Every hunter knows that the whitetail deer is a delicious, healthy meat – leaner even than chicken believe it or not! – and makes super tasty summer sausage and yummy jerky too. Hunters also know that a nicely tanned hide makes for a very pretty rug, and a buck’s horns make nice coat racks or even interesting buttons when sliced up and polished with power tools. But, did you know that if you’re really industrious you can actually get even more use out of a deer? In fact, before the convenience of “general stores” and the abundance of “big box” stores many essential items and everyday materials actually came from hunted animals. Believe it or not, if you have the time and energy you can actually make the following items from a deer: Fine sewing thread, good boot rub oil, protective leather oil, soap, and even a fat lamp. Read more about how to make these items in this great excerpt from the book Buckskin: The Ancient Art of Braintanning by Steven Edholm and Tamara Wilder of Paleotechnics.