Here’s a detail of quality inking on the edges of our Overnight Cabin Bag.

I really enjoy the genuine pleasure people get discovering how things are made. Nothing beats taking world-weary customers around a workshop and seeing their faces light up when the skills that make up a quality product are revealed. I still get a high every time I visit a factory and see true craftsmen and women doing their thing.

No substitute for seeing the real action, but I am going to try to pass on some of that excitement here in a series of entries that tells you all about quality details and how they are achieved. Let’s start with “Inking”.

Here are some of our Key Straps being made in the workshop: they show ink being applied, drying on blocks, and the heated tool being drawn over the edges to seal the ink with the leather, a process that’s repeated many times to get a superior finish.

Inking (sometimes referred to as edge staining or edge burnishing) is a process that finishes the raw edges of leather, especially where two panels of leather are sewn together. It creates a firm but flexible edge, preventing the exposed cut surface getting wet or ragged.

The process: Depending on the vagaries of the designer, ‘inks’ can be clear gums or coloured resin mixes, that are fixed to the leather with a burnisher, giving an opaque or glossy finish. The ingredients need to be mixed to suit the leather: thick enough not to run off, thin enough to be smooth and the right formula to bond. Once stitched together, the raw edges of the leather are bevelled and sanded to take off any roughness. The ‘ink’ is built up in stages. Each layer is skilfully applied by hand, taking great care not to stain the surface of the leather. The ‘ink’ has to dry before the next stage. It is then sealed onto the leather using a hot burnishing tool. This process is repeated several times until the desired level of finish is achieved. Ideally, it should be enough times to give a rounded, smooth appearance, and you shouldn’t be able to see the join where the two leather panels meet.

Why choose inking? There’s something particularly elegant and pure about inked edges. They ‘frame’ the product, so the quality of the materials and stitching has to be top-notch too. Defying the amount of work involved, the end result is a simplicity that I personally find the most pleasing to the eye.

Difficult to achieve beautifully, inking is one of those details that distinguishes real luxury from the rest. Notice it when it’s done well and enjoy it!