Frequently Asked Questions

The tanning process begins with the supplied pickled/salted hides from the slaughterhouse.
These hides are put into tanning vats. In these, the hides are chrome tanned. This ensures that there are no more bacteria on the skin. It also ensures that the skin is preserved.
After the tanning process, the hides are temporarily stored so they can be stretched.
Stretching ensures that the hide does not shrink and stays nice and flat during the drying process.
The final treatment process is checking and trimming the hides. The hides can always have damages such as: scars, insect bites and burn marks. However, this is part of the cowhide, this makes each hide characteristic and unique.
After all these steps are completed, the skins are shipped to By Max.

If you bought a cowhide it is important to maintain it properly. If you maintain the cowhide properly then you will enjoy it for years to come. But how can you best maintain the skin?
If the cowhide is dirty you can simply vacuum the skin. However, do this with the hair along, so the hair remains the most beautiful. If possible, you can also pat out the hide. It is important to keep the skin sand-free, as the grains of sand can ruin the hairs, causing the skin to become bald sooner. Unlike a sheep hide, you do not need to brush out the cowhide.

If something is spilled on the cowhide try to dab it off as soon as possible. Do this with a sponge or clean dry cloth. Dried dirt is best removed by brushing with a damp cloth. To remove stubborn stains, you may want to use a little natural detergent (such as green soap). Be careful not to get the underside of the cowhide too wet, the cowhide can dry up hard. Did the cowhide get wet anyway? Then just let the cowhide dry at room temperature.

To prevent the cowhide from drying out, it is best to lightly mist the skin with water on a monthly basis. This is best done with a plant sprayer. However, be careful not to get the cowhide too wet, which can cause the cowhide to dry out hard. If you have an underfloor heating system it is wise to mist the skin weekly.

If there is an imprint of a sofa, table or chair in your rug. Then place a bag of ice cubes on the imprint. Once the ice has melted, brush the cowhide with the bristles.

By Max purchases skins by size, these sizes are also listed with the skins. However, these sizes may vary. This means that the skins may be slightly larger or smaller. The sizes mentioned with the skins are extreme sizes as mentioned on the picture.

By Max imports all the skins himself from various countries. For example, the cowhides come from South America, the reindeer hide from Scandinavia and the sheep skins from Eastern Europe. By Max expects a CSR (corporate social responsibility) policy from all suppliers. This means that we do not support the suppliers in poaching animals. All hides and furs come exclusively from the meat industry.

All hides sold by By Max are uniquely labeled. This means that the hide you order will actually be delivered.

By Max selects the cow hides himself and tries to guarantee as high a quality as possible. However, it remains a natural product. This means that the hides may have scars or cuts.
Scars can be caused by barbed wire or insect bites. Nicks can be caused by the slaughtering process. These cuts are then patched with a small patch on the back. This is perfectly normal and many cow hides have such patches on the back.