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to my website
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navigate quickly to the section of your choice, click on the pictures or links
below
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| Belts |
Bags |
Leather
Tankards | Keycases
& Pouches |
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| Bit
& Pieces | Celtic
Buckles | Western
| Visit
the Tannery |
For
a good many years, I have been producing top quality hide belts, handbags and
accessories, using entirely traditional tools, methods and materials.
I
also renovate and restore all sorts of leather items. These have included antique
gun cases, camera and binocular cases, leather writing table tops and fire bellows
(both domestic and blacksmith's). I
have a working knowledge of the techniques and materials which were used in the
original manufacture of these items, and I am able to produce authentic restorations.
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| A
pair of bellows made in 1886, before restoration . . . |
.
. . and after restoration |
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| A
brand new pair of bellows, made from English ash |
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
PRICE
LIST
A price list
of my products, together with ordering information is available here.
CONTACT
If you wish to contact me to discuss
a special requirement, you can do so by e-mail at
[email protected]
If
you would rather 'touch, feel and sniff', most of my products are on permanent
display at
The
Shoe Box, 45 Leys Avenue, Letchworth,
Hertfordshire SG6 3EE
Much of my work has a Celtic
theme, using knotwork and zoomorphic designs derived from the Book of Kells, the
Lindisfarne Gospels, and Celtic crosses throughout western Europe.
The following photographs illustrate
a part of the range which is available
.
Belts
Most people are not straight-sided, so
why are most belts made straight? The gentle curve which is built into my belts
ensures that there is no 'bagging' at the back and sides, and the belt lies flat
against the waist. These belts are individually hand-tooled, dyed with colour-fast
saddle dyes, and hand-polished to a lustrous finish. The solid brass buckles are
cast in sand moulds, and polished by hand. All my belts are guaranteed for the
lifetime of the owner.
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
The
'Celtbelt'. The example at top has alternating Celtic knotwork and thonging along
its length. The lower belt has a continuous knotwork design along its length.
Bridle
Leather Belts
A
range of extra long belts for larger people
Made
from top-quality English Bridle Leather, these belts are hand-sewn for strength
and durability, with solid cast brass buckles. This leather is pre-dyed in Black,
Dark Havana, Tan, Burgundy and Blue, and will accommodate waist sizes of 50"
(127cm) and beyond.
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
The
Quercus Belt
The
heaviest belt in my range, the Quercus
is made from 6mm (15oz) Oak-tanned leather, from the UK's last
remaining traditional
oak-bark tannery. These hand-sewn
belts are triple stitched for strength and durability, with solid
cast brass
buckles, and are available in a range of colours.
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
If you wish to order
a belt, I will need to know the fixing
length you require. Please refer to the price
list for further information.
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to top
A
range of Solid Pewter Celtic Buckles
From
the English West Country, heartland of the Celtic tradition, a range of solid
pewter buckles, to complement any tooled or plain Celtic belt. These buckles are
cast in Britannia Pewter, and hand polished to a jewellery-quality finish. Each
buckle is supplied in a hand-made leather pouch. Belts can be made with heavy-duty
press stud fixings, to enable the buckles to be exchanged. To see a high-resolution
picture, click on each buckle's name.
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Bags
 | This
bag is hand-carved in 4mm hide, and is approximately 25cm in diameter. It has
an internal divider, with a zip-fastening pocket. All fittings are in cast brass.
A range of knotwork designs is available, or the front may be left plain. This
example is black. Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
|
 | This
bag is hand-tooled in 4mm hide, and is approximately 26cm wide. It has an internal
divider, with a zip-fastening pocket. All fittings are in cast brass. A range
of knotwork designs is available, or the front may be left plain. This example
is tan. Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
|
 | Another
popular design, in 4mm hide, approximately 25cm wide. It has an internal divider,
with a zip-fastening pocket. All fittings are in cast brass. The front may be
carved, tooled or left plain. This example is saddle brown.
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
|
 |
The little Celtic lions look fierce,
but they're just a pair of pussy-cats! If
you have a particular Celtic design which you would like on a bag, let me have
a drawing or a picture . . . I'll see what I can do! Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
|
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Leather
Tankards
Leather
tankards have been in use for hundreds of years, and examples have been recovered
from Viking and Saxon sites. They were widely used throughout the medieval period
in taverns and ale-houses.
These
tankards can be personalised with initials in Celtic lettering, and make unique
gifts for all occasions.
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
Super-rugged
tankards, made from heavily grained 6mm hide.
Available in brown or black, the heavy graining on these tankards does not
lend itself to tooling, but initials may be added to the base.
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
All
tankards are made from English hide, to traditional designs. They are lined with
Brewer's Pitch, which has been refined to food-grade (BS:6920:1900) for use with
consumable liquids, and are suitable for use with most cold drinks . . . particularly
ale!
Large tankards hold approximately 1 pint, and small tankards hold approximately
½ pint.
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Keycases
and pouches
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
A range of 6-hook and 8-hook keycases,
in 2mm hide, together with a selection of belt pouches in 4mm hide. These items
are available in a basic colour range of black, tan and saddle brown.
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Bits
and pieces
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
A
selection of small items.
Back
left - Refillable lighters, with tooled leather case.
Centre
- Pound coin holders (holds £15) with tooled leather cover.
Front
left and right centre - Tooled leather hairslides.
Back
right - Thonged leather neck-purses.
Front
right - Bookmarks (tooled with pattern or name).
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Western
Leatherwork
 | A
pair of hand-carved Western saddlebags, made as a special commission. The design
possibilities are infinite, and items of this type are the result of much discussion
- it is important to get it right first time! Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
|
 | Another
pair of Western saddlebags, made from top-quality bridle leather. These were made
for heavy all-weather use. Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
|
 | Western
holsters have to be tailored to fit both the wearer and the gun. Again, the design
options are endless, but most guns (and wearers!) can be accommodated.
Click
here
to download a high-resolution picture. Use your 'Back' button to return.
|
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What
is Vegetable Tanned Leather?
 | The
leather that I use is tanned by the vegetable tanning process. Hides are prepared
by soaking for up to two weeks in a lime solution to dissolve the hair roots.
The hair is removed by a combination of mechanical and hand rubbing, and the hides
are soaked in water to remove the excess lime. In the 'raw hide' state, the skins
are cut to the required sizes - shoulders, butts, backs, sides or bellies - before
being transferred to the tanning pits. |
| The tannery
has 72 tanning pits, each containing a successively stronger solution of tanning
liquor, made from oak bark soaked in water. |  |  |
| Each
pit will accommodate about eighty hides. After a week in the weakest tanning liquor,
the hides are moved along to the next pit, and this process |
| continues
until the hides have passed through fifty pits. Most hides are completely tanned
after fifty weeks, but some leathers - for shoe soles and heavy-duty applications
- require a further twenty-two weeks of tanning to achieve their full strength.
The tanned hides are stretched, dried and
rolled, and the back is |  |
 |  | shaved
to a uniform thickness. A mixture of cod oil and mutton fat is rubbed into the
surface by hand, to restore the suppleness of the leather. When
moistened, vegetable tanned leather will retain a stamped or carved impression.
Much of the vegetable tanned |
 | leather
produced in this country is hand-dyed, and given further dressings of oils, making
the leather waterproof and suitable for use in the manufacture of high quality
saddlery. The leather that is used for most shoe uppers, clothes and upholstery
is tanned by a quicker and cheaper chemical process. |
 |
|
 | I
wish to thank J & F J Baker & Co Ltd (Hamlyns)
of Colyton, South Devon, for their hospitality in allowing me to visit their tannery
and take the above photographs. This is the only remaining traditional oak bark
tannery in England, and most of their machinery was built before 1914. The grinder
which crushes the oak bark is driven by a water-wheel that is well over 100 years
old! All of the finishing processes are carried out by hand, and the end product
is pure quality! |
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Did
you Know . . ?
- Vegetable
tanning is probably the oldest method of leather-making. Examples of vegetable
tanned leather dating from the Bronze Age (about 3,700 years ago) have been found
in Britain, and stone and bone leather-working tools dating from the Stone Age
have also been found in this country.
- Ancient people are known to have made
water buckets and pots from leather. When tightly stitched, the wet leather expands
and becomes perfectly watertight.
-
Nomadic people in desert countries often
still use leather water carriers. They are lighter than pottery, and less fragile.
When water penetrates the leather, it evaporates from the outside, cooling the
water inside.
PRICE
LIST
A price list
of my products, together with ordering information is available here.
CONTACT
If you wish to contact me to discuss
a special requirement, you can do so by e-mail at
[email protected]
That's
the end of the story so far! I will be adding to this site soon, as time and patience
permit, so please call again.
In
the meantime, please be kind enough to sign my guestbook.
LINKS
If you are interested in crafts in general,
this is a good site to visit:
If your interest is strictly in things
Celtic, you may like to browse through
. . . there's a wealth of links here!
The only remaining traditional oak bark
tannery in Britain can be found at
Copyright
© Terry Dear Celtic Leather 2011
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