Napa leather

Nappa leather is a leather, typically dyed, made from goat-, cow-, calf-, lamb- or other skin by tanning. It is noted for its soft hand. It is a generic term in the leather field and has no distinct test for characterization. Because of this ambiguity, the term is often used in advertising to imply that a leather is particularly supple. For example in the popular computer chair brand SECRET LAB they use "Premium NAPA leather" in their high end range. Among other uses, Nappa leather is often used in leather products such as furniture, clothing, handbags, and shoes. As the term is used today, Nappa leather may be either full grain/natural grain, Full-grain leather refers to hides that have not been sanded, buffed, or snuffed to remove imperfections (or natural marks) on the surface of the hide. The grain remains to allow the fiber strength and durability. or more likely, Corrected Grain/Top Grain Leather; Corrected grain leather refers to hides that have been buffed or sanded on the grain surface in order to remove marks or imperfections.

History

Nappa leather was first 'coined' by Emanuel Manasse in 1875 while working for the Sawyer Tanning Company in Napa, California.

Nappa tannage in the "strict sense", but a term no longer used in this framework, refers to a tannage consisting of alum salts with vegetable tanning agents.

Napa leather is defined in Merriam-Webster's dictionary.

Notes

• Napa gloves are made from tawed leathers and tanned leathers.

References

• B Ellis (1921), Gloves & Glove Trade, page 58,