Cabretta leather

Description

A sheepskin leather prepared from sheep that grow straight hair instead of curly wool. Hair sheep, though classified as sheep, visually resemble goats. Their hair is coarse and short and most nourishment goes into their skin. Hair sheep are found in the mountainous regions of India, China, South America, and Africa. Cabretta leather produced from hair sheep is very soft, close-fibered, and kid-like. It is used for making gloves, shoe uppers, and garments. The term cabretta has also been used for any leather made from Brazilian sheep.

Synonyms and Related Terms

cabrito; piel de cabra (Esp.); cabritilla (Esp.); cuir de chèvre (Fr.);

Sources Checked for Data in Record

• G.S.Brady, Materials Handbook, McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1971 Comment: p. 784

• Rosalie Rosso King, Textile Identification, Conservation, and Preservation, Noyes Publications, Park Ridge, NJ, 1985

• Matt Roberts, Don Etherington, Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books: a Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington DC, 1982

• Howard L. Needles, Handbook of Textile Fibers, Dyes & Finishes, Garland Publishing Co., New York, 1981

• Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997

• The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998

• Edward Reich, Carlton J. Siegler, Consumer Goods: How to Know and Use Them, American Book Company, New York City, 1937

• Website address 1 Comment: American Leather Chemists Association Glossary at www.leatherchemists.org