The saddle leather Niagara is a 100% natural leather. It is a full grain leather unpressed, uncorrected, smooth-dyed grain and flesh. It is a vegetable vegetable-tanned and therefore non-allergenic. Vegetable tannins provide firmness and high resistance to elongation. Niagara leather is available in natural and aniline finish which preserves the natural look of the leather. It is nourished throughout in a tallow bath (a mixture of paraffin and beef fat), more commonly known as "tallow leather". This nourishment makes the leather easier to cut and work, as well as increasing its resistance to water. Tallow also ensures maintenance-free leather, as the fat is constantly added to the surface of the leather, giving it the feeding it needs and an excellent patina. Thanks to this feeding, Niagara saddle leather is highly resistant to outdoor use, rejecting any external disturbance (water / salty environment). This makes Niagara saddle leather suitable for intensive wear and tear, as well as for the equestrian sector.
Needle and Awl
Presentation of Needle and Awl
A long-time equestrian, Mrs Katie Hill began her journey to becoming a saddler over 10 years ago and on a continent further afield. Originally from Oregon, she studied withSaddler Hans Biglajzer, focusing on saddle making and repair. Mrs Katie Hill first operated a small upholstery repair shop and retail store in Orgeon. But it was following a move to the Netherlands in 2012 that she unfortunately left leather work aside for a while. It was at the beginning of 2023 that she plunged back into the leatherworking and created her workshop: Needle and Awl.
Mrs Katie Hill rediscovers a new passion and specializes in design and craft strap goods. She uses traditional know-how acquired more than 10 years ago during her saddler training to create heirlom quality pieces. In the Needle and Awl workshop, each item is made entirely by hand, from the first cut of leather, to hand sewing with saddle stitch, to the assembly of each piece, until the final polishing. Mrs Katie Hill mainly makes harness pieces (halter, headband, etc.) but also dog collars.
Testimony of Needle and Awl
"As an American leatherworker who relocated to the Netherlands, one of my greatest challenges in continuing my work after my move was locally sourcing high quality, full grain, vegetable tanned leather which would be suitable for the heirloom quality pieces I strive to create. Radermecker’s Niagara leather has been a game changer for me – it is precisely the type and quality of leather that I had been seeking."
"The leather works up beautifully, is soft and supple yet firm, and the aniline finish gives a gorgeous rich patina over time. I also appreciate the variety of colors, the consistent quality of the hides, the different thicknesses and cut sizes of Niagara available – all of these options allow me to choose the right leather for the particular job, and helps me to reduce waste and my environmental footprint. Crafting pieces by hand is a labor of love, and I am so pleased to have such fine leather to work with."
Mrs Katie Hill - Needle and Awl
