Wild Things on Kickstarter – Get Your One of a Kind Accessory!
On top Black Edition and Shoes from Pittanned Leather
What shall we do with all those beautiful deerskin pieces that show traces of stag fights, scratches or sometimes shot holes? It would definitively be a pity to throw them away and, above all, contrary to our credo: we want to reduce waste of any kind. In addition, we like wilderness and its unique and honest creations.
Wouldn’t it be a better idea to create leather accessories that tell us a story: the tale of a wild deer’s life, for instance? We further agree with our customers that a unique leather bag is a perfect match to beautiful leather shoes. This is the reason why Cervo Volante decided to produce its first deerskin accessories.
Those wild everyday companions demarcate themselves from the short-lived and glossy leather knickknack. We have indeed consciously renounced to every kind of additional products that might be superfluous, unnatural or harmful to the environment. The resultant pieces are stylish, practical and durable: a travel bag for the weekend, a shopper bag, a convertible beauty bag, a spectacle case or a luggage tag. All items are designed by our creators Piret Pupart from Estonia and Marc Fischer from Zurich.
You decide if we start production or not. Get your own unique Companion at a reduced price at Kickstarter until end of November and help Cervo Volante to take off and fly!
A limited edition has been prepared for those who want to choose their one of a kind accessory. As soon as the intended sum has been collected, we will start the production and inform our customers about the purchased products!
‘Black Mineral’ mission accomplished: ecological black colouring succeeded!
For a long time, we have been brainstorming and tinkering. Now, thanks to our tanning professionals, our goal has been achieved: the ecological black colouring of our Cervo Volante leather!
Actually, it’s a pity to dye the oak-tanned, olive brown deerskin, but the high demand for black incited us to explore in more details the world of leather dyeing. As our products should be as natural, breathable and free of chemicals as possible – so as to minimize the environmental footprint of manufacturing, usage and disposal – a classical dyeing with synthetic dyes such as aniline was out of the question.
Is there something closer to black than charcoal? We don’t think so. This is the reason why our collaborator, Jürg and Andi from the tannery Zeller, dye our leather directly after tanning is complete in the barrel with charcoal. The result is deep black and iron brown leather.
One of our next plans is to try vegetal coal (biochar) for blackening. This natural material is obtained from the charring of wood chips in a Swiss pyrolysis factory.
The first prototype of a Val Verda black edition, has survived the baptism of fire
Indeed, at a wedding in the Italian Dolomites, the father of the groom proudly wore the shoes during the party. Proud to be the first, proud of the eponymous valley, the Val Verda, lying right on his doorstep and proud as a gamekeeper who knows the red deer like no other!
Now the prototype is going into production. We hope to sell the first black editions before Christmas. We will inform you on time. In case you would like to pre-order a black edition now, you can simply email us.
Very special: First shoe models with pit-tanned leather!
Pit tanning is probably the most traditional and ecological tanning process. Such a pit exists in the tannery Zeller since 1837. Recently, Jürg Zeller has opened the lid for Cervo Volante and enriched the broth with fresh barks of spruce, oak and chestnut.
The result are magnificent dark red-brown iridescent leather colours! Our well-known models the derbies, lace-up boots and ankle boots look simply one of a kind.
After 9 months in the pit, our deer hides have turned into magnificent leather with dark red-brown iridescent colours! As a result, our well-known models derby, boot and bootee look sober and unique. A total of almost 50 shoes have been created from those hides. Many are already sold or reserved. Stop by at our shop in the historical house “Damhirschli” at Neumarkt 24 in Zurich’s old town, or order your size by email.
We pay attention to the box
Also our shoe boxes merit some attention, for finding the “cleanest” packaging costs time! Ideally, it should be classy and robust at the same time, made of recycled material, exempt of glue and easy to fold. Ultimately, the box should not end up in the next garbage container, but be reusable. The solution was provided by Swiss Model AG, which created a simple box type of corrugated cardboard in three formats for us – of course with our stag beetle logo. The box can either be shipped without plastic or adhesive tape, or just elegantly carried out of the store throughout the city with a leather strap.
More news and upcoming events:
Paradis des Innocents Zurich: From November 1st to November 3rd, we will perform a 3-day popup in the Paradis des Innocents. On November 1st, a workshop will take place in the shop at Oetenbachgasse, in Zurich’s old town, with Cervo Volante and other young, innovative labels.
Faoro St. Moritz: If you happen to enjoy a holiday in the Engadine, you can also try on Cervo Volante shoes at the fashion shop Faoro in St. Moritz. Renato and Heidi will be happy to welcome you with a glass of wine or serve you home-made delights from Cucina Faoro…
Toku Bern: The city of Bern is really an exciting place to visit, with its many back alleys such as the picturesque Gerechtigkeitsgasse. There stands Toku, a pretty little fashion store that specializes in Swiss manufacturers and now offers Cervo Volante products. During the Bern “Velo Fashion Parade”, on October 21st, Cervo Volante shoes were worn for cycling and running.
Deer Skin Collection 2018: During the hunting season 2018, we have collected some 1,500 deer skins from several hunting districts located in the Grisons, Valais, St. Gall and Bern. Although we enjoyed cruising the mountains and visiting the butchers over the last 2 years, the time and effort exceeded our capacities. So, it is with a heavy heart that we have now assigned this task to the company Neuenschwander. This traditional fur-trader and -manufacturer dries our deer skins out and delivers them directly to the tannery.
Roe deer and chamois: As far as the lining of our shoes is concerned, ongoing trials with roe deer and chamois leather are currently being performed. We are fascinated by the delicate leathers that can be obtained from chamois hide using our tanning method. Who knows, maybe there will soon be a special edition called “Camoscio Volante”…
Foxes: Soon the time will come when every second person will haunt the city, wearing a collar fur made of Chinese raccoon dog. There are Swiss alternatives though: Swiss fox fur resulting from fox hunting stock is often burned due to the lack of demand. We did not give up and tried to develop a pure vegetable tanning for the fox fur, despite the scepticism of tanneries in Switzerland and Germany. And we have succeeded! The first fox skins free of synthetic pre-treatment have been produced with tara fruits by the Neuenschwander tannery. A beautiful, completely natural raw material, with which we will continue to work soon….
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