Ethically Sourced Animal Hides

Where Do The Animal Hides Come From

Each one of our Animal Hides or Skins are ethically sourced from different corners of the globe. Nordic Hides And Skins are very conscious of ensuring all of our products are responsibly farmed and are a bi-product of the meat industry only.

Our premium quality Cowhides are sourced by our trading partners around South America.   The skins are selected and graded looking at 5 key things

1. Suppleness

2. Size

3. Shape

4. Softness

5. Direction of hair 

Looking at these key quality factors we can guarantee that each Cowhide will be of premium quality and graded as “A” which is an industry term for high quality.

The cowhides are then moved across to the design department of the tannery where the creative teams will get to work on the decorative process. A majority of the Cowhides will remain in their natural form and display their own unique natural beauty. Others will then begin the decorative process to create many of our popular finishes including Metallic, Printed speckled effect, Acid Wash and Zebra print.

The actual process of creating the decorative cowhides is highly skilled and carried out by professional designers. The metallic hides which are the most spectacular in appearance bcuase of their striking imagery are carefully stencilled on for bespoke design.

After each of the cowhide rugs have completed this stage they are then sent back into the tannery to be chromium treated which will ensure your hide will be highly durable and last for many years provided that is cared for correctly (please see our link to “caring for animal hides and skins.”)

The collection of cowhides is then shipped over to our supplier here in the UK where we as a company then go and select our choices. Typically we will buy 100 natural cowhide rugs and 150 printed or metallic hide rugs at a time which we are confident will sell in a short amount of time through our website.

If we do not seem to have a hide that would suit you room simply send us a description and we can almost certainly guarantee to find you one that will match your request.

Once an order has been placed we carefully wrap each hide in protective packaging and post out via recorded delivery the next working day. (please see our delivery information link.)

Reindeer Hide Rugs

Nordic Hides And Skins have lots of enquiry’s and interest into why we sell Reindeers Hides and how do we get them. Reindeer are the only cattle that can survive in the harsh Nordic conditions. The Sami people rely on their herds to farm which is often their only source of income. The hides are merely a by-product of the meat industry and are used as decoration for the home or insulation. Each hair of the Reindeer hide is hollow and therefore fully insulates the Reindeer whilst out in the harsh Nordic conditions.

Once hand selected for high quality, depth of hair, size and shape the hides are shipped over to our warehouse and are sold all year round.

The term Hygge has become an increasingly popular theme amongst Nordic décor. The word “hygge” comes from a Norwegian word meaning ‘wellbeing'”.

Sheepskin Rugs

Each of our Sheepskins originates from New Zealand where flocks are vast and are known for the quality of their wool.

Hundreds of thousands of sheep are used to supply the meat industry in New Zealand where the remaining skins are used for a variety of reasons. The sheepskins are then sent across to nearby tanneries of where we are 100% confident in the process of treating the skin and the wool is of top quality.

The thousands of Skins are then graded for four different things

1. Length of wool

2. Number of tares in the skin

3. Size

4. Shape 

Nordic Hides and Skins only select from our suppliers premium quality skins where the wool length is a minimum of 55mm and have minimal stitching.

This is where the quality difference is apparent when you search around online. You will see there is an abundance of sheepskins available online and in department stores for around £25. If you carefully examine the rug you will note the wool is short and slightly rough. If you turn the rug over you will see lots of stitching holding the rug together. This is because in the very first stage of the process the skin would have been severely torn and should have been disposed of. Instead these types of sheepskin rugs are available to buy have been salvaged and machine stitched to produce an low quality, economy rug.

Amongst our collection we have a wide variety of colours ranging from natural tones of ivory through to dark beige and light brown along with our more vibrant colours.

We also offer two short wool sheepskin rugs.

Icelandic Sheepskins

These Sheep are sourced from the harsh Nordic conditions of Iceland and are a byproduct of the meat industry also. Icelandic sheep are renowned for their long, soft, luxurious wool which are turned into the most magnificent and sumptuous rugs.

The rugs are sent shipped over to us direct from Iceland where we store lots of different shades and sizes ranging from natural untreated tones right through to vibrant colours such as burgundy and Teal.