it off and send it to us.

Margie L. Haley, Administrative Assistant
Leonard's Book Restoration Station
(574) 652-2151
www.leonardsbooks.com

Of Leather Supply and Flexibility

Question: Do you have a page with pictures of all your leathers and colors?

Answer: No. This is much harder than you would think.

If we did Bible covers in bonded leather as others do, we wouldn't have to worry about supply. Bonded leather comes in rolls like paper towels and there's no waste. It reminds you of Pringles, being formed out of leather dust and glue and made into precisely the desired, predictable shape. It comes in predictable amounts and can be ordered all the time, like your favorite brand of toilet paper.

But we see far too many bonded leather covers that are cracked, broken, chipped, and completely deteriorated to ever use the stuff. And real, genuine leather is harder to find.

Our stock of leathers is constantly changing -- at times we run out of a particular leather and find out it's no longer available, and at the same time, we receive beautiful new leathers, not previously available to us. Sometimes this is a little difficult if you received a price quote from us several months ago and have saved up the money gradually for a rebinding job. When there's a time lag like that, it's often advisable to ask for a new price quote. That will give you an opportunity to browse the current possibilities and maybe even change your mind.

For instance, we were out of buffalo grain burgundy pigskin for quite awhile, but have just gotten new hides in. This glossy leather with a beautiful criss-cross grain makes a very lovely Bible cover. We also have recently added a very cool soft chocolate brown sheepskin, good for smaller Bibles, and flexible purple cowhide. There are no pictures of these on our website, and it could take awhile before we are able to upload anything. But they would make great Christmas presents!

Question: In your opinion, is the mark of a good Bible binding the amount of flexibility in the leather?

Answer: (Answering this may get me into trouble with some higher profile Bible lovers, but I'll do my best.)

No, it's more complex than that.

Personally, I don't have a whole lot of appreciation for a floppy Bible. The "butter melting in the hand" model is inconvenient for carrying and unless you're in the habit of twisting your Bible into a pretzel, too much flexibility makes a Bible hard to hold while preaching.

On our Bibles, we try to reach a happy medium in flexibility, something that flexes without puckering or creasing, yet lends support to the text block. This is a challenge with genuine leather.

Keep in mind, the softcover Bible is, for the most part, a 20th - 21st century thing. Great flexibility requires the right glues, the right leather temper, and the right liners, all of which have become more available in the last few decades. The weakest link is in the leather supply. Leather tanners just don't seem to consider Bibles on the top of their priority list. So most leathers are not suitable for Bibles, either because they're too heavy (thick), or too stiff, or because the layers of the leather are not firm, creating puckering when flexed.

So my case against floppy Bibles is this. To achieve it nearly always requires a very thin leather with no interior liner, and almost no glue to secure the end pages. Because it's so floppy, the reader is then tempted to fold the Bible over backwards while holding it. <wince!> This stretches the sewing, warps the spine, and/or breaks the glued binding. The end result is a short-lived Bible. Eventually, that result will reflect on the one who made it a floppy Bible in the first place.

At Leonard's, we will always strive to satisfy the goals of our customers. But we want to do that without sacrificing the quality you have come to expect from us.

~Eric

Leonard's Book Restoration Station
www.LeonardsBooks.com
Skilled bookbinding, restoration and repair services
P.O. Box 52***Burrows, IN 46916**U.S.A.
Phone: (574) 652-2151