Review: Marlondo Leather Belt, Mouse Pad and Valet

I'm going to briefly review the remaining Marlondo Leather pieces I ordered. If you have read my previous entries, you might have known I have a thing for leather. Leather products are just classy and the good ones gets better looking with age.

First up, the Marlondo Belt. This is a really hefty belt and feels very substantial when I hold it. It's made from two pieces of full grain leather stitched back-to-back. Click pictures to enlarge. The belt is 4cm wide and 0.4cm thick.

The buckle is made from solid brass and is quite heavy. Chicago screws are brass as well and it gives the belt a slightly rustic feel. Even the back of the belt keeper has a brass rivet on it for added strength.

The buckle is held together by another piece of leather which is lined with pigskin. This piece is then screwed onto the belt itself. So if you wanted to use your own buckle, it would be really easy to switch it out.

This leather has the same pull-up characteristic I mentioned earlier in my pigskin-lined ID wallet.Check out the wrinkles caused by the stress on the holes. It actually came out of the box with the wrinkles.

It's not clear in the picture below but when I wear it, it doesn't sit flush. This is because the holes are punched straight into the belt. With such a thick belt, I would suggest the holes to be punched at an angle to reduce the stress placed on the belt holes when worn.

 

 I don't know what's with all the products from Marlondo, but they seem to be scratched right out the box. This one is scratched pretty badly on one part of the belt. It seems like the top layer has been scratched off and it feels velvety (almost suede like) on these areas. In fact the only scratch-free part of the belt was the front part of the leather which holds the buckle (can be seen in the picture above with the Chicago screws) and this part feels so good, smooth and buttery.

 

Now for the mouse pad. It's a pretty straight-forward piece which measures 11" x 8.8" and roughly 2.5mm thick. At the time I ordered I was told it was going to be 11.5"x9", but it is just a slight difference and not a big deal. This piece is lined with pigskin. From the website it says modifications to it could be done in terms of number of rivets and stitching line. I did not specify at time of ordering and I am glad it came the way it did.

Pigskin lining

 

 Once again, the leather came with scuffs on it which could not be buffed out and the dye on this mouse pad rubs off on my cloth and fingers. Even the slightest scratch would leave a permanent scar on it. These scuffed parts feels really dry, as though the leather has cracked on that area.

Lastly, a leather valet which I had custom made for me. Initially I had ordered it to be pigskin lined, but later decided I wanted it to be lined with another piece of leather. The leather valet is very nicely constructed and really hefty. Copper rivets were used although I showed him pictures of one with button snaps. It is not necessarily a bad thing, but I figured button snaps would make it more convenient for storage.

Check out the thickness of the leather!

Brass rivets on the corners.

The bottom part of the valet which is the outer leather layer is so smooth and nice. I love the looks and texture of it. Look at a close up shot of the bottom below.

But on the inside..it's absolutely horrid. I wished the both leathers were used the other way around, that way inside would be smooth and nice while the other piece remain hidden underneath the valet. The leather inside feels dry, rough, scuffed up and wrinkled. Again, the dye on the inside rubs off a lot. Surprisingly though, the dye of the leather underneath doesn't rub off.

Overall, I feel that quality control is still an issue in Marlondo Leather Co. For a company which takes pride in producing high quality products, these sort of stuffs pulls them back from being able to really excel in this department. Perhaps being a smaller company, they try to minimize wastage but sending customers damaged leather is something that should be avoided at all cost to avoid taking a hit to their reputation.

Feel free to leave a comment.  I will respond as soon as I can.