Gifts · 6 min read
Leather bag gifts for the holidays 2026: a guide by person and delivery date
Three questions to settle before you choose, the last order dates for this season's gift days, and how to send a bag straight to the person it is for.
Leather guides · Care · CraftWritten in Marrakech
The VelvinciJournal
Leather guides, care routines and stories from our atelier in Marrakech. Everything here comes from the bench where we cut, stitch and repair our bags.
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Featured guide
Leather Guide · 5 min read
Full-grain, top-grain, genuine: what leather labels really mean
Three words on a label decide how a bag wears and ages. What each one means, how to tell them apart in a shop, and which one we use.
Read the guideLatest
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Buying Guides · 4 min read
How to choose a leather work bag that fits your laptop
Sizes, straps and structure: how to choose a leather work bag that carries your laptop comfortably, every day.
Care · 4 min read
How to care for a leather bag: a simple routine for every season
What to do every week, every few months and after rain, with the three things you need at home.
Leather Guide · 4 min read
Vegetable-tanned vs chrome-tanned leather: what changes for your bag
Bark or mineral salts, weeks or a day: how the two main ways of tanning change the way a leather bag looks, feels and ages.
New to leather?
Start here, in this order
Guides that take you from reading a label to choosing a bag you will keep.
The Leather Index
The words behind a good bag
Short definitions of the terms you meet on labels and in our guides.
1 of 8 · grade
Full-grain
Leather that keeps the complete grain layer of the hide, with its pores and small natural marks, and has not been sanded or buffed. The strongest grade, and the one that develops a patina.
Leather labels explained
2 of 8 · grade
Top-grain
The same top layer of the hide, with its surface sanded or buffed to remove marks and then coated. Smoother and more uniform than full-grain, but it changes less with age.
Leather labels explained
3 of 8 · label
Genuine leather
Real leather, but usually a lower layer of the hide (a split) with a pressed or painted surface made to look like grain. The lowest of the common grades.
Leather labels explained
4 of 8 · process
Vegetable tanning
Turning hide into leather with natural tannins from bark, wood and leaves. It takes weeks and gives a firm leather that darkens richly with use.
Tanning explained
5 of 8 · process
Chrome tanning
Turning hide into leather with chromium salts. It is fast, often about a day, and gives soft leather in even colors that change little with age.
Tanning explained
6 of 8 · technique
Saddle stitch
A hand stitch sewn with two needles on one thread, each passing through every hole from opposite sides. If one stitch breaks, the seam still holds.
7 of 8 · technique
Burnished edge
A cut edge sanded, rubbed and sealed until it is smooth and hard, so it does not fray or split with use.
8 of 8 · with age
Patina
The deeper color and soft sheen leather gains over time from light, touch and use. Full-grain leather shows it most.
Asked in the atelier
Quick answers
The questions we hear most, answered in a few lines.
Is full-grain leather worth the price?
For a bag you plan to carry for years, yes. It keeps the strongest layer of the hide, holds its shape at the handles and seams, and gains a patina instead of wearing thin.
Leather labels explainedHow often should I condition a leather bag?
Every few months for a bag you carry daily, or whenever the leather looks dry or pale. Use a small amount of conditioner on a soft cloth, then let it rest overnight.
The care routineCan a leather bag get wet?
Light rain is fine. Blot it dry with a soft cloth straight away and let it dry at room temperature, away from heaters and sun. Never soak it or use a hairdryer.
After the rainWhat does vegetable-tanned mean?
The hide was tanned with natural tannins from bark, wood and leaves instead of mineral salts. It takes weeks, gives a firm leather, and darkens richly with use.
Tanning explainedThe Atelier List
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