Leather Dress Shoes
Like a naive child, I started this project with my eyes up and my heart full … and went right into the corner of a table.
I would consider myself a good leatherworker by this point, but making shoes was a whole new game. Sourcing the green shoe lasts to build my shoes around turned out to be more difficult than I thought and there was not a chance in hell that I was getting that curvy knife anywhere but a custom shop. Fortunately, I am a custom shop, sort of, and managed to make one in a couple hours. The benefits of already failing repeatedly at a task until you succeed.
Like a cake, shoes have layers. A fact that I was happily unaware of until it became very much my problem. Like twins, they also come in pairs and just when you've gone and finished with one, you remember that you are but halfway done the process. I kept telling myself I was almost there, because I have a firm belief in lying.
I love the process of stitching by hand. I find that it comes out much better and feels more mine somehow. That said, the process of stitching the bottom together was the first glimpse of the gateway to hell. I had to stitch through a massively thick sole and through two layers of leather twice for each stitch that you see. I broke about five needles and ended up having to bend some needles when I ran out of curved ones. It will take the gentle march of decades and perhaps abrupt brain damage before you see me do this again.
I stuffed some cork in there for padding and proceeded to nail on the bottoms of the shoes. You may be wondering how the nails don’t go through and poke your foot when you walk. The trick is to size them properly so that they don’t reach. Or that would be the trick if I hadn’t messed this up and done it anyway. Getting the lasts out is a pain when they are nailed in place and bending over nail heads is even more annoying.
I have no pictures of me shaping the heel but like every other part of this project, it took forever and was not fun at all. It’s so odd that each individual part of this project and many of my projects are not enjoyable but somehow the whole of the project is. I remember enjoying it looking back, but in the middle I was ready to chase down and beat the inventor of the dress shoe. Life is weird.
Anyway, that’s what I’ve been up to, see you for the next one
