RELTEX | The LACTAE HEVEA® sole

The LACTAE HEVEA® sole guarantees a excellent and exclusive product which guarantees comfort and well-being.

Recognised throughout the world, the LACTAE HEVEA® trademark guarantees the excellence of an exclusive, environmentally-friendly product made in France, entirely by hand and from 100% natural virgin hevea milk. A shimmering honey colour, soft and velvety to the touch, the sole awakens all the senses. (The unique refining of the virgin hevea milk produces a structure of air bubbles exclusive to the LACTAE HEVEA® sole.) The exclusive artisanal know-how behind its unique structure of air bubbles guarantees blissful comfort. Scientific studies show the excellent shock absorber effect of the sole. Because of this bubbles the sole has an incomparable elasticity, suppleness, resistance and incredible lightness which guarantees comfort and well-being. (the LACTAE HEVEA® sole is regularly recommended by the medical profession./ The LACTAE HEVEA® sole is particularly recommended by the medical profession for the protection it offers the foot)

 From nature

The LACTAE HEVEA® sole helps to preserve the planet’s resources and thereby supports sustainable development.

The LACTAE HEVEA® sole is the result of the refinement of an entirely natural product, the hevea milk harvested at the heart of tropical plantations in Asia which are regularly maintained and constantly renewed. The hevea milk is harvested by making narrow incisions in the tree’s bark. The milk forms a bead and then flows along these spirals cut into the bark.

The harvest of the hevea milk, far from weakening the tree, actually helps it to flourish. By the time one end of the part which has been cut has been reached, the other end has regenerated and a new cycle can begin.

No natural forest is cut down. After 25 years of exploitation, the old tree is felled and a new tree is planted.

Once harvested, this pure virgin milk is refined using a unique artisanal process, resulting in the incomparable and completely natural LACTAE HEVEA® sole.

The end product of an environmentally-friendly, artisanal process carried out entirely by hand by the craftsmen of a human-sized company, the LACTAE HEVEA® sole is in keeping with a sustainable development approach.

The LACTAE HEVEA® sole is a living product which is enhanced over time.

Slight visual imperfections resulting from the natural origin of the sole, are proof of its authenticity. Over time, a light white coat may appear on the sole. This phenomenon of blooming can be treated by rubbing it with a cloth moistened with lemon juice or white vinegar or by brushing it with a silicone-based water solution. The sole is completely natural and the usual precautions must be taken on slippery surfaces.

Craftmanship

The LACTAE HEVEA® sole pays homage to the tradition of excellent craftsmanship.

For more than 40 years, in its workshops located in a small village of the Dauphiné region, the French refiner RELTEX has been perpetuating traditional craftsmanship to offer a very high quality product. The LACTAE HEVEA® sole revives the traditions of an almost forgotten know-how.

It all began with the Maya Indians and Aztecs of South America who discovered the natural qualities of a milky liquid which flowed from the Cao Su (“Crying wood”) tree. By coagulating this milk, they made bracelets, rings, balls and torches. They smothered themselves in it to protect themselves from the cold. Eight hundred years ago, the Mayas were the first to use this milk under the arch of the foot: the pure hevea milk sole was born.

The process used to make the LACTAE HEVEA® sole is unique in the world.

An exclusive artisanal process which results each time in a unique and precious product. An inimitable high-quality material, which epitomises its value and expresses its truth.

RENDENBACH SOLE Leather

Legancy leather since 1871

The traditional method of oak-bark ground-tanning has prevailed through four generations of leathermaking at Rendenbach in Germany. Our undaunting dedication to this environment-friendly tanning process has been well rewarded: with a product of first class quality that is robust and yet extremely flexible, waterproof and yet breathable. JR-Leather is notably hard wearing, dermatologically kind and exceptionally comfortable to wear.

We work hand in hand with nature to ensure our leather has the comfortable wear, durability and active breathing that our customers so value. We steadfastly employ the century old method of traditional ground-tanning, work exclusively with first class raw material from Europe´s best and most expensive provenance and subject the entire production process to a stringent quality control.

Traditional oak-bark ground-tanning is a process involving biodegradable tanning agents such as bark and fruit. This ecological tanning method results in an especially long lasting product.

Leather with the JR-Brand label is waterproof and extremely abrasion resistant, tough yet flexible, very comfortable to wear and optically distinguished by its attractive grain and warm, woody colour.

The tanning process

Dye section

Tanning begins with the dye section. Stripped of its hair, the hide undergoes a slow surface tanning over a period of about four weeks, opening its fibers to absorb the tannin. The hides are passed through several pits, connected in a closed circuit through a system of pipes and containing different concentrations of tanning fluid. The hides themselves hang on frames and are moved manually from one pit to the next on a daily basis.

Submersion

The second stage of the preliminary tanning involves a pit half filled with tanning fluid. The hides are submerged in the fluid with a layer of the shredded tan substances between each one. They remain here for approximately six weeks, after which the procedure is repeated in a second pit.

Oak-bark ground-tanning

The oak-bark ground-tanning is an extremely gentle process taking place in old, three-metre deep oak lined pits. During the course of this process, tannin is absorbed into the hide binding and conserving its protein-structures. Nature supplies the main ingredients for the tan mixture used in traditional oak-bark ground-tanning; primarily oak, spruce and mimosa bark as well as valonea fruit.

La Conceria la Bretagna

Vegetable tanned leather since 1961

We are a family of Tuscan tanners who, since 1961, have specialized in the production of high quality natural leathers.

Over the many years of his involvement as the founder of the Bretagna tannery, our father, Giovanni Testi, has had the great merit of knowing precisely how to convey the culture, love, passion, and experience of the oldes form of vegetable tanning in the world. For our production, we exclusively use plant extracts from renewable sources such as: bark, fruits, leaves, and wood.

Water, the source of life, and tannins are the essential and main ingredients to make the slow vegetable tanning process complete in a workmanlike manner.

Taking this into account, our leathers have the characteristic of being Metal-free, Hypoallergenic, Non-toxic, and Fireproof,with the particular abilities to keep its shape once wet and to be easily printed. One of the main characteristics of this skin is that the more it is used, the more beautiful it becomes.

We do not like mass-produced products and the general concept of globalization. Ours is truly Made in Italy because we produce everything within “La Toscana”- the beautiful region that is our home.

We can say that we are true pioneers of vegetable tanned leather manufacture, research, and development, because our curiosity allowed us to adhere to traditions while continuing our experimentation to create new tanned leathers. Our research has led us to focus on the usage of new types of plants and tannins, dyes and ecological fixings, while not forgetting the importance of investing in human capital.

Quality and characteristics of vegetable-tanned skin

Leather is considered an eternal material, because it has always accompanied man in the course of history. Despite millennium have passed, Vegetable Tanning remains the most classic, traditional and recognizable, and the closest to the condition of nature, the most respectful of ecology and the most suitable to combine comfort and aesthetics, fashion and tradition, versatility of use and uniqueness of product. With Vegetable Tanning nature has found a way to combine with nature, because the protein of the skin admirably receives the action of the tannin which is basically the principle active content in tannic plant materials. It is therefore precisely the tannin that allows the processing of leather into leather. This substance is found more or less concentrated in numerous types of trees and plants and can be present both in the bark and in the leaves, both in the wood and in the bark or even in fruits and roots.

The Tannins

Tannins are the main and essential ingredient for vegetable tanning. They are absolutely natural and strictly vegetable products, from renewable sources such as: fruits, barks, leaves. It is important to emphasize that, if the tannins are extracted from the wood, the trees from which they are made will again be cultivated and continuously replanted. The tannins most common used for vegetable tanning are: the Quebracho, Chestnut, Mimosa, Myrobalan , Tare, Gambier, Sumac, Oak, Pine etc. Each of these has organic characteristics different and being mixed together according to the type of leather that is made (soft, rigid, smooth and flexible, of light, pink or dark color etc).

History of La Bretagna

Our company takes its name from one of the most interesting regions of Europe, Brittany, situated land in the north of France, which in ancient times was inhabited by the mysterious Celtic people, an attentive observer of the cosmic laws. In their Breton language, the word tann meant tree, especially oak considered a symbol of immortality because it is the link between earth and sky. The tann was the product of the tree, the bark used for leather tanning and the same words Tannery or Tannins they come from their language and bind us to this place. Not just nature and pastures but love for the traditions and beauty have led us to purchase the best raw leather. Two regions, Tuscany and Brittany, apparently distant, are united by ancient knowledge that strengthens and support a constant journey of research and improvement. Our skin is a symbol of becoming and he spends time enhancing its beauty and naturalness. Quality in respect of nature is ours philosophy and vegetable tanning, ancient and noble art, is its representation.

At the La Bretagna we were among the first partners founders of the “Genuine Vegetable Tanned Italian Leather Consortium”, which with its activity of control, guarantees that all the basic requirements to produce a vegetable leather are respected by the associated tanneries.