BATCH 01 | FROM SOURCE TO FINISH
SLOW MADE | SMALL BATCH | MINIMAL WASTE
The Francli phone + card case: A practical solution to keep your valuables safe and a stylish addition to a bag-free outfit. An everyday essential so you can be lighter on the move.
We operate on a small scale and make everything by hand. Minimising waste is important to us which is why we’ve introduced a pre-order and batch making system: We choose a single hide of the highest quality Italian vegetable tanned leather, customers then pre-order their phone case and are allotted a space on the hide with their own unique batch number. Any spare space is filled with our branded labels and any final scrap is donated to our studio neighbours, Cut by Beam, for their own creations.
We recently documented the full making story from source to completion. How we organise, cut, prepare, construct and finish the leather, transforming it from a single piece into a stack of phone + card cases…
LEATHER
For Batch 01 we selected this beautiful hide in a deep ‘cognac’ colour. Every hide we work with is processed with natural minerals and vegetable tanning agents, this is a more environmentally friendly method than chrome tanning. The leather exhibits more animal like characteristics and each finished phone case will gradually darken and patina over time with exposure to sunlight.
LASER CUTTING
Our studio neighbours Cut By Beam are a creative design space and laser cutting studio. They carefully measure the hide to fit as many cases as possible, filling any gaps with Francli labels. They expertly cut and etch the leather using their CO2 machines, finishing each case with its own unique batch number.
MINIMISING WASTE
It’s incredibly satisfying to see the hide divided into all the pieces our studio needs. Once we have fit in all the phone cases, card holders and Francli labels, there is barely anything leftover. The scrap gets organised; larger pieces are donated back to Cut by Beam and smaller pieces are kept to support various studio projects, such as zip pulls or leather washers for pressing rivets. The tiny matchstick pieces are put into our fabric recycling.
From the cognac hide for Batch 01 we totalled:
x24 ‘Francli’ labels
x24 ‘bespoke’ tabs
x26 phone case pieces
x26 cardholder pieces.
PREPARATION
Back in the Francli studio we then prepare the sides of the leather by cleaning and sanding the charred edges. We then use a protective burnishing technique to polish the raw edges that we won’t be able to reach once the cases become 3D. These include the cardholder edges and phone case fold curves, cord loop and top curve.
SEWING
Using our Singer flatbed we top edge stitch the card holder and cord loop into place.
SECURING THE SIDES
The form of the cases starts to come together as we carefully glue the front and back sides. This prevents the leather from slipping in the machine and ensures a flush line. Once they’re dried and secure, we edge stitch each side with our Adler walking foot machine.
FINISHING
This stage is both the last and the longest. Once the sides are stitched together, we take them back to the dremel for more sanding to clean them up and prepare them for the final burnish. With a leather treatment solution and canvas cloth we hand burnish the raw sides. The combination of the conditioning solution and friction with the cloth connects the two layers and creates a beautiful shine.
Finally each case is completed with a leather neck cord, tied with 2 sliding knots to allow for adjustable length.
