Zhu Kai:the Tanner Who Ties Time

Text by Zhou Zhitao Photos by Xiao Hao

Nobody can tie up time,of this strap tailor Zhu Kai is very aware.But his craft is bound to be bound up with time.

As time ticks away on the watch dial,it also pulses its way through the strap.The meticulous,elegant,and singular craftsmanship made the time tether tied to the wearer’s wrist.The long hours of grueling labor and polish to make just one are apparent at a glance.

In a quiet workshop in Xudong Tea Market in Wuhan,Zhu Kai,a forty-something strapsmith,toils over each and every watch straps with the same passion an artist puts into a would-be masterpiece.Every strip exudes different emotions that enrapture every one of Zhu’s clients.

A few years ago,Zhu and his wife were shopping and found they couldn’t drag themselves away from a custom leather shop.To please his wife,Zhu managed to learn a few tricks from the shop owner.Soon enough,he was obsessed with the craft,even going as far as handing in his resignation to concentrate full-time on making custom leather goods.

谁也不能拴住时间，这一点朱凯心知肚明，但他的手艺注定和时间密切相连。

当时间一分一秒在手腕的表盘上流逝，它也通过表带相连，与脉搏共振。而细致、优雅、个性的工艺，足以让一根表带拴住时间打磨的那份质感。

在中国武汉市徐东茶市一处静谧的工作间里，70后皮匠朱凯，用心制作的表带，总能带给客户不一样的感触。

几年前，朱凯和妻子逛街时，两人在一家定制皮具店流连忘返。为了讨妻子欢心，朱凯即兴跟着师傅学了几招，从此一发不可收拾。从企业离职后，他开始专心捣鼓手工定制皮具。

四处求教，网购外文书籍，观看工艺视频，自学各种皮具制作工艺，主攻皮质表带，朱凯内心有一份倔强。

朱凯从小痴迷玩拼装模型，把上千个零部件拼凑成型，乐在其中。接触皮具定制后，朱凯自学了一段时间，便信心满满，但一次给岳父修缮表带，却难倒了他。

制作一根小小的表带，每个金属零件需要逐层安装，而一个成型的表带需要缝制3 到7 层皮料。第一次做皮质表带，前后返工20 多次，让朱凯明白了市面上鲜有人做表带的原因，也因小皮具最考验功夫，激发了朱凯的兴趣。

表带虽小，却需要完成设计、削皮、定型、上色等一套流程，每件作品离不开朱凯的细致。

朱凯是学计算机的，理工男，专业成就了他严谨的性格，他对表带的每一个细节都严格要求。工作台上，朱凯摊开一款皮料，厚度0.7 毫米，从边缘削去一刀，剩下0.66 毫米，再削一刀，剩下0.58 毫米。手工削皮，要使误差控制在1 毫米以内，操作难度可想而知，稍不留神就会废掉一块料子，而这只是基本功之一。更为细致的缝合，需要顶着针线，均匀缝制几百针。

Tidily organized leather materials整齐码放的各类皮料

Learning the tricks of the trade from different people,buying foreign language books online,watching leathercraft videos,picking up a new technique here,there,and everywhere,Zhu’s determination is self-evident.His main interest now is making leather watch straps.

Zhu has been enamored with building models since he was little and enjoys putting thousands of parts together.After learning how to customize leather goods,he taught himself for a while and was very confident he could do it,yet he was stumped when he tried to fix a watch strap for his father-in-law.

There are lots of metal parts on a watch strap and they need to be mounted layer by layer.A complete strap needs to be sewn together with three to seven layers of leather.The first time he made a leather strap,he had to redo it more than 20 times,which made him understand why the trade is hard up for talent.It also roused his interest because of the challenge in the making of minuscule leather miracles.

Even something as small as a watch strap requires a multitude of processes to complete,including designing,peeling,and coloring.And the success of each piece of work is tied in with Zhu’s meticulous work.

Sophisticated tools and exquisite stencils 精巧的工具和精致的钢印

Zhu is an engineering graduate who majored in computer science.His profession has made him a meticulous sort who is strict on details.On his workbench he unfolds a slim piece of 0.7mm thick leather.He cuts off a layer from the edge,reducing the thickness to 0.66mm; and after another cut,it becomes a mere 0.58mm.The error range must be within 1mm with manual peeling,which is a basic skill among many required to be a strap maker.It is not hard to imagine how hard it is since any slight distraction can result in wasting a piece of leather.Sewing needs to be even more careful and hundreds of even stitches are needed.From Patek Philippe,Piaget,to Rolex,Zhu is familiar with the features of various prestige watches.But matching straps to dials costing tens or even hundreds of thousands of yuan often gives Zhu pause.

Once a client brought Zhu an old Shanghai brand watch.To make a quality strap for it,Zhu traveled extensively to find a piece of leather that was similar in color to the original strap.When the client received his new watch strap,he was wowed by Zhu’s workmanship.Apart from the style of the watch face,the personality of the wearer,current trends,and the feel of different leathers are all important things that Zhu has to keep in mind when he designs and makes straps.

A real leather strap is subject to wear and tear,and thus needs replacing within two to three years.Zhu has amassed a collection of old and discarded watch straps,which are on proud display in his workshop.In his eyes,the beauty of a leather strap doesn’t lie in what it has been fastened to,it is a reflection of inspiration itself.

(Translation:Liu Lili)

百达翡丽、伯爵、劳力士……因为制作表带，朱凯对各种名表的特点烂熟于心，动辄数万元甚至数十万元的表盘，如何搭配表带，也触动朱凯不停地思考。

曾有一个客户，拿来一块上海牌老手表。为了给它配好表带，朱凯辗转多地，才寻到一块与原表带色彩相近的皮料，最终缝制出的作品令客户啧啧称奇。除了表盘本身的品牌风格，佩戴者的气质、当下流行的元素、不同皮质的触感，都是朱凯在设计和制作表带过程中反复思考的问题。

真皮表带，往往佩戴两到三年，就会因为磨损、变形需要更换，在朱凯的工作室，各种废弃、陈旧的表带成为他收藏和展陈的宝贝。在朱凯眼里，皮质表带的美感，并不在于它曾拴住过什么，它本身就是一种灵感的体现。

Ensuring accurate leather thickness精准测量皮的厚度