Today, most leather is made of cattle skin, but many exceptions exist. Exotic leathers add unique properites for products that are comfortable, elegant, and beautiful.

Lamb, Deer skin, and Elk Leather
Lamb and deer skin are used for soft leather in more expensive apparels. Deer and elk skin are widely used in work gloves and indoor shoes.

Pigskin Leather
Pigskin is used in apparel and on seats of saddles.

Kangaroo Leather
Kangaroo skin is used to make items which need to be strong but flexible, it is the material most commonly used in high quality bullwhips. Kangaroo leather is favored by some motorcyclists for use in motorcycle leathers specifically because of its lighter weight and higher abrasion resistance compared with cowhide, thus providing greater protecting in case of a fall on the roadway. Kangaroo leather is also used for high performance soccer footwear.

Snake, Crocodile, Eel, and Lizard Leather
Leather made from more exotic skins has at different times in history been considered very beautiful. For this reason certain snakes and crocodiles have been hunted to near extinction.

Ostrich Leather
In the 1970s, ostrich farming for their feathers became popular, and ostrich leather became available as a side product. There are different processes to produce different finishes for many applications, i.e., upholstery, footwear, automotive products, accessories and clothing. Ostrich leather is considered one of the finest and most durable in the world and is currently used by many major fashion houses such as Hermès, Prada, Gucci, and Louis Vuitton. Ostrich leather has a characteristic "goose bump" look because of the large follicles from which the feathers grew.

String Ray Leather
In Thailand, sting ray leather is used in wallets and belts in the same way as regular bovine leather. Sting ray leather is as tough and durable as hard plastic. The leather is often dyed black and covered with tiny round bumps in the natural pattern of the back ridge of an animal. These bumps are then usually dyed white to highlight the decoration. Leather clothing is also popular in Thailand.

Bison Leather
In the United States, bison leather has become popular. It is used for gloves, jackets and some baseball gloves. It is rugged but supple and has a waxy feel.

Overall, leather comes from a variety of other sources, including the skins of cattle, hogs, goats, sheep, alligators, ostriches, kangaroos, and yaks. There is quite a wide range of different animal leather used both for leather garments as well as leather goods, such as handbags, wallets, purses, belts, bags and other customized leather articles. The most commonly used leather types are cow leather, sheep leather, buffalo Leather and ox leather. Of these, the most expensive is cow leather, followed by buffalo leather, ox leather and sheep leather respectively. Sheep leather is quite famous for its softness and mostly used in leather garments; however due to its smaller overall size, it cannot be used for the long coats for which cow leather and buffalo leather are widely used.

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