a dead mod that i'm really interested in is Leather Works, which simultaneously makes leather easier to find and harder to craft into something usable, which is something i like.

a mod that ISNT dead, Improved Backpacks, includes the ui and all necessary for recreating the feeling of needing to prepare leather before using it, and i love that. it'd take some tweaking (crafttweaker my beloved) but i could make it so all leather has to be prepared before use

(and then to make it so this isn't just Thing You Skip Because It's Easier To Make Other Armor, i could make it so all armor requires leather, which would make some sense to me anyway)