I just posted a new Lesson on Mid 16th C. Mules (Cork). This was a fun project, and I enjoyed the clean lines of the heel and the outsole. Enjoy!
Tag Archives: 16th C
1570s Heels from the Dutch
Based on a 1590s pair of shoes found in a Dutch shipwreck (Dutch SO-1 shipwreck, wrecked off the island of Texel in the Wadden Sea on Christmas Eve in 1593), I used the slashing pattern and a 1570s pattern to make this newest image. You can see both the original and my work below. I clarified the lozenges on the vamp to make them distinct, and the quarters do not cut away in the center like the extant pieces do. I also cut some vamp tabs for a touch more decoration. Single heel lift on these – one thing I did notice is that I need to burnish both after the outsoling is done (when the outsole is wet) to flatten it out, and then after it is dry, to give it a sheen. I have also started to burnish the sole of the shoe to give it a bit of a shine as well.
1580s Strapped Shoes
This pair was constructed with more tooling on the vamp based on a pattern in Goubitz, and with straps intended to fall underneath it. Unfortunately, the top of the pattern was cut straight across for the opening rather than curved, which did not completely hide the straps. I’ve since adjusted the pattern to make sure that this does not happen again! Still, I do enjoy the cutwork pattern. The fingerloop laces can be tied outside of the shoe or on the inside of the shoe – both are documentable. In fact, in some shoes do not even have holes in the vamp for the laces – one would tie the straps down underneath it.
1600s Pretty High Heels
As promised, here is a new piece that I just recently finished. Very similar to the shoes in Lesson 8, though I used a different model of last. Additionally, this shoe was constructed with much finer closing (only three strands of linen on a boar bristle), and a much finer closing awl. Moreover, I feel that I was able to sew the outsoles on more finely and evenly than before. This is where practice comes in! I also modified the heel design slightly. I was initially dreading them since I find carving heels to be tiresome, but I timed myself – I carved the pair of heels in only an hour from start to finish, so perhaps I will still continue to do so to ensure that every part of the shoe is handmade, rather than using mass-produced heels. Apologies for the medium quality of the picture.
Also, I have never been completely pleased about the discoloration one gets on the flesh side of the shoe when dyeing individual parts of a vegetable tanned leather shoe. Strictly speaking, dyeing of skins did not seem to be within the purview of the shoemaker, and this tradition continues today where most shoemakers purchase skins which have already been dyed, rather than cutting out the pieces (clicking) and then dyeing the parts prior to closing the shoe. I do this because I do not make nearly enough shoes to warrant purchasing a dozen skins and dyeing them all of various colors – as such, it is a compromise that I must make.
The Plictho, a Venetian text on dyeing from the 1540s, discusses dyeing of fabric and yarn, but it also discusses tanning and dressing of leather. There are several recipes which discuss dying the entire skin in a vat, but there are also some that discuss laying the tanned skin out and applying the dye with a brush of silk or bristles. However, the point I wish to make is that the recipes are for dyeing the entire skin, and not individual pieces as I normally do.