How Vegan Leather Is Made

Table of Contents

Polyurethane, a polymer that can be produced for any designer's whim, is commonly used to make vegan leather. It can also be manufactured from innovative and sustainable materials like pineapple leaves, cork, apple peels, other fruit debris, and recycled plastic to create items that rival those made from animal skins.

What Is Vegan Leather?

By definition, vegan leather is made of vegetable material such as cellulose, cork, cotton or jute that have not been exposed to any animal product or by-product. The material is transformed through a curing process that removes all traces of the animal.

What's more, while animal leather is notoriously uncomfortable, breakable, and prone to smearing, most vegan leathers have superior durability and resistance to cracking and fading and can be repeatedly washed.

What kind of vegan leathers are currently available? Not only can you get your hands on all of the most popular leather goods and accessories without having to worry about whether your wallet was slaughtered, but you can also get your hands on vegan options that are also often more beautiful.

Vegan leather comes from vegetable matters such as the peels of citrus fruits, pineapple, papaya, cabbage, corn, sweet potatoes, celery, cactus, tomatoes and other plant ingredients. It is frequently used to make books and other objects from recycled papers and other recyclable materials. Vegan leather is becoming more popular, and has the face of the animal rights movement,

The Animal Liberation Press Office publicizes this environmentally friendly alternative to leather. What materials are used to make vegans leather?

Reclaimed cotton,
Hemp,
Linen (flax),
Nylon,
Silk,
Banana

and other natural materials are being used to create vegan leather. One of the most popular designs is a fully vegan “leather” canvas bag. There's not much difference between true leather and vegan leather, except the material and the finishing.

Vegan leather is less brittle and less prone to scratches than leather and is stronger and less prone to shrinking. All leather requires care. Leather has to be cleaned (drying included), and if you plan to use it as a seat or for other products that will be sprayed on the leather, you may want to have a good wiping cloth handy.

Additionally, leather needs to be protected from moisture and dirt and has to be well protected if it is painted. So, if you're like me, you'll want to add a layer of oil.

Vegan leather is created similarly to non-vegan leather. It uses vegetable-derived polyurethane, which is sourced from plants, to provide a soft-yet-durable exterior. Leather is still important and included in Vegan Leather products but with a non-cruel method of production. Vegan leather products are also eco-friendly and can replace leather in everyday use due to their softness and comfort.

An alternative to leather made from vegetable-based materials, vegan leather is made from either natural or synthetic materials derived from plant sources. Vegan leather's softer texture and low-lint, pH, and antimicrobial properties are a welcome alternative to animal skin leather. An array of materials such as polyester, polyurethane, acetate, and nylon can make vegan leather.

The raw material is simply a thickly-suede fabric. Preparing it for making a leather object starts when the fabric is shaped into a long rectangular piece. The fabric is then dyed to differentiate it from the material that will be used as the base. The fabric is treated with carbon particles, which are used to aid in its mechanical strength.

Types of Vegan Leather

There are a lot of leather analogues on the market today. Each one comes with its own pros and cons, which you’ll need to decide for yourself. Natural vegan leathers are the most common. They mimic animal leather and even mimic some of the colouring patterns of animal skins.

They also can be dyed and embossed. To ensure the right result, though, it’s best to get help from a leatherworker who’s done it before.

Hybrid vegan leather: While they can vary from one designer to another, hybrid vegan leathers mimic aspects of natural leather and animal-derived leathers. They’re not vegan by themselves, but they are made from sustainable materials and may not be as animal-friendly as natural leathers. They’re not for everyone.

There are a few different types of vegan leather, each for various applications and purposes:

Reflective: This type is typically used to make bags and shoes, as well as for clothing, shoes, and even furniture.
Water-repellant: This type is primarily used in outdoor gear, from ski bindings to hiking boots. They can also be used in luxury footwear, like what Kanye West and Adidas made.
Flexible: This type is used to make bags, shoes, and even purses and backpacks.
Textile: This type is used to make apparel and fashion accessories.
Vinyl: This type is used for outdoor footwear, as well as clothing, bags, and more.
Fabric: This type is typically used in upholstery.
- Lanark is the oldest and most popular vegan leather made with rice straw. Its softer surface makes it the perfect fabric for some of today's most popular tech and lifestyle accessories. Check out the Lanark for computer bags, briefcases, wallets, backpacks, belts, and wallets.
- Slaap is an ancient textile from Southeast Asia, renowned for its elasticity and durability. Slaap combines leather with cotton or nylon and is often used for belts, bags, wallets, and footwear.
- Slim is a water-based glue made of potato starch, tree resins, and beeswax. Its low odour and long-lasting qualities make it a popular choice.

There are many styles, colours, and textures of vegan leather. Each with their own distinct feel, they have been more and more embraced by the fashion world as an important alternative to animal products in clothing and accessories.

Because of the wide range of textures and styles, there are actually more ways to turn leather into vegan leather than it seems. It is becoming a trend for fashion brands to produce new products using plant-based materials to bring awareness to animal cruelty issues.

From vegan wallets to vegan leather jackets, there are now various styles and colours for the public to choose from. Vegan leather often comes in many different shapes, finishes, and feels, but it's all made of the same polymer. Some makers use these chemical-based products, while others use vegetable-based organic-based materials like vegetable shortening, soy milk, starch, and sugar. Another variety uses a combination of both.

Pleather

Another vegan leather substitute is leather made from a synthetic animal by-product. It's also known as “pleather,” “a mix of organic and synthetic,” or “faux leather,” and has a high volume of use in car seats, seat belt buckles, and boots.

Pleather is vegan leather made with the use of cotton and synthetic rubber. Is it really “leather,” or is it not? Is pleather actually leather? It is. Pleather is a material manufactured from oil that is either PVC or polyurethane.

Pleather is a slang term for “plastic leather,” created by gluing plastic to a cloth backing. It's frequently used as a low-cost substitute for leather, but the fashion industry has embraced it wholeheartedly. Pleather is made of plastic. However, vegan leather does not have to be! Nowadays, you may discover a wide range of biodegradable alternatives created from plant and fungal elements.

Pleather sourcing relies on large-scale industrial fishing, which is unsustainable, and the heartless slaughter of hundreds of thousands of sea mammals every year. So, while every vegan leather starts with a choice to avoid leather, choosing eco-friendly material is the responsible thing to do. Pleather is a synthetic fabric that is supposed to appear and feel like real leather. It is made out of the terms “plastic” and “leather.”

It is moulded and textured to simulate leather and then connected to a fabric backing for easy application to various objects using plastic produced from either PVC or polyurethane.

Pleather comes in a variety of shapes and sizes, each tailored for a specific purpose. While there are many various forms of pleather created from other materials, such as cork tree bark and kelp, they are commonly referred to as pleather or imitation leather.

Plant-Based

Borrowing techniques from pharmaceutical production, many designers are producing vegan leather in the lab. Bioplastics are becoming the industry standard for inks, coatings, and faux leather, from resins derived from soy and algae to flexible, inexpensive structural plastic. Vegan leather finds ways to tell a story.

Beyond the faux fur and faux leather on your car, a few key faux leather styles bring animal suffering to your eyes, like the craze for hyena-inspired furs. While various species of hyenas are endangered, the average African lion's life expectancy is 30 years and up.

Plant-based leather is still a niche industry, but it's one whose growth is being hastened by huge global companies like H&M, Hugo Boss, and Volkswagen, who want to be the first to market vegan leather. These leathers, the most common of which are Pineapple (Pinatex) and Apple Leather, are made from the fruit's discarded leftovers, providing an additional source of money for harvesters while minimizing food waste.

One type of Plant-based leather is Apple leather. Apple leather is made from the seeds, cores, and peels of apples that have been harvested. It's 100 percent biodegradable, extremely durable, UV-resistant, and, of all the plant-based leathers I've tried, it has the softest, most luxurious texture.

I predict this to be one of the most successful leather replacements when production goes up (right now, there are only a few small-scale producers). With brands like Volkswagen putting the material in the spotlight, we can expect to see it used by a wide range of brands and categories in the future.

Leather alternatives are also continually developing, as more and more people become interested in knowing how their clothes are made. Industrialists are getting more creative by working with ecologically sustainable fibres like hemp, soy, and bio fibres.

Vegan leather is usually made from plant-based ingredients like cotton, leatherwood, or banana peels. Synthetic leather is also derived from plant-based materials, like soybean, jojoba, or cotton, but can be considered leather if dyed or treated.

Does vegan leather degrade? No, vegan leather does not degrade. We still have animals on our planet-eating vegetation that cannot get degraded, so leather products are highly durable. That being said, vegan leather is recyclable and durable.

Bio-Fabrication/Bio-Leather

The company defines this technique as a procedure using living cells to make leather without using animal tissue. They explain: “Researchers at Cornell University have successfully used the human prostate cells that normally live in the prostate gland, in a culture in the laboratory, to make a synthetic leather material, with virtually no input of animal products. They are developing new materials based on existing leather-like materials. According to the researchers, new products could soon be hitting the sustainably produced market and safe to use.

Artificial leather is created from non-living materials by using the method known as bio-fabrication. For example, chemically treating cotton with formaldehyde (found in used printer cartridge ink) will act as a stiff material to replace animal skin.

Bio=leather is non-toxic and biodegradable and won't release any formaldehyde or other known animal skin-derived chemicals into the environment.

Bio-leather may also be produced using bacteria or microbes to eat away at the polyurethane to produce biopolymers. The biopolymer eventually comes from the bacteria or microbes as a solid and is called bio leather.

The process is still being studied, and when it does come to market, the material will have to be manufactured in large batches to meet the demand. Biofabricated vegan leathers are currently produced for making fashion accessories such as wallets, purses, and belts.

Bioplastic, synthetic, or vegan/eco-friendly alternatives are being used to manufacture fabrics. Still, the process is limited as they cannot be easily customized for the specific texture and material.

As part of the long-term plan, Hempstead envisions using bioplastic-based materials for manufacturing everything from clothing to industrial and household supplies and plans to use liquid latex inks and coatings to apply the desired coating. Hempstead has a few prototypes already complete.

Pineapple Leather

Founded in 2009, the Italian brand “Visionaire” uses pineapples in its handbags and shoes. In 2013, the pineapple plant got the unique definition of “The end of an idea” by Nicole Kidman, which inspired the company. The innovation by Marcella Marletti created successful research.

The first samples were presented at “Arab Fashion Week” in 2014. The first bags went into production to find a cost-effective way of producing leather that can rival traditional leather material. The cost and the perception Nicole Kidman successfully lobbied for the pineapple leather. This innovation was advantageous for the Italian designer Marcella Marletti, who manages a brand dedicated to ethical fashion.

When the tanning process is performed on pineapples leaves, there is no lanolin, a protective layer in animal leather. This means that the green pineapple leather stays cool even under sunlight and is naturally antimicrobial.

When manufacturing leather products, Polyurethane is widely used. Usually, these chemicals are made from petroleum. Choosing a non-petroleum alternative makes many benefits, such as cruelty-free materials and an end to deforestation. Ethical choices usually take up to two decades to become mature.

However, more and more people are developing alternative solutions to meet this demand. There are several ways to get leather-like yet chemical-free leather.

Vegan leather comes in the form of pineapple leather. It does not employ any animal by-products in its manufacturing process. Pineapple leaf fibres, PLA plastic, and petroleum-based resin are used to make it. Some of the pieces are recyclable. Thus it's also environmentally friendly.

Pineapple leather is used to create purses, handbags, shoes, boots, clothes, and personal accessories, among other commercial applications. It can also be used to make upholstery for automobiles and furnishings. Pineapple leather should be kept cool and dry at all times.

It's important to keep it out of direct sunlight, as the protective surface can fade. Keeping pineapple leather purses, shoes, and accessories in a closet or drawer is a terrific idea. It's crucial to keep them out of direct sunshine and excessive heat. Pineapple leather is made from waste peels found on pineapple plants.

The natural wood pulp is extracted from the fruit, then treated with heat, bleaching agents, and other chemicals that will allow the peels to create an easily dyed and durable artificial leather. The leather is then produced in a material similar to conventional leather.

MuSkin®

A widely-used type of synthetic leather, MuSkin is manufactured by cutting the surface of a neoprene or elastomer sheet to expose a collagen-coated cuticle.

The woven material, which can withstand temperatures up to 1,000°C and is resistant to moisture, is available in various textures and colour-ways and comes in various thicknesses, making it ideal for use in skirts, shirts, outerwear, and other items.

It can also be dyed and distressed in different ways. MuSkin is often coated in resin to make vegan leather more bearable, a tough protective substance that helps protect the surface from scratching and wear.

MuSkin® is a new system invented to replicate the look and feel of leather. MuSkin® combines the remarkable properties of polyurethane with the aesthetic quality of vegan leather. Like skin, MuSkin® is the result of biomineralization: the conversion of organic material to a polymer.

MuSkin® is a mushroom-based vegan leather. It has the appearance and feel of suede leather. It offers the same silky texture and flexibility as genuine leather and the ability to breathe like a natural cloth. MuSkin® fabric's tanning technique is also environmentally friendly. MuSkin® is a natural alternative produced entirely of natural raw materials, including the cap of a unique mushroom. …

It's a form of vegetable leather manufactured from a certain mushroom and handled without harmful chemicals. Apart from pineapple leather, mushroom leather (MuSkin®) is one of the most well-known vegan leather variants. Mushroom leather is the most stable, flexible, and durable vegan leather variety. Some businesses have already progressed in manufacturing and are working on bricks and furniture development. This material also has certain other advantageous properties, which may sound strange.

Recycled Plastic/Rubber

Another growing resource for materials is reclaimed rubber. In the Netherlands, where 100 million tires are produced annually, an artisan operation near Eindhoven called Peelon and Verroco makes “Pare-brand” rubber furniture using latex and recycled plastic.

Many companies have ventured into recycled plastic, including Adidas and Repreve, making vegan footwear in response to consumer demand for cruelty-free products.

Vegans are generally offended by the use of materials derived from animals in any form, and numerous companies are producing vegan leather made from recycled plastic or rubber.

Adidas has long since tested their recycled plastic to ensure that it is hardwearing and durable. Some of its shoes are produced entirely from the material. Another company, Repreve, has also developed vegan-friendly leather from recycled plastic or rubber, often used in sneakers and moccasins.

These durable plastic and rubber beads can be inserted into polyurethane plastic for luxury and mass-market vegan leathers. They can be moulded into various shapes and create the appearance of leather texture while providing a flexible, durable finish.

But their durability comes at a cost: the plastic beads need to be processed and coated with an anti-microbial rubber, both of which can leave a strong plastic smell if not thoroughly cleaned.

Benefits Of Vegan Leather

Save money and the environment – The U.K. government estimates that they produce more than 400,000 tonnes of leather a year in the country, and it's estimated that half of this is exported to be turned into wallets and belts in developing countries. This makes importing leather, particularly from European countries, a controversial and unsustainable practice.

Another benefit of Vegan Leather is that it slows down climate change. Animal products account for up to 60% of the emissions released into the atmosphere each year. As we all know, the production of leather, in particular, involves raising cows, which produce a lot of methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide.

Conclusion

Although there is much more to learn about leather production, hopefully, this summary will provide a starting point—no two ways around it.

Animals, along with their environment, must be protected. Leathers and other animal products are cruel, harmful, and often unnecessary, particularly in the leather industry.

If there is a way to find a better way, we should seek it out. “Vintage” may be fashionable and easily accessible in fashion magazines and on the red carpet, but going vegan doesn't necessarily mean missing out on the fun of fashion and keeping up with the trends.

Look for stylish alternatives that not only save animals but also will not tarnish your personal style.

I trust you enjoyed reading the article about How Vegan Leather Is Made. Would you please stay tuned? There are more blog posts to come very shortly.

JeannetteZ

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Ideas? Thoughts? Questions? I would love to hear from you. Would you mind leaving me your questions, experience and remarks about How Vegan Leather Is Made in the comments section below? You can also reach me by email at Jeannette@LivingTheVeganLifestyle.org.