With the Black Forest Edition we're bringing you unique & extremely limited versions of the medium messenger and backpack 2.0, which celebrate the incomparable naturalness and sturdiness like never before. For the first time ever, a compagnon product is made from natural vachette leather, also called pale leather. It is totally untinged and thus shows the light, native color of a carefully & naturally tanned bull hide from southern Germany. This process results in a silky smooth leather surface while showing the pores, marks and imperfections proudly. This look is teamed with an absolutely incredible durability and toughness. The Black Forest Edition medium messengers and backpacks will develop a more distinct & characterful patina compared to our regular leather. Sunlight and being used outdoors will lead to a significant darkening of the light leather continously. Typically, a color of rich toffee and a unique character will develop in the weeks and months from new condition.
The new Black Forest Edition celebrates nature not only by its responsibly made materials and fair European manufacturing. Especially its durability and robustness make it possibly the most ecologically sound option for camera & gear transport. A timeless, classy design with levels of toughness so it can be seen more as an heirloom rather than just a product for daily use.
Each vachette leather skin made by the traditional, family-run tannery in southern Germany to be turned into a compagnon, will feel significantly firmer and tight compared to compagnon standard leather. The break-in time is respectively longer due to its ruggedness. Historically, vachette leather has been used for professional grade working gloves because no other material was able to offer dependability for many years under the extreme conditions of that time and age. Creating natural vachette leather at the utmost quality is a skill only few craftsmen possess today, so, sadly, products like these are hard to come by these days. The fact that the craftsman can work with the leather during tanning without any gloves or protection and anyone could even drink from the tanning solution perfectly shows how pure the process and the resulting product is.
The traditional tanning process, as used to create the compagnon standard leather, is based on fermented foliage and tree bark, complemented by natural waxes and oils. By this process the incredibly durable surface obtains the so-called 'pull-up' effect, that allows the pale leather to retain a much more pronounced patina. The look of your Black Forest Edition bag becomes more special and characterful each day. For a collector's item, you need proper storage. Therefore the limited Black Forest Edition comes with individually handmade wooden boxes created with our partner, Meine-Holzbox. In their workshops in southern Germany they provide working opportunities for people with disabilities or rehab requirements in a work-related context. We have worked together and told their heartwarming story in the past. These boxes are the perfect base for our homemade design, celebrating this limited edition. All special edition bags come with a homemade, all organic leather care oil included. To highlight the special status of the Black Forest Edition even more and telling you which number of the series is actually yours, each model comes with impressed numbering.
medium messenger and backpack 2.0 as Black Forest Edition models offer the indentical features and usability traits beloved by many owners of the regular versions for years. Due to the use of vachette leather this limited edition is perfect for anyone who demands daily intense use for many many years or anyone who is after a strictly limited collector's item, which is already a true classic from day one. Unprecedented unique bags, limited to 10 pieces per model and thus as rare as hardly any comparable product. Black Forest Edition drops December 17th 2021 while stock lasts.
