Last week, our small run of Mini Slings was cut, split, and had drop pockets and logos added. Today they’ve moved on to polishing and grinding, two congruent actions that add visual appeal as well as lasting protection against the peeling or discoloration of the bag’s edges. Every visible edge of the Mini Sling will eventually run through the rotation of painting and grinding on the wheel, but for now it’s the interior sections’ turn.
Grinding a piece of leather and then immediately painting over the ground edge causes latent fibers to arise, creating a rough texture that’s definitely neither beautiful nor functionally useful. We’d never just leave it at this, so we buff the texture off to render the leather smooth again while still retaining some of the paint’s pigment. When more paint is added the fibers repeat the same process, only to a lesser extent this time.
We go back and forth between grinding and painting until every edge is finally smooth to the touch, no coarse fibers are left, and the paint is vibrant. The result of this extra special step is an unparalleled structure and cohesion that we’re proud to accomplish with each bag. Once it’s been affirmed that all these Mini Sling pieces are up to par with our standards, they’ll move on to their next stage.
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