Smoll Envelope Wallet | Leather Design Reinterpreted

Smoll Envelope Wallet | Leather Design Reinterpreted

Seamless origami design turns premium veg-tanned leather into a minimalist, executive wallet. No stitch, no glue, no compromise.

Smoll Envelope Wallet | Leather Design Reinterpreted

Metallic Black is an elegant color option for those who seek difference in a subtle way. Every metallic black color is completely processed by hand, which makes your wallet truly one of a kind. We create Metallic Black by brushing the surface of the black veg tanned leather with strokes of sustainable water based silver pigment, that’s why we can only offer limited quantities. This unique technique gives a beautiful patina with marble like pattern, generating a soft glow under light.

For backers who have already pledged, simply go to the add-on section to select the $25 Metallic Black Color Upgrade option according to the quantity you desire.For new backers who haven’t made any pledge yet, you can select Metallic Black wallet reward with the COMPACT or LONG edition. If you wish to back more Metallic Black wallets, you can also find them in add on options.

The Smoll Envelope Wallet is a daily accessory that carries a minimalist, sustainable design with high functionality. By applying origami to vegetable-tanned leather design, we seek new possibilities outside of the current regime of the industry.We're fond of vegetable-tanned leather because of its lovable attributes. To preserve the material's integrity, we keep the design simple and the processing minimal.

Through origami design, we overcome the limits of traditional vegetable-tanned leather making. The Smoll Wallet is thin, light, and durable. And it can fit in as many bills, coins, and cards as you need.It all started with our love for vegetable-tanned leather—the texture, smell, firmness, naturality, and modulability. However, the stiff and tenacious character also sets its own limit. In comparison to chrome-tanned leather, the sewing and gluing processing of vegetable-tanned leather are more difficult. That’s why most of the leather products on the market are made with chrome-tanned leather, while vegetable-tanned leather is only used for pricey customized goods or in professional workshops.

It got us thinking: how to make vegetable-tanned leather more accessible and share its beauty to more people? We came up with the idea of bringing origami to leather design. Not using any stitch or glue, we exceed the limit of the traditional, complicated processing of vegetable-tanned leather. What’s more, instead of breaking leather into small pieces and restructuring them back together, we preserve its integrity and make the most of its original structure.

Sculptural and firm, vegetable-tanned leather is a great medium to carry out origami design. The only challenge is that it is hard to fold and stay in place. To solve this problem, we first skive the leather piece and use only the thin full grain to make the Envelope Wallet, and we add a unique crease of non-continuous cuts on the leather piece, making the assembly of each product easy, yet precise. Thanks to the seamless crease design, the Smoll Envelope Wallet can be folded as compliant as paper and stay slim.

After trying out different curves, shapes, and sizes, we found the perfect pattern for the seamless crease design. To crave the line clean and clear on the leather piece, precision is the key. Dealing with a material that has high originality, we found out that it is hard to find the right factory that can meet our needs. Therefore, we decided to buy our own laser cutting machine so we can test out the best parameters and conduct our production.

Every detail matters. After the laser cutting process, we take the leather piece back to the working table to complete the burnishing. Because of the delicate fiber and dense texture of vegetable-tanned leather, by using the wood slicker and leather finish gel—and plenty of time—we make the edge smooth and polished.

Each Smoll Envelope Wallet is made in our studio to meet our standard of quality. We take care of all the production processes in our studio, from leather smoothing to product assembly. The simple assembly echoes the minimalist design of the Smoll Envelope Wallet. We don’t use any sewing or chemical glues, keeping the process as sustainable as possible.

The only mechanism used in forming the wallet is an ultra-short stainless steel screw. This tiny component keeps the origami seamless structure solid and firm, avoiding any kind of loosening situation. To align with the slim layout of the wallet, we worked directly with the local manufacturer to get our customized screw, whose head is only 1.2mm thick.By using the screwing tool we designed, the assembly is easy and won’t leave scratches on the leather surface. Forming the wallet seems quite challenging, but it is not. If you’re interested in making your own wallet, the Smoll Envelope Wallet also lets you experience the fun of origami and leather making.

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