Matt L. and I ended up spending a weekend up in Marin helping seven people put together some turn shoes, and I have to say that I’m very pleased with the results. Every one of them worked hard with bristle and thread to come up with a pair of handmade shoes all their own. As always, there were a few things that did not work quite so well, and if I don’t mention those, we will make the same mistakes!

– The black dye can go on just fine with a few coats. We don’t need to blacken the lasts, our fingers, and everything else by overdoing it!
– We need to be very careful when tapping the inseam flat. Otherwise, you might hurt the upper leather and damage it.
– Always leave more heel than you think you need! The last thing you want is a heel that is too short.
– We were able to work the leather wet without any ill effects – this is useful when you’re trying to make a pair of shoes in a single weekend!