Worf
I'll Lock Up
- Messages
- 5,207
- Location
- Troy, New York, USA
As some of you may recall, I bought a jacket at the Vanson Factory in Fall River Mass. back in late June. The jacket called an "Ike" was made of a tan cowhide leather that I'd never seen or heard of before. Due to numerous questions about it I wrote Contantine at Vanson and he kindly responded:
"Thanks for sending me the link to the thread, I can see that there have been some questions about the leather of your Jacket and that is a very interesting subject.
''Octagon'' cowhide Is what we call the leather color and type that your jacket is made out of. As I mentioned on Friday It is very rare because it is simply not produced anymore. After your Ike left the showroom we only have 2-3 jackets made out of Octagon left.
We work with certain tanneries and we produce leather under our own specifications. The tannery that was making Octagon for us unfortunately went out of business like many other tanneries in the area. That happened during the leather crisis of 2008-2011 that slowed down production because of the lack of raw material or remaining tannery capability/availability to recreate certain techniques.
To get a bit more technical, Octagon is part of a series of leathers that we call 1920's style leathers. The reason is that the hides are selected, waxed and finished by hand. The whole process does not rely on heavy chemical finishes like most leather nowadays. The color of your jacket is developed from the combination of waxes and oils and it is not a paint-job. So essentially the '20s family of leathers is selected, waxed and finished following the same procedures used back in the day!"
I indeed loved the jacket but I'd lost so much weight that the Size 54 was swimming on me, particularly in the upper arms, biceps and wrist area. Sooooo I sent it back to Vansons to get it trimmed. After a month and a half of anxious waiting I got her back on Monday. Here's my review and pics.
Front Open
Front Closed
Back
Side
Pocket Detail
Grain
To say this jacket is beautiful would be an understatement of the highest order. I wonder how it will "break-in" and what additional character the hide will take on, but time will reveal all. I can't heap enough praise on the Vanson folks they cut this jacket so skillfully you'd think it was made for me from the start. They actually took enough leather from the jacket that I might be able to get a pair of gloves made from it... serious. I hope that Vanson succeeds in scoring significant quantities of this "hand tanned" leather so that it can be offered in other colors and styles.
Worf
"Thanks for sending me the link to the thread, I can see that there have been some questions about the leather of your Jacket and that is a very interesting subject.
''Octagon'' cowhide Is what we call the leather color and type that your jacket is made out of. As I mentioned on Friday It is very rare because it is simply not produced anymore. After your Ike left the showroom we only have 2-3 jackets made out of Octagon left.
We work with certain tanneries and we produce leather under our own specifications. The tannery that was making Octagon for us unfortunately went out of business like many other tanneries in the area. That happened during the leather crisis of 2008-2011 that slowed down production because of the lack of raw material or remaining tannery capability/availability to recreate certain techniques.
To get a bit more technical, Octagon is part of a series of leathers that we call 1920's style leathers. The reason is that the hides are selected, waxed and finished by hand. The whole process does not rely on heavy chemical finishes like most leather nowadays. The color of your jacket is developed from the combination of waxes and oils and it is not a paint-job. So essentially the '20s family of leathers is selected, waxed and finished following the same procedures used back in the day!"
I indeed loved the jacket but I'd lost so much weight that the Size 54 was swimming on me, particularly in the upper arms, biceps and wrist area. Sooooo I sent it back to Vansons to get it trimmed. After a month and a half of anxious waiting I got her back on Monday. Here's my review and pics.
Front Open
Front Closed
Back
Side
Pocket Detail
Grain
To say this jacket is beautiful would be an understatement of the highest order. I wonder how it will "break-in" and what additional character the hide will take on, but time will reveal all. I can't heap enough praise on the Vanson folks they cut this jacket so skillfully you'd think it was made for me from the start. They actually took enough leather from the jacket that I might be able to get a pair of gloves made from it... serious. I hope that Vanson succeeds in scoring significant quantities of this "hand tanned" leather so that it can be offered in other colors and styles.
Worf
We should start a club!
