Suede, Croc, Flotter, Crinkle: Which Leather Is Yours?

Fluctus comes in four different leathers, and more often than not the hardest decision isn't the colour, it's the leather. The most enjoyable way to understand the difference is to look at how leather is actually made: how one animal can give you so many different surfaces.

The answer lies in the fact that leather is a layered material. At the very top sits the side that faced the world, called the grain, or top layer. Because it spent its life standing up to the outside, it's the densest, strongest and most valuable part of the hide. Beneath it runs the corium: looser, softer, and far more delicate. What a hide eventually becomes depends largely on what the tannery does with these two layers.

When the top layer is kept intact, with all its natural marks, you get full-grain, the most durable leather and the one that ages most beautifully. When that same layer is lightly sanded to even out the surface, the result is smoother and more uniform, and it's called top-grain. When the softer corium underneath is split away and brushed, you're left with a velvety texture, which is suede. On top of all this come the finishes applied afterwards: embossing, coating, crinkling. Fluctus's four leathers come from exactly this stage: one carefully made wallet, in four different characters.

Suede

Suede comes from the corium, the softer layer beneath the surface. That layer is split away from the top and brushed until it turns matte and velvety. It's the softest to the touch and the most understated to look at of the four.

It takes well to daily use and grows softer over time. In return, it isn't fond of damp or rain, and it likes the occasional brush to keep it fresh. In other words, it's a leather that asks for a little attention.

As a character, suede belongs to the person who values ease. They don't bother with shine or show, but they care that whatever they touch feels soft and well made. Suede may not be the dressiest leather, but it's the most comfortable and the coolest. The person who reaches for suede usually isn't going for the most polished look, but the most self-assured one.

Croc

Croc is a smooth calf leather embossed under pressure with a crocodile pattern. It isn't a genuine exotic skin, which means it carries neither the price nor the ethical questions that come with one. Because there's a strong top layer underneath, the pattern stays put, resists wear, and lasts a long time.

At first glance it looks like the boldest, most attention-seeking of the four. The truth is closer to the opposite. Croc belongs to the person who has stopped caring what the room thinks. Not someone chasing attention, but someone comfortable enough in themselves to carry a pattern this confident with ease. They read as bold from the outside, but it comes from a calm place. They get noticed walking into a room, without ever trying to be.

Flotter

Flotter is a calf leather worked to stay soft and supple, with a light natural sheen. It comes from the durable top layer of the hide, but the stiffness is worked out of it, so it feels soft in the hand rather than rigid. Over time it settles into the shape of whoever carries it.

It's the most versatile and the most effortless of the four. It handles daily use comfortably, develops a gentle patina instead of showing wear, and moves easily from a workday into the evening.

Flotter belongs to the person who wants to be practical without giving up on looking good. They like getting by with a single piece, but they expect that piece to be beautiful, long-lasting and timeless. They're after what endures, not what's trending. It suits the kind of person who wants to make the right choice once and never think about it again.

Crinkle

Crinkle is our matte take on patent leather. The top layer is worked and deliberately creased, so the surface catches the light in a broken, irregular way, but without the mirror shine of traditional patent. Because the creases fall differently on every piece, no two crinkle wallets are ever exactly alike.

Its practical side is strong: the creased surface hides the small marks and scratches of everyday use. So it manages to look striking while being the easiest of the four to care for.

Crinkle belongs to the person who doesn't much mind the rules. They like patent but find it a little too shiny, too much; they want something that's full of character yet easy to actually use. The fact that every piece is different appeals to them too, because they enjoy owning something that isn't quite like anyone else's.

So, which one?

If you value ease and a calm kind of cool, suede. If you don't care what anyone thinks, croc. If you want effortless, timeless and long-lasting, flotter. If you don't mind breaking the rules and want a bit of character, crinkle.

Underneath, all four are the same Fluctus: slim, long, with those wave-like card slots that give it its name. The leather simply decides which version of it comes home with you.