I promised a pair of shoes to Rodney W., in a nice rich cordovan leather. At the last minute, I also decided to bind the edges. Typical overlap construction, two toggle, with the ubiquitous “A” where the sole continues upwards at the heel. I tried some new construction techniques on these shoes, and I was surprised with how effective they were.
I just finished up the first half of a two-part commission which I’m rather pleased about. So as to tease you long-term, I’m not actually going to tell you what I’m bartering for, but rest assured that it will be pretty fabulous. =) And here, I present to you a pair of late 15th century shoes – these are what all the Burgundians are wearing! Illuminations from this time period are ubiquitous, and many of them show these types of poulaines, even on men in armor. Plus, they’re terribly fabulous and fashionable.
There’s more than meets the eye in this pair of shoes, for these are actually turn-welt shoes – that is, they are sewn inside out with a welt (a strip of leather) in between the upper and the sole, and when the shoe is turned, there is a strip of leather to which another sole can be sewn, making them hardier shoes. Continue reading Late 15th Century Poulaines→
A while back, some good friends discussed the possibility of doing a pair of welted renaissance shoes as a weekend workshop. Back in 2013, I’d hosted a two weekend workshop, but this time, I thought that I could get through it in a single weekend, just as we did for the medieval shoe workshop. Taking some lessons from there, I had two students making up some cowmouth shoes, and let me tell you, we finished about ten minutes before we had to get on the plane. =) A few things that worked quite well:
– Lasts were prepared in advance based on measurements provided
– Uppers were cut out and ready for dyeing
– Stitching cords and tools all set at the ready.
As you can see, my very lovely and talented students came out with some excellent pieces right out of Goubitz. In fact, I was amazed at how successful they were, showing that it is possible to do a pair of welted shoes in a weekend. Keep in mind that because these shoes were on straight lasts, they did all of the inseaming and sewing themselves. I even had a little bit of down time here and again which I could have used to help push things along, had we been using crooked left and right lasts. Fantastic work for first-time shoemakers!
It’s been a busy couple of months, hence the reason that I haven’t really had a chance to post too much about what I’ve been working on in the past few months. As a result, let me catch you up on the full list since the end of September, and note that some of it is not shoe related. Oh, and did I mention that I spent every weekend starting from the weekend before Thanksgiving at the Dickens Fair? That certainly cut into my time, but I still produced a good amount of material:
– A 1520s pair of Black cowmouths with red edging, almost identical to those here.
– A 1520s pair of Blue cowmouths with gold edging, similar to the above. Inseaming and Outsoling on this pair was done by Matt L., as we were on a tight schedule!
– A gold and green damask gown for a Greg G., with linen lining and silk turnbacks on the cuffs (no picture, sadly).
– A shot red and gold silk satin coat for Brendan L. The boots are not my work, but I’m rather delighted with the way coat came out (see the picture below, courtesy of Sandra L.).
– A new pair of 16th Century jeweled shoes, similar to those here.
I’d like to tell you a little bit more about the 16th century jeweled shoes, and how they are different from the past project. Continue reading Project Post Catch-up!→
Dedicated to the Research and Construction of Chopines, Pantoufles, Zoccoli, Shoes, Boots,and Other Raised and High Heels.
