What is vegetable tanned leather?

What is vegetable tanned leather and why do we use it?

The process of vegetable tanning leather has been around for thousands of years and to practice it, takes sound knowledge of the handcraft. That’s why we turned to the local family company Kokkolan in Finland, with decades of experience.

Kokkolan has been working with producing ethical leather from the hide of free and happy animals since three generations back. It was important to us with locally produced ecological leather that’s not mass produced. Because it’s not just your Roselli blade that is handmade on demand, but even the leather sheaths that come with it.

By only using Finnish vegetable tanned leather for our sheaths, we ensure premium quality while at the same time caring for the environment. Since the process of vegetable tanning only uses organic material from barks, leaves and branches of trees and plants, instead of destructive chemicals. With your Roselli you’ll have an ethically produced vegetable tanned leather sheath that’ll last a lifetime.

After the delivery from Kokkolan to our small factory, every sheath is carefully handmade by Rea (our leather seamstress) to have a perfect fit for each axe and knife. You can see the whole process of how we make the sheath in the video below.

Much like our own skin, leather needs to be moisturised. Care for your leather sheath and you’ll have a beautifully aged leather that is soft, smooth, durable and strong. You can read more about how to care for your sheath under our Care & Repair guide.