Basics of Bark Tan – Zoom Class

Pull up a chair and a soothing beverage and experience the magic of making leather with your own hands from the comfort of your kitchen in this Zoom class with Matt Richards. You’ll learn how plant tannins and animal skins combine to become one of humanity’s most important discoveries. No specialized tools or equipment needed, just basic kitchen implements. We’ll tan one square foot of deerskin to keep the labor simple and focus on the process and knowledge. Check it off your list of things you’ve always wanted to do, or go on to tan more and bigger skins armed with the knowledge of how to do it simply and efficiently. You’ll love this class if: You want the hands-on experience of making a piece of leather You work with leather, crafting, bookbinding or tailoring and want to deepen your relationship with the material You are a tanner and want to learn how we do it, and what we know. We plan to offer more advanced classes in the future and this class will be a pre-requisite. The materials kit is included in the class fee and contains everything you need that you might not have around the kitchen – a square foot of raw salted deerskin, lime, 2 lbs tan oak bark, leather finishing balm and a surprise item or two. You can also get the Mimosa Extract materials kit for an additional $30 (this would mean you are tanning two pieces of deerskin during the class, each with different tannins). The Mimosa Kit allows you experience tanning with an extract. Mimosa tannin is naturally faster penetrating and gives a redder color leather. You might also consider getting a barkometer. They aren’t necessary for the class but are super useful for this type of tanning and will add to your experience. They are $40. These will pop up as options when you checkout. There is one time slot for this class in November 2026: 6 pm pacific time. All sessions will be recorded and available to re-watch. Customs: declared values will only be the value of the materials kit, not the class cost. Starting Monday November 2nd:  60 minutes: Fleshing and Liming Monday November 9th:  60 minutes: Dehairing and neutralizing Thursday November 12th:  120 minutes: Make tannin teas, start tanning! Thursday November 19th: 60 minutes: Rinse out excess tannin. Apply oils, sleeking, set up to dry Monday November 23rd:   60 minutes: Softening and conditioning Add a review Traditional Tanners Rating* 0/5 * Rating is required Your review * Review is required Name * Name is required Email * Email is required Submit Cancel 5.0 Based on 148 reviews59999%411%30%20%10%Add a review Ana Isabel Keilson Reviewer 5/5 This was a really informative, detailed course. As a brain tanner new to bark tanning, I took away so much. Thank you Matt! 3 months ago Sierra Reviewer 5/5 If you want to learn to tan hides, this is the way to go! No need to travel all over the country for a hands-on class. Great communication before and after each class to make sure you know what to do ahead of time and recap what you’ve learned. Recordings of the video calls ensure that you can watch back the class instruction or catch-up if you are unavailable at class time. The perfect balance of information and “just-do-it.” This class made it so simple to learn how to tan hides; I am confident and fully capable of tanning my own hides at home after taking this course. 3 months ago Aimee Reviewer 5/5 I have been working with leather for over 20 years and this class made me fall in love all over again with leather. Matt is a wealth of information, and also quite entertaining! I honestly can’t believe how nice the leather we made came out. It far exceeded my expectations and I would recommend it to anyone interested in beginning tanning, or self taught tanner’s looking to level up their skill set. 3 months ago Mark C. Reviewer 5/5 I reccomend this course highly. I learened alot and is was easy to follow along and do each task. 3 months ago Celeste Mandala Reviewer 5/5 This bark tanning class absolutely opened my eyes and inspired me to process deer hides into leather here in Hawaii. Matt is a fantastic teacher ! 3 months ago Emily Low Reviewer 5/5 Amazing class. I appreciate all the resources to allow us to learn in our own way. 3 months ago Thomas Lapp Reviewer 5/5 Matt you are a skilled teacher of the bark tanning method(s). My sample skin/leather piece is rather extraordinary for a first effort and that’s due to following your methods. In truth I have never attempted leather tanning but have dressed sheep and other fur skins for years. Leather was intimidating in the past, but not anymore. I have renewed interest in the craft now, so your class did that for me. Tom Lapp 3 months ago Jessica Farnsworth Reviewer 5/5 Worth every penny plus some!!! The amount of knowledge that is shared is amazing!! I was hesitant at first just because you don’t know 100% how the classes will be but take my word, it’s worth it! All supplies are labeled and packaged perfectly. 3 months ago Sarah B. Reviewer 5/5 Such a great class to jump start the tanning intro and the format of zoom classes (and recordings) along with the materials kit is a great way to learn from home! 5 months ago Show more reviews (139)