COWHIDE LEATHER

Bovine hides from European cattle; these animals come from the food industry.

The animals are raised in fenced pastures, free of vegetation that could cause marks on the hide, which is why greater uniformity is achieved as there is no wild vegetation with which the animals can injure themselves.

European cattle are subject to strict health regulations which prevent insects and ticks from marking the hide. Although we will try to select the most uniform hides, small marks that are inherent to the animal nature of the material may appear.

The animal's hide is divided into three areas: the flanks, the neck, and the butt. The flanks are the hides from the animal's abdominal area; these pieces are smaller, and marks from the animal's contact with the ground are likely to appear; this part is used in leather goods to make economical belts. The neck will always have marks from the animal's neck wrinkles, which will be visible after tanning. The butt corresponds to the animal's back part; this area is the largest with fewer marks and higher quality. Jover+Valls furniture uses this part of the hide, but the hides are still selected to ensure uniformity and the necessary size for each piece of furniture.

Jover+Valls hides have a minimum thickness of 3.5 mm, the thickest on the market. In the leather industry, the top layer, called the animal's grain, is considered the best quality due to its resistance. When the grain is thinner, it allows the resulting lower layers to be commercialized as split leather, thus generating another business for the producer. The greater the depth of the processed layer, the resulting split leather will have less resistance and, therefore, poorer quality.

The tanning process of the hides used is called vegetable tanning. Unlike common and more widespread tanning, vegetable tanning is chrome-free, which gives it an environmentally sustainable character.

Vegetable tanning is an artisanal technique preserved in two areas of Spain, in France, and in Italian Tuscany.

This tanning process is carried out in cylindrical wooden drums over 4 meters high, where the hides are introduced to be rotated for hours and go through different tanning processes.

First, the hides will be introduced to remove the salt used for hide preservation during transport and to remove animal hair. In successive processes, the hide will be neutralized by mixing water with pine bark, then the hide will be dyed using natural pigments from seeds, tree barks, oils, or waxes. Drying is done indoors in ventilated spaces where the hides will hang for weeks until completely dry. Drying indoors in the shade allows the hide to have a natural appearance and not become parched.

The hides used in Jover+Valls furniture have two full-grain leather hides on their front and back. These two layers are glued one on top of the other with an intermediate textile gauze that provides additional anti-tear reinforcement.

The raw edges of the hides are finished with a manual sanding, painting, and polishing process to match the leather's color.

Leather Maintenance.

Due to the influence of sunlight and the use of the chairs themselves, the leather will change its appearance and even color; direct sunlight will darken the appearance of the leather. At Jover+Valls, we believe that these changes will enrich the furniture over time.

If you want your leather to remain soft and have a longer life and greater resistance to stains, we recommend applying leather grease twice a year. Leather grease contains beeswax, which makes the leather repel stains and water better. If you are going to use any product, make sure it does not contain solvents and silicone, which could damage the leather.

Untreated leather is particularly susceptible to getting dirty or scratched. To clean the leather, use a cotton cloth or other soft material dampened with a solution containing 3% neutral wool detergent in cold water. Then dampen a clean cloth with cold water and wring it out well, trying to remove all the detergent.

If the client decides to change deteriorated leather or prefers another color, they can always buy the different elements that make up the chair, and Jover+Valls will provide instructions for their replacement.

METAL

The steel used contains a portion of carbon, which gives it enough flexibility to be curved and folded without breaking, yet with sufficient hardness and strength.

The metal rods and plates are cut to the appropriate size for each of the pieces that make up the furniture to go through a turning and milling process in high-precision numerical control machining centers; this is the same technology used in sectors as diverse as high-end watchmaking, aeronautics, or medical.

Bending and curving are carried out cold with semi-automatic numerical control machines to ensure uniformity among the different pieces.

For metal joints, we use mechanical means, brass screws with the brand's logo, or TIG or MIG welding depending on the type of joint to be made. This welding offers greater strength and uniformity in the fusion of the metal; the quality of the finish is appreciated when it is imperceptible to the consumer.

The metal finishing process consists of three different processes. The first is the manual polishing of the metal parts to achieve a uniform steel layer and a satin-gloss finish. Subsequently, the furniture will undergo several immersions in different liquid solutions to apply various coatings to the metal through electrolysis. The process always begins with the application of a layer of nickel or brass, depending on the final finish color (silver or gold). Subsequently, the piece will be reintroduced into containers with solutions of the desired metal (gold, silver, copper). The last phase of the finish is the application of a protective lacquer, also obtained by immersion. The result is a coating of approximately 50 microns, depending on the color.

The metal finish of our furniture has passed corrosion and humidity resistance tests for indoor furniture in humid areas with the highest score. Ref. UNE-EN ISO 12944-2

We recommend cleaning the metal parts of the furniture with neutral soap and a soft cloth slightly moistened with water and drying quickly with a soft, dry cloth. We discourage the use of aggressive cleaning products (acids, bleach, solvents, disinfectants, etc.) as well as abrasive agents (scouring pads, wire brushes, etc.), as the use of these products and agents rapidly degrades the appearance of the coatings, even leading to corrosion.

We will be at your disposal for any additional clarification.