Lambskin products from Mattes - pure nature for you and your horse

Did you know? Worldwide, only four companies buy Super Premium Quality lambskin. Of those, three are involved in the Japanese market, producing futon mattresses. As the fourth buyer, Mattes uses the best lambskins to manufacture its products, making it unique in the equestrian sector.

Lambskin - a fascinating and multipurpose natural product

Lambskins from Mattes have the ideal blend of fine yet dense wool, and durability - they are extremely tough and make great shock-absorbers. What physical properties make our lambskins stand out?

• The open structure of the wool means that air can circulate easily between the wool fibres. This prevents heat from building up - unlike products made from neoprene, for example.
• Our lambskins reliably balance out temperature differences and are therefore ideal for both summer and winter use.
• Its high absorbency is also important for equestrian sport: the wool of our lambskins can absorb up to eight times its own weight in moisture before it feels damp.
• It is great at distributing pressure evenly too. The upright wool fibres prevent rubbing or chafing on the horse; instead, the wool fibres and the horse’s coat glide smoothly against each other. This avoids damage and problems arising from pressure combined with lateral movement.
• Protein is an important part of our lambskins, producing an antibacterial effect.
• Its specific structure means that our lambskins enable the horse’s muscles to continue to develop.
• Our lambskins are not only washable and, with the right care, will last wonderfully for many years; we even recommend washing them in the washing machine, preferably with our special MELP detergent, and drying in the tumble dryer. The tanning process used on our products is specially designed to make them washable - that’s where our products differ from those of other companies, who give brushing as the only recommended cleaning method; however, brushing is not sufficient to maintain the functionality of the lambskin in the long term.

In harmony with nature - the three most frequently asked questions about our lambskin products

Why doesn’t Mattes use neoprene, like many other equestrian sports product manufacturers do?

With the exception of its padding properties, neoprene offers no other benefits. Quite the opposite: Dr David Marlin from England, who runs a private test institute for equestrian products, has proven that the use of neoprene lined boots creates very high temperatures; this can even damage the cell structure of the horse’s tendons. This insulating effect is what makes neoprene so useful to divers, for example, but not only is the use of this material in equestrian sport not sensible, it can even be dangerous.

Where do the lambskins come from and are Mattes products compatible with animal welfare?

Our lambskins come from crossbreed animals, known for their medium-fine wool with an excellent texture and superb density. We buy all our hides from Australia where trained pickers select them for us based on our strict quality criteria.

You can rest assured that it's not just horses and their health that our company holds close to its heart, but all of nature and its creatures: the sheep are all raised in the open air under species-appropriate conditions; our Australian farmers have decades of experience and superb reputations. The sheep are actually raised for their meat, so their skins are just a by-product.

Why should I use lambskin in summer too - isn’t it much too warm and wouldn't a really thin pad beneath the saddle be much better?

The external temperature has little influence on the microclimate that is created between the horse and the saddle. The inside of your horse generates an enormous amount of heat and a light saddle pad simply can’t handle that. What's more, a thin layer does not absorb your horse’s sweat and the solid padding of the saddle is sitting almost directly on your horse’s skin.

Our lambskin is completely different - it effectively regulates the temperature and can absorb a lot of sweat: The wool fibres are multi-layered and have a scaly surface; these scales spread apart when they get damp, increasing their area and enabling them to absorb up to eight times their own weight in moisture. The lambskin is also great at distributing pressure evenly, preventing rubbing or chafing. This all means that our lambskin products are the perfect choice for summer too.

Lambskin from Mattes for cars, aircraft, paint rollers and washing mitts

It goes without saying that our great passion is lambskin products for equestrian sport. But did you know that Mattes lambskins are also found in top quality seat covers for cars and aircraft and professional paint rollers, polishing discs and washing mitts?

Lambskin for cars

To create robust lambskin foot mats for prestige car manufacturers such as Bentley, we only use top quality materials and offer our wide range of colours.

Lambskin for aircraft

Mattes provides the aviation industry with lambskins which are used as covers for pilot’s seats and even to equip the whole aircraft. Our lambskins grace commercial aircraft as well as corporate and private planes. Most pilot’s seats in Boeing aircraft are fitted with our lambskin covers as standard.

Paint rollers

Long life and superb colour coverage when painting are the hallmarks of professional paint rollers made from our lambskin. The special structure of the top quality wool fibres enables the roller to hold more paint, meaning that colour is transferred more efficiently and quickly than with man-made fibre rollers.

Polishing discs, polishing mitts and washing mitts

Commercial users rate lambskin highly on polishing discs or polishing mitts. Lambskin washing mitts are gentle on paint, making them excellent for top quality hand car washes.