Italian Leather Crescent Bag

Montte di Jinne have worked with Italian leather artisans since 2010, and this crescent bag is made in Italy from vegetable-tanned leather. Its curved shape closes along the top with a zip, it is carried on a leather strap, and the hardware is given an antique finish so that it sits quietly against the leather.

Vegetable tanning is the older of the two main ways of turning hide into leather. It uses tannins drawn from bark, wood and leaves, and it takes considerably longer than the chrome tanning used for most leather made today. The result is a firmer leather with a natural sheen, which holds the curve of a bag like this one well. The interior is lined in fabric.

Available in green, red plum, dark red and light chocolate. The shades in stock change with each delivery.

Manufactured within the EU, where labour law sets minimum standards for pay, working conditions, and holiday entitlement.

Vegetable-tanned leather changes visibly with use. It darkens with handling and with light, most of all along the top edge and around the zip where hands return to it, and over the years the surface deepens in colour and takes on a soft shine. That slow change is the reason to choose vegetable-tanned leather, and it is why we stock it.

How to Care for Your Vegetable-Tanned Leather

Vegetable-tanned leather marks more readily when it is new, and water is the thing to be most careful of. If the bag is caught in rain, blot the surface with a dry cloth straight away and allow it to dry slowly at room temperature, since heat applied too quickly draws moisture from the fibres and can leave a stiff, darkened patch. Light scratches can usually be eased back into the surface with a warm fingertip, as the oils in the leather move to fill them. The strap flexes more than the body of the bag and dries out first, so it deserves the most attention when a neutral leather conditioner is applied, once or twice a year.

Vegetable-tanned Italian leather, fabric lining. Leather strap. Antique-finish hardware. Zip closure. Small: 20 x 12 x 5cm. Made in Italy.