Nappa is a way of tanning rather than a kind of animal: the hide is chrome-tanned and finished soft, keeping the full grain but losing the stiffness. On cowhide that gives a smooth, close surface with a low sheen and a hand that gives immediately — there is no break-in period, the strap sits to the wrist from the first wearing. Being soft, it takes a mark more readily than a pressed grain like Epsom, which is why it is lined and edged to hold its shape. Choose it if you want a strap that already feels worn in on day one.
