Question. What is Bridle Leather? Answer. Bridle leather is vegetable tanned cowhide that has been finished with fats, waxes and tallow. It gets it's name from what it was originally created for - a bridle - the straps on a horse's head, to connect to the reins. It is very strong and long lasting, but more importantly, it is very beautiful and naturally produced.

Question. What is vegetable tanned leather ? Answer. Vegetable tanned leather is hide that is preserved using natural ingredients from vegetable (as opposed to mineral) sources.

Question. What is the vegetable tanning process? Answer. Animal skin or hide is limed, and treated to remove unwanted flesh and hair, and at the end of this stage it is called a pelt. The pelt is further treated to prevent it rotting, the usual process for this is called tanning, and after this process it is called leather. The two main types of tanning used in commercial production today, are chrome tanning and vegetable tanning. Vegetable tanning is done in 2 ways; Drum Vegetable Tanning or Pit Vegetable Tanning. Drum tanning takes about 4 days, and pit tanning takes about 6 weeks. In vegetable tanning terms, slower is better. Glenroyal products are made from pit vegetable tanned leather. This is a progressive system of moving the pelts from a weak tanning liquor to a gradually strengthening tanning liquor to ensure even, regular, and maximum absorption of the tanning agents, to give strong, long lasting, leather. There are very few pit tanners left making leather in this way, because it is a time consuming process. It does however produce the best leather, which is why we at Glenroyal always specify pit tanning.

Question. What is the tanning liquor? Answer. This is the medium in which the pelt is converted into leather. Different tanners have different 'recipes' to produce different characteristics. In pit vegetable tanning the ingredients are selected to give a long slow absorption into the skin. The leather that we use at Glenroyal is naturally tanned using 2 main ingredients. The first is Mimosa (the bark from the Wattle tree) which is crushed and dried. This bark is obtained from 100% renewable sources planted specially on a 10 year cycle. This part constitutes around 80% of the additives. The remaining 20% comes from Myrabolams (a nut from Brazil) from which the kernels are crushed and dried. These ingredients are added to water and this is what tans the leather.

Question. I have seen a white bloom or deposit on the leather, what is that? Answer. Bridle leather is impregnated with oils, fats and waxes to make it strong, and keep it supple. The white deposit you sometimes see on bridle leather is tallow, migrating to the surface of the leather. The bridle we use is of the highest grade, and the oils, waxes and tallow are hand worked into the leather, to achieve a high degree of penetration. Although we polish all Glenroyal bridle items at the final finishing and inspection stage, the whiteness will migrate back to the surface after a period of time. This is quite normal, and is a sign of the high quality of bridle we use demonstrating the degree to which the waxes fats and oils have penetrated into the leather (lesser 'bridle' leathers can have a finish sprayed on at the end of it's process). The leather, if brushed with a soft cloth or a clean brush, will buff back to a beautiful shine. The whiteness is a sign much appreciated by connoisseurs of leather.

Question. What is the best way of looking after bridle leather? Answer. Bridle leather is designed to be an 'open' leather. That is to say the grain is not sealed, and remains permeable. If it gets wet it should be left to dry naturally, without direct heat. If it needs cleaning it should be wiped periodically with a damp cloth and left to dry. An occasional application of dubbin will keep the leather supple and prevent it from drying out and cracking.