Accountable materials

Accountable materials

It is necessary to be able to stand by materials used, being sure that the origin and life of the material is transparent. The techniques I use demand strong, ecological materials. Also, the fact that the footwear must be repairable demands high quality materials.

I use vegetable tanned leather in my products, single strand linen thread, pitch, waxed thread for soles and sole leather for inner soles. The sole of sandals is built from Evaa light weight cellular rubber, and the surface is rubber. PIEK – boots have a Vibram sole underneath the sewn leather sole.

Pitch is a byproduct of tar, made by distilling. At the moment it is difficult to find shoemaker’s pitch. Traditionally pitch was attained from the making of wood tar and each shoemaker had his own recipe. In the last century shoemaker’s pitch existed and could be easily purchased. Pitch differs from asphalt pitch in that it does not contain bitumen and is a natural product. Since EU permits the production of wood tar in Finland by special license, it will foreseeably be possible to find shoemaker’s pitch in the future.

Pitched thread has a bore’s bristle attached to one thinned end. I obtain my bristles from the local Korpikarju game farm, where wild bores are grown sustainably for meat. Beeswax used for lubricating thread and facilitating its use is from a local bee farm. It is very important to me that the materials and products I need come from local sources.

Sustainably produced leather

Vegetable tanning is an ancient process and requires knowledge and skill to carry it out properly. Combining these skills with modern production methods permits the smallest possible ecological footprint. In vegetable tanning, the tannin comes from natural sources in lieu of chemicals, for instance from tree bark. https://www.kokkolan.com/

Vegetable tanned leather is an ecological choice but above all it is durable. At the start it is relatively stiff, but with use it softens and takes the shape of the user’s foot. Visually and to the touch vegetable tanned leather is beautiful. With use, natural leather acquires a lovely patina, reacting with light. It is also possible to pattern vegetable tanned leather, and it retains the pattern or shape when dry. This is very important when making the accessories from left over leather used for shoes. KIEP – jewelry’s shapes are formed when wet and they retain the shape as they dry.

This vegetable tanned leather also makes it possible to repair and restitch if needed. I mostly use 2.2 – 2.5 mm vegetable tanned leather. I order vegetable tanned leather from Tärnsjö Garver in Sweden, as their production is sustainable and accountable, and they continue to continually develop production in an ecological manner.

Leather is a side product and left over of meat production. If hides are not used for leather, they become a waste product. Despite the fact that meat production is responsible for a huge carbon footprint, when ordering leather, it is possible to choose to purchase as near as possible and from a sustainable, accountable producer. When considering the life span of a product, vegetable tanned leather can also be composted. Eventually it decomposes, but of course a shoe cannot be thrown into the compost.