I hosted a workshop for six of folks to make some shoes, and I should say that it was an unqualified success! Everyone came out with some really wonderful pieces, and I would have been pleased to wear any of them. Unfortunately, I did not manage to get finished pictures (which I really need to be better at doing!), but here is a set of six pairs in progress like a little chorus line.
The key thing about hosting a workshop, indeed, whenever you are using up valuable material like leather, is being as efficient as possible. Continue reading November Shoemaking Workshop→
I have been talking about it for some time, but I finally decided to teach a full-length shoemaking class at Costume College, held every year towards the end of July. The primary reason is the work involved – I need to pattern shoes, modify lasts, cut leather, and make stitching cords for every single student. As it turned out, we only ended up with four students (one had to drop out at the last minute), and though it was plenty of work, each student came away with a great piece.
For first time cordwainers, they did quite well – compared to my first pair over fifteen years ago, these are orders of magnitude superior in every way, and I’m delighted to have started them down the path several rungs ahead of where I began.
Just for some context… Continue reading Costume College Workshop!→
A weekend workshop to crank out some turn shoes. A lesson for next time – we built these in a period manner, which meant not lasting them like a 17th+ century shoe, cranked tight to the last and nailed in place. Instead, the shoe is tugged snug to the last and sewn on that way. Unfortunately, I did not advise my students to tug tight sufficiently, and many of them ended up being a half size or so too large. Knowledge to take on to the next workshop…
I hosted a small workshop a couple of weekends ago, and both students came away with some beautiful shoes (that also happened to fit, the more critical part). One was a 1560s pair of pumpes, and the second was a pair of shoes based on the 9-10th century finds at York. You can tell from the smiles that both were very happy with their work!
Dedicated to the Research and Construction of Chopines, Pantoufles, Zoccoli, Shoes, Boots,and Other Raised and High Heels.
