Shoemaking, Step 2

Finding a pattern!

As per Mary Wales Loomis's suggestion, I decided to take apart a pair of old shoes for a pattern. This was a challenges since I don't cling to crappy or worn out shoes. I also just purged my closet during my bout with unemployment.

I did manage to dig up a crappy pair of Naturalizers that were an un-natural, wierd green. They are 9 1/2 AA and I normally order a 9 1/2, so they must have been on sale. They are man made uppers (not leather) with leather soles, but I thought I would give them a shot anyways.

Mary was right, this glue that they use isn't meant to come apart, and those little nails are insidious!

But, I have parts!

The weird green shape on the right is the shoe upper that I am using for the pattern. I have sprayed it with water to see if I can flatten it any with a book. I always knew that Principals of Auditing would come in handy.

You will notice that you see a white woven piece that is fused from about mid-arch to the heel. This is the part that is stiffened buckram.

The little U shaped pieces on the right side are called counters and are used to add extra stiffness to the heel area.

Here are more parts:

The far right is the inner sole with a futile attempt at padding, both inside and outside.

Next is the middle sole piece which is like thick oak tag in the heel area and heavy felt towards the toe (the heel is nailed to this).

The next piece is the outer sole. The green crud around the edges show that this is the side that gets cemented to the bottom of upper shoe. The reverse side is what hits the floor when you walk.

On the left is the plastic heel and the metal shanks. The shanks are what hold the angle of the shoe. One end goes on top of the heel and the other extends to the ball of the foot.

I already have quite a few ideas for fabulous shoes.

Of course leather is my first choice so I want over to G H Leather (I 10 and Shepherd in Houston) where they have the most fabulous lamb skin!

The lighter brown (cognac) at the top matches my DB leather trench from last year. I needed more for a belt anyway.

I also got some chocolate (Pantone 19-0912) to make a skirt, and hopefully some shoes. It just happens to match a cobra skin that I picked up at the Tandy Leather Store several years ago.

I also got some black. You can always use more black leather!

As for my first shoe design... In the book she suggests using fabric, esp. for your first pair.

But, I have never been one for the shallow end of the pool. Hey, I have worked with leather before and I think that it will shape and mold better!

Or, I could play it safe and make something like this:

In a gark gray pinstripe that might look really cool, and that twist thing is really in style.

But for now, I am off to find mold soap so that I can pour in my plaster and finish my lasts!

Because I didn't have enough sewing to do...

Some of you might know that I have picked up a new, exciting direction for my crafty side. Thanks to Joyce at the Sewing Guild meeting I picked up a cute little book by Mary Wales Loomis called "Make Your Own Shoes"

I love this book, in only 86 pages she makes this look so do-able!

The first step is to make a shoe last which is like a dress for for your foot. She shows you two ways to make your lasts. I didn't like either way so I decided to do it the sewers way and make "duct tape doubles" of my feet.

Now, I have never made a DTD so this is entirely new territory for me. One thing that I had to keep in mind was the heel height. The thing about shoe lasts is that you pretty much have to pick a heel height and stick with it. I may regret this later, but I chose "Fundamentals of Finance," and "Good Eats" by Alton Brown for about 3".

One thing that I observed in my first DTD experience, if nothing is going numb you aren't doing it right.

Oh, and pee before you get started. You can get around on duct tape feet but not very well.

I tried 3 different kinds of tape and learned that if you are taping a highly contoured place like your ankles you really need to find some 1" wide tape to hug the curves. I started with the 2" tape and had to clip the curves in several places. The 1" tape which is black worked much better. It is made by "Gorilla" which makes the Gorilla Glue. This tape is much stiffer, heavier and you have to be careful with it because it will stick to everything, permanently!

With some help from my husband that I will never live down

I escaped from my duct tape boots. We managed to cut a slit down the back without out leaving a perforated line on my leg. Then in order to slip them off my feet I put a piece of tape across the bottom of my foot and left a strip about 6" long for a handle off the front of my toes.

The next step is to actually make the models of your feet by pouring plaster of paris in the duct tape forms and let it dry. I will get to that later this weekend.

Then the fun starts and you actually get to start creating shoes! Stay tuned for further information...