Hide Tanning Workshop

This workshop is to teach you how to tan deer hides or other larger hides to a soft tanned smoked buckskin.

This is a no hair or fur method of

tanning hides the old way

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Dates

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Course Outline

We will scrape rawhide skins to prepare them for the absorption of the tanning solution, (lecithin), and then working the solution into the hides. After lunch we will begin the process of softening the hide as it starts to dry and soften the leather.

This is a very labor-intensive process, but once completed, is a very satisfying skill to learn. Once softened and dried, we hang up the hides with a fan in front to ensure the hides are completely dry over the night.

NOTE: The process is the same using animal brains OR using lecithin. For the purpose of our workshops and safety of the students, we will be using lecithin.

The course includes:

This is a hands on student participation workshop
Hide scraping
Applying Solution
Softening the Hide

The next day, we will show you what to look for and gather the wood for smoking the hides.
We will smoke all the hides, so they are finished.
Students will be given hand out notes to take home so they can refer back to what they have learned for doing their own hides.

This is a lengthy process and is often followed by those that have taken the FUR tanning workshop so that the student already has an idea of the amount of work that goes into creating this superior type of leather.

This workshop will tan a Deer hide or other large hide, depending on what we have available

THIS TANNING PRODUCES A SUPERIOR TANNED HIDE