A
Aniline Leather
Leather dyed with transparent dyes that let the natural grain show. Soft, premium, and often used in high‑end handmade leather goods.
B
Bonded Leather
A manufactured material made from leather scraps and adhesives. Not considered true leather — included here so customers understand the difference between mass‑produced goods and genuine hand‑crafted leather.
Bridle Leather
A smooth, durable leather that’s hot‑stuffed with oils and waxes, finished on both sides, and known for its refined look. Often used in belts, straps, and premium custom leather goods. See also: Harness Leather, Hot‑Stuffed Leather, Full‑Grain Leather
Buffing
Light sanding of the surface to remove imperfections or create texture (as in nubuck).
Burnishing (Edge Burnishing)
Smoothing and polishing the raw edges of leather for a clean, hand‑crafted finish. Often done with a burnishing compound.
Burnishing Compound
A waxy or soapy substance used to help edges seal and shine during burnishing.
C
Chrome‑Tanned Leather
Leather tanned using chromium salts. Soft, flexible, and colorfast — ideal for bags, apparel, and custom leather pieces that need to stay supple. See also: Drum‑Dyed, Combination Tanned
Chromexcel (CXL)
A famous combination‑tanned, hot‑stuffed leather from Horween with dramatic pull‑up and a rich, oily hand. See also: Horween Leather, Pull‑Up Leather
Combination Tanned
A mix of chrome tanning and vegetable tanning, giving leather both structure and flexibility.
Corrected Grain
Leather that’s been buffed or sanded to remove imperfections, then embossed 1with a uniform grain pattern.
D
Drum‑Dyed
Leather dyed in rotating drums so the color penetrates deeply and evenly. Often found in high‑quality handmade leather goods.
E
Edge Paint
A colored coating applied to leather edges instead of burnishing. Common in modern bagmaking.
Embossed Leather
Leather pressed with a pattern or texture — anything from crocodile to floral tooling.
F
Fatliquoring
A tanning step where oils are added back into the hide to restore softness and flexibility.
Faux Leather
Faux leather is not leather at all! As the modifier implies, this is not real leather. It is either a synthetic leather or leather from some organic source other than a hide. See our article on "Faux Leather vs Real Leather".
Flesh Side
The underside of the hide — softer and more fibrous. Visible on the inside of many hand‑crafted leather pieces.
Full‑Grain Leather
The highest quality leather, left uncorrected so the natural grain and markings remain. The gold standard for handmade leather goods. See also: Grain Side, Veg‑Tanned Leather
G
Genuine Leather
Real leather, but the lowest grade of it. When a thick hide is split to reach a consistent thickness, the top layer becomes full-grain leather if it's good enough to leave uncorrected, or top-grain leather if it needs sanding first — genuine leather is what's left of the "off-cut" underneath. It's still real hide, just lower quality and less durable than full-grain or top-grain. See also: Top-Grain Leather, Full-Grain Leather, Splitting, Faux Leather
Grain
The natural surface pattern of the hide — pores, texture, and markings.
Grain Side
The top surface of the hide where the natural texture lives.
See also: Full‑Grain Leather
H
Hand (Leather Hand)
How leather feels when you touch and bend it — soft, firm, waxy, dry, or buttery.
Harness Leather
Similar to bridle leather but typically finished only on the grain side. Strong, flexible, and deeply conditioned with oils and waxes during the hot‑stuffing process. See also: Bridle Leather, Hot‑Stuffed Leather
Harness Finish
A waxy, weather‑resistant finish applied to harness leather.
Horween Leather
Leather produced by the historic Horween tannery, known for hot‑stuffed, oil‑tanned, and pull‑up leathers like Chromexcel.
Hot‑Stuffed Leather
Leather saturated with oils, waxes, and tallows during tanning. Rich, durable, and weather‑resistant — and yes, it’s hot stuff. See also: Bridle Leather, Harness Leather, Chromexcel
K
Kipskin
Leather from young cattle. Thinner and finer‑grained than standard cowhide.
L
Latigo Leather
A combination‑tanned leather known for strength and flexibility. Often used for straps and outdoor gear.
M
Milling
A tumbling process that softens leather and enhances its natural grain.
N
Nubuck
Top‑grain leather lightly sanded to create a velvety surface. Softer than suede but more durable.
O
Oil‑Tanned Leather
Leather infused with oils and waxes during tanning. Rugged, water‑resistant, and ages beautifully — perfect for hand‑crafted leather goods meant to be used hard. See also: Pull‑Up Leather, Waxed Leather
Ounce
In modern leatherwork, a piece of leather's thickness is typically expressed in ounces. Oddly enough, it doesn't necessarily reference the leather's actual weight. It references the thickness of the leather. One ounce of leather is 1/64" or 0.4 mm thick. A piece of leather that is 1/8" thick is 8 ounce leather. The plural form, ounces, is rarely used.
The weight of leather is not exactly consistent throughout the hide. There are variations even when the leather is split. Splitting typically increases the consistency of its weight (ounce) but variations throughout the hide are still expected. See also: Weight
P
Patina
The natural darkening and soft sheen that develops over time. A hallmark of quality handmade leather.
Pebbled Leather
Leather embossed or naturally textured with a raised, pebble‑like grain.
Pull‑Up Leather
Leather that lightens when bent or stretched due to oils and waxes moving within the hide. Known for dramatic aging and character. See also: Oil‑Tanned Leather, Waxed Leather
R
Rawhide
Untanned animal hide that is stiff and extremely strong.
S
Saddle Stitching
A hand‑sewn technique using two needles and one thread. Stronger than machine stitching — the signature of true hand‑crafted leatherwork.
Skiving
Thinning the leather along an edge or section to reduce bulk or prepare it for folding or gluing.
Splitting
The process of slicing a tanned hide into layers to reach a consistent thickness. The upper layer is top grain — full grain if it's clean enough to leave uncorrected, or corrected (commonly just called top grain) if it needs sanding to even out imperfections. The lower layer is the split, often used for suede. See also: Full-Grain Leather, Top-Grain Leather, Split Leather, Genuine Leather
Split Leather
The lower layers of the hide after the top grain is removed. Often used for suede. See also: Genuine Leather
Staking
A mechanical softening process that stretches and flexes the leather to improve its hand.
Stuffing
The process of saturating leather with oils, waxes, and tallows — the foundation of hot‑stuffed leather.
Suede
Leather made from the underside of the hide, with a soft, fuzzy texture.
T
Tallow
A natural fat used in hot‑stuffing to give leather a rich, conditioned feel.
Tanning
The process of turning raw hide into durable leather. Includes vegetable tanning, chrome tanning, and oil tanning.
Tear Strength
A measure of how resistant leather is to ripping.
Tooling Leather
Firm, veg‑tanned leather made for carving, stamping, and decorative work. See also: Veg‑Tanned Leather
Top‑Grain Leather
The second-highest grade of leather. Sanded and buffed to remove imperfections and create a more uniform surface, trading some durability for a smoother, more consistent look. See also: Full-Grain Leather, Splitting
V
Vegan Leather
Vegan leather is a synthetic material made to mimic the look and feel of real leather, but without using any animal hide. It’s typically created from plastics like polyurethane (PU) or PVC, though some versions use plant‑based fibers such as cork, pineapple leaves, or apple pulp. It is not real leather!
While it offers a leather‑like appearance, vegan leather doesn’t develop the same patina, strength, or longevity as full‑grain hide. It’s included here so customers understand the difference between true, handcrafted leather goods and mass‑produced alternatives.
Veg‑Tanned Leather (Vegetable‑Tanned)
Leather tanned using natural plant tannins. Firm, durable, and perfect for tooling, carving, and heirloom‑quality handmade leather goods. See also: Tooling Leather, Full‑Grain Leather
W
Waxed Leather
Leather treated with waxes to create a slightly firm, water‑resistant surface that develops dramatic pull‑up and patina.
Weight (Leather Weight)
Though the term 'weight' is used for leather, it is not an actual weight in modern times. Hundreds of years ago, those who worked with leather needed a reliable way to measure leather. The weight of a 1 foot square (12" x 12") piece of leather was weighed in ounces. For instances, if a 1 square foot piece of leather weighed 8 ounces, it was "8 ounce leather."
It wasn't long before the correlation between the leather's weight and its thickness was observed. At some point afterward, leather workers began measuring the thickness of the hide but kept the term 'ounce'. See also: Ounce
Wick
The way oils and waxes migrate through leather over time, contributing to pull‑up and patina.
Understanding these terms gets you a long way down the road! Still confused by faux leather vs real leather or synthetic leathers? Check out our guide on that too!