 | Footwear fairs offer autumn cheer
With the footwear industry still swallowing up by far the greatest proportion of the leather tanners produce around the world (47%), Europe’s main autumn footwear fairs are an important opportunity to take the sector’s pulse. The September shows this year—GDS in Düsseldorf, Micam in Milan and Modacalzado in Madrid—certainly appear to have achieved pass-marks. |  | The Cape fits for Hamburg couple
Inspired by a trip to Cape Town five years ago, Marcus Jonas and Anke Voelker went home to Hamburg and decided to launch a company importing finished handbags in bovine and exotic leathers from the South Africa they had fallen in love with. |
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 | Bigger and bolder bags and belts
The autumn edition of Lineapelle in Bologna was a paradise for bag and belt designers. Buckles and trims are becoming ever more fabulous; at the event, they were often highly decorated and oversized. |  | Brewing up a storm at Le Cuir à Paris
We can’t escape the influence that the weather wields over us all — it rules our actions and shapes our moods. The materials and colours for winter 2009 at Le Cuir à Paris captured the very essence of the weather and the feelings it evokes. |
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 | Love those shoes
The UK has produced many influential footwear designers who are recognised both at home and abroad; among them is Georgina Goodman who, in just a few years, has established an international reputation for creating seriously glamorous shoes. |  | The strength of opposites
One can expect opposing colours, shapes, prints and details, with contrasting matches, lines and patterns for autumn/winter 2008/2009 — a wardrobe of opposites and contrasts, according to TFL’s Colour Trends & Fashion Inspirations for the leather industry. |
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 | Out with the old and in with the new
The bright, vivid psychedelic and metallic colours at Bread and Butter in Barcelona were a fresh addition to the ‘dirty’, ‘second hand’ look we’ve all got used to. |  | Flight paths of colour
Diane Becker, fashion and colour consultant at the consortium Vera Pelle Italiana Conciata al Vegetale, has worked with Paolo Russo to develop the themes for autumn/winter 2008/09… taking you on a journey of colours. |
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 | Tanners and designers combine
The Spanish Tanners’ Confederation, Acexpiel, recently launched a new autumn/winter catalogue, Inspiration 2008, showcasing the work of eight tanners and six top designers from all parts of the country. |  | ‘Slim the silhouette’ kicks in
According to Aldo Premoli, a trend consultant working closely with the Italian National Footwear Institute (ANCI), the demand for boots will continue into the
spring/summer 2008 season. Yes, boots— including long boots — in summer. Whatever next? |
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 | Opera theme strikes the right note
A collection of 25 special pairs of shoes, the Carmen’s Shoes exhibition that first went on display in Milan in 2005 before going to Tokyo in 2006, won a third airing in Düsseldorf in September as the centre-piece of an evening reception. |  | Fur stands out as SIMM
The resurgence that fur has enjoyed in fashion over the past few seasons seems set to stay if the designs on show at the Semana Internacional de la Moda de Madrid (SIMM), held in the Spanish capital in late February, are anything to go by. |
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 | Barcelona, where brands show off their ‘street cred’
The Bread and Butter fair, now very much at home in Barcelona, has speedily grown to be one of the leading young fashion fairs where footwear brands with ‘street credibility’ got to show off their latest cutting-edge designs. |  | The golden touch
In Greek mythology it was said that everything King Midas touched turned to gold. And you wouldn't be blamed for thinking that King Midas had been using his golden touch all round the Lineapelle fair in April. |
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 | Spain sets the gold standard
Gold appeared to be the season's must-have colour, judging by footwear, handbags and accessories on show at Madrid's SIPIEL/Modacalzado event. |  | Leather turns heads at Tranoï
The former home of the Paris Stock Exchange, Le Palais de la Bourse, once again played host to the Tranoï exhibition at the start of March, allowing designers from all over the world to showcase their forthcoming autumn/winter collections. |
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 | The perfect mix of contrasts at Le Cuir à Paris
The adage that ‘opposites attract’ certainly rings true for the summer 2008 leather trends that will be unveiled at Le Cuir à Paris, where ambiguous elegance melds the classic with the experimental and the new with the traditional. |  | Things are looking up in the field of sitting down
Even the difficult transport situation, caused by a hurricane buffeting Germany, failed to dampen the buoyant mood at the international furniture fair, IMM Cologne. Visitors were spoilt for choice with a wide range of innovative and stylish designs that mark a return to fashion for high-end leather furniture. |
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 | A touch of Hollywood glamour at Lineapelle
Glitter and glamour was on display as Italian tanners pulled out all the stops when they showcased new leathers for winter 2007 at Lineapelle. Old style black and white movie star glamour was a recurring theme with deep rich glossy leathers and subtle metallic surface finishes. Classic colours such as dark blue, bronze, pewter and purple were all around, whilst rich reds looked new and fresh. |  | ‘With these hands we make great shoes’
‘With these hands we make great shoes’ was the title of a special autumn exhibition by English shoemaker Church’s—held in conjunction with the Northampton Museum & Art Gallery which houses a huge collection of footwear both past and present. |
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 | Take nine students (and one professor)
The Finnish climate can be quite cool, so perhaps it is not surprising that the |  | Out of Africa—Ethiopian luxury goes global
Africa has long inspired designers around the world with its mix of culture, history and unique handicrafts, but until now it has been foreigners who have created ‘African’ collections. Taytu intends to change this, with a little help from UNIDO and Italian accessory designer Barbara Guarducci, to produce genuine African leather goods and footwear for the high-end market. |
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 | What could be more natural?
After some 100 designers were presented with the autumn/winter 2007/08 leather and colour ranges produced by the 28 vegetable tanners of the Consorzio Vera Pelle Italiana Conciata al Vegetale, nobody was left in any doubt as to the beauty and sensuality of ‘Natural Sensations’. |