It was King Christian X, who owned the royal deer herd during the 1930’s and who trusted RHANDERS with crafting gloves and accessories from the precious leather for the royal household.

All the leathers are marked with the years 1931 to 1939. However, for some reason not all leathers were used at that time. Some were hidden during World War II and kept for a special occasion. Only in 2023, when the leather stock room had to be moved from the location it had been peacefully sitting in for more than 95 years, the Royal Deer Leather was rediscovered. 

The leather had been carefully looked after during the century of storage. The temperature was routinely measured (it should never fall below 16 degrees celsius or above 29 degrees celsius) and humidity was carefully controlled (it should never fall below 40% and never go top of 60%). In addition, it had been given an infusion of fresh air once a month, almost ritually. So, the leather was in top shape to be given a new life - nearly one hundred years later. 

0 · Finding the purpose in life
Before anything, we must have each piece of leather through our hands to see, touch and feel the purpose of the leather. Some pieces are destined for bags, as they are more sturdy in structure, but velvet like and flawless on the surface. Other pieces are delicate, thin and butter-soft so they can be artfully shaped into gloves in various sizes depending on the thickness of the leather. Yet other pieces are thick, spongy and goes easily back into shape when stretched, so their calling is in clothing.

1 · The ritual of balancing overnight moist
In order to work the leather into shape and stretch the desired glove size into the leather, the leather needs to be perfectly moist. This is best achieved by hanging in humid weather conditions - preferably by our lake in RHANDERS Forest - overnight. This way, the entire surface of the leather gets dampened in a natural and balanced manner and the body of the leather sucks in just the right amount of moisture for the fibers to soften nice and smoothly. 
You might think that we treat the Royal Deer Leather like the Princess and the Pea, but believe us, we have tried other treatments (like spraying water, giving it a shower, rolling it in wet blankets overnight, etc.) but nothing works the magic like a lullaby by the forest lake - so we keep up the treatment that secures the best results.

2 · Toggling and stretching
After a night of natural moist treatment by Mother Earth, the leather is wrapped to preserve the moisture until it is being rolled out and stretched by the glove maker. This is an act of dance and fingerspitzgefühl incorporated and refined over 60 years at our atelier, so rare and secretive that we simply cannot explain it in words, but will allow a picture to offer a glimpse into the tradition.

3 · Cutting and resting under pressure
When the leather has been worked into the desired state and size, it has to rest for 24 hours, so that it doesn't get stressed. Yes admittedly, it sounds like something out of a fairytale - but it works, so we let it have its beauty sleep without questioning it. 
Finally, when the time is right, we negotiate with the leather about the correct placement of the product, then stamp out the glove with our ion cutting dies, which we have used since the 1960's, or cut out the shapes for the Swan Bag by hand.
And then.. you guessed right.. the Royal Deer Leather needs another nap. This time it rests for a day under pressure. At least 5 kg sits neatly and evenly on top of the fine leather to let it sink into its new shape. If it is not given time and pressure, it simply retracts to where it came from - and the four days work up until now would be wasted!

4 · Sewing perfectly matching pairs
When the seamstress receives the Royal Deer Leather, it is paired up with perfect matching mates, marked with the glover’s personal sign, and chalk stamped with the sizing. So now the skillful mastery of transforming the flat leather into 3D shapes begins.
For the Alexandrine gloves, the 100-year-old Piqué sewing machine is used. It has no electrical power, so the seamstress's movements are beautifully choreographed - the subtle actions of the legs and feet invite the hands and shoulders to work in a synchronous dance, stitch by stitch. It's indeed very calming and very mesmerizing to observe.

5 · Hand stitching perfect soft edges
There is never a pair of gloves, a bag or a piece of clothing that goes through our atelier without being finished by hand. This is the work of the hand stitching seamstress and is an entirely different discipline to the choreographed dance with one’s machine, which become part of oneself. 
Instead, edges, hems and soft corners meet each other by the help of a free-hand stitch.

6 · Ironing into final form and function
The rare and beautiful Royal Deer Leather has now been pampered, stretched and shaped into a beautiful function. However, it is not complete and might look like nothing but a crinkled cloth until it meets the ion shaped as a hand, which can get it into its final shape.