News and Events

Christmas 2011 Leather Lowdown

Gorgeous range of top quality cowhide rugs available in our showroom.  New in is a smoky light grey cowhide.

AFRDI are a non-profit, independent organisation providing Australian and New Zealand furniture buyers with a set of standards, product certification, testing and research.

There is a lot of controversy with “leather type products” products that are made to emulate quality genuine top grain leathers.  Some of the names for these are Bi-cast, split leather; faux leather, reconstituted leather, bonded leather or PU coated leather.  These products are anything but genuine leather.  Some fake leather look products are so realistic when on an upholstered item it is difficult for even an expert to tell they are not real, until they start to break down. Some upholstery suites may have the seats in leather and the back or sides in a vinyl or fake leather, if you are looking to purchase genuine real leather, ask questions, and ask for certification, beware imported cheap products. LAPCO does not sell anything but genuine high quality upholstery leathers.

So why pay more for real leather?  Simply it lasts, we see people who have had suites that still look fantastic ten years later, and it is a luxurious natural product that never goes out of fashion. 

Many terms about leather are confusing; below is a link to a file with some common genuine leather types and terms.

Leather buying guide

Donna and Ivan Nobilo make high quality Western Wear and military Ordinance, along with great modern accessories like belts and laptop bags.  The two photos are of :

- Lapco for Leathers Portage 3mm vegetable tan made into a stunning Laptop Bag.  These bags will be seen out representing a premium beer brand.  It is great to see quality N.Z workmanship being appreciated.

- The Saddle Wallets are part of the Military ordinance, and are hand printed with a willow patter onto 3 mm russet leather.  

Most of Donnas leather work is hand finished and she is the Saddler for the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Association.   http://www.ethosleather.co.nz/index.html

If you are looking for anything to do with leather and associated products you should come and visit us at our newly opened Auckland showroom and retail shop. Our opening hours are 9am to 3pm Monday to Friday excluding public holidays.

We are located at 5 Akiraho St, Mt Eden, which is not far from the intersection of Symonds St, New North Rd and Mt Eden Rd. You will find us down the drive with plenty of customer parking available.

We have thousands of feet of leather on hand suitable for clothing, upholstery , equestrian, bags, belts, shoes and what ever other creative uses you can think of.

We also have leather craft tools, leather dyes/stains and leather care products plus an extensive range of hardware for equestrian and leather craft applications.

Have a rummage in our job lot section where there are some very unique and interesting colours and textures of leatheryou never know what bargain you will find.

Check out our Hair on Hide rugs they are absolutely top notch.

In October 2005 Alan Cowie approached us regarding calf skin panels for a Sydney wine bar, the only catch was he needed it made in four days. With little time and a lack of raw materials we were up against it, in true Lapco fashion we found a solution, created the product and exceeded all expectations.

"Just to let you know that we finally opened ‘Fino’ Wine bar in Sydney on 6 December, complete with your wonderful Calfskin bar front panels which look great! Thanks for your efficient help." Alan Cowie

Alan Cowie Design Ltd

PO Box 22161 Christchurch 64 3 379 7685

Fino

Circular Quay, Sydney

 

In the summer of 2004/05 Ben Lewis approached us with his idea for the Havana Deck chair. The chair required vegetable tanned, natural leather that was strong enough to be slung across two cross members. Once again we chose the Dragon Tan (product code 108TANOILY). This remarkable leather is used mainly in footwear but shows its ability by being adapted to suit Ben Lewis’s visions.

www.trenzseater.com Havana Deck Chair, it is made from solid ash timber, brass componentry for use outdoors, adjustable to 3 heights and of course assisted with only the finest hides, the vintage old age hides.” Ben Lewis

Lapco was commissioned by Athfield Architectus in 2002 to create a leather panel for a high profile corporate box in Christchurch’s Jade Stadium. The leather chosen was Dragon Tan (product code 108TANOILY), a Vegetable tanned, full grain leather which had been retanned and oiled. The leather shows its richness through natural markings made through the addition of oils and lack of added colour.

Leather has proved a talking point for this private box. Stadiums are made of concrete slabs, yet when you walk into the box, the warm softness of the walls draws you in. The normally cold feel of the stadium is replaced with an opulence fit for the most discerning people. The leather walls also cushion the reverberations of people’s voices which tend to rise in sports stadiums, instead of dampening the atmosphere the leather only enhanced it, as the walls absorb sound and radiate energy.

The Leather was cut into strips of 600 mm x 500 mm panels, and boarder stitched 5 mm from the edge to enhance the look. After installation the leather was waxed to help retain its appearance over time.