About

HOW IT ALL BEGAN

My name is Ellen Galloway and I established egallowayleather in 2017 following my study of Saddlery at Capel Manor College in North London. I have a longstanding interest in horses so this made for a natural progression from hobby to career. The course blew me away with its focus on detail and integrity. It inspired me to create stylish and durable hand stitched small leather accessories. Hand cutting, stitch marking, saddle stitching and polishing by hand are all processes that I learned on the course.

There are many stages to the production of all my leather accessories. I use veg tanned leather for all my accessories, except for my repurposed leather products which are designed to reduce waste by using smaller pieces otherwise destined for landfill.

VEG TANNED LEATHER

Veg tanned Leather is not the kind of leather you will come across most frequently. These days most leather is chrome tanned. This process is much quicker than veg tanning. Chrome tanning uses chromium salts and can take only a day, whereas veg tanning can take months. In order to veg tan leather, the leather is suspended in vats of liquid made from vegetable tannins. This is made from the bark of trees such as oak, chestnut or mimosa. It’s an old method dating back millennia. Veg tanned leather is a wonderful material and allows me to burnish the raw edges to a high shine. This cannot be done using the same method with chrome tan leather.

For belts, I use Full Grain veg tan English or Italian shoulder; which is about 3mm thick.

For Card Holders or similar, I use the leather above split down so it is thinner, already split down leather, or I use waxy Goatskin from Tusting and Burnett (1938) Ltd. This Goatskin is a type of ‘pull-up’ leather, so will lighten in appearance in the places where it bends.  Over time this will add to its individual and rugged look. The waxy qualities of the leather add to its robustness and will give a smart yet casual feel to your leather accessory.

THE MAKING PROCESS

HAND CUTTING

I cut out all the accessories I create by hand and mostly using a saddler’s head knife pictured below. I then position the pieces together, sometimes using a tiny amount of glue.

STITCH MARKING

Before stitching, a line of stitch marks must be made. This does not make a hole through the leather, rather a mark for me to line up with later on. I use a rawhide hammer and a stitching iron.  How far apart the stitch marks are depends on the thickness of the thread, which is determined, by the thickness of the leather.

SADDLE STITCHING

‘Double stitching’ or ‘saddle stitching’ is a process of sewing, where the thread passes back and forth through two or more pieces of leather and will not come undone if one stitch is cut or damaged. However as a thread sewn on a sewing machine is simply caught up by the thread underneath, (bobbin thread), rather than passing through, then it is prone to eventually unravelling. In Saddlery this could be a safety issue, as when tack fails, then accidents happen. But here it represents an opportunity to craft a product with greater integrity.
I use linen thread which I wax myself with a small piece of beeswax, (see top photo). It comes in many colours but neutral tones and of course black seem to be the most popular.
I thread a needle onto either end of my thread. Then I make a hole with the awl at exactly the right angle and begin stitching. The hole for the thread to pass through is made using an awl with a diamond shaped blade. It is pictured in the photo at the top of the page. When I get into a rhythm, I’m really quite speedy!
I keep the leather in position using a pair of Saddler’s Clams which I’ve been using since I began my training. You can see them in the photo of me below. They look like a giant set of wooden tweezers!

HAND POLISHING

My designs are of ‘raw edge’ construction therefore as the edges are exposed, the edges are hand burnished/polished. I use a special recipe of different types of gum and water, to seal the edges of the leather. But it is the repeated polishing of the edges which create a sealed smooth edge. For the polishing I use a combination of sandpaper, a tool called a bone and a piece piece of canvas. The sandpaper removes any very uneven bits on the edge while the cloth and the bone slick the edge to a high shine.

MADE IN THE UK

All items are lovingly hand crafted by me in my workshop in Walthamstow, East London, UK. Products are available to order online via the website, or in person by visiting the egallowayleather stall, at designer fairs throughout the year.

I discovered Ellen’s excellent leather work at the William Morris Gallery’s
E17 Christmas Craft Fayre.
Several bespoke belts – made for me and the family –
later I’m still buying her unique jewellery.
Great quality work at good prices.

P.Mountsteven

MEASURING FOR A BELT