A dark, atmospheric vellum surface with the quiet depth of aged parchment. Smoked Umber is stained and distressed to create a timeworn, collector-grade finish - velvety, nuanced, and never uniform.

Vellum, also referred to as parchment, is usually made from goat and calf skin and has had many applications over the last 1500 years. Its uses varied from map making, early book binding and a plain surface to simply write on.

Turning the skins from leather to vellum is a complex and time consuming process, resulting in a beautiful, translucent, smooth and very durable material. No two skins are the same, with each one having its own markings and character.

Mastering the techniques needed to colour and work with this magical material takes many years as the skin’s original state is not dissimilar to that of a drum, crinkly and dry.

Smoked Umber is presented as a 30 x 30 cm tile, mounted and wrapped over a wood substrate for stability, crisp edges, and easier specification across panelled applications. The finish is intentionally stained and distressed, producing deep umber-browns through to near-black smoke tones, with soft clouding, natural mottling, and occasional darker blooms that feel like patina rather than pattern. The surface reads matte to low-sheen, absorbing light in some areas and gently catching it in others.

In the 1920's, vellum was used by some of the pioneering French furniture designers such as Jean-Michel Frank, Jaques Adnet and Paul Dupre-Lafon to name just a few. They mixed the skins with oak, bronze and other materials such as shagreen to create some stunning pieces. Later in the 50's and 60's Aldo Turo from Italy started colouring the skins with beautiful results.

Format

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  30 x 30 cm tile

  
  


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  Mounted and wrapped over wood

  
  


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  Stained and distressed finish

  
  

Recommended Uses
Furniture cladding, cabinet doors, wall panels, bar fronts, drawer fronts, and decorative inlay sections (application dependent).