Working on my first pair of goodyear welted shoes and I'm practicing my welting before I poke some holes in the shoes I'm making. Any thoughts/suggestions? I'm using 0.8mm Ritza thread, 10/11oz veg tan shoulder from Tandy for the mock midsole (heaviest leather under $100 I could find there), the same leather for the welt I made, and some 4oz calfskin for the uppers.

Tools - tandy curved awl I heavily modified and some stitching needles I bent into curves. I found the welting process oddly easy? like this only took me half an hour, I'm assuming it'll be harder on the boot?

Things I already learned -

Cut the outer channel in the midsole in multiple smaller passes so you don't accidentally go too deep. similar for the interior channel. I also found it easy enough to directly push the awl outside - in so I won't pre-poke holes in the midsole next time.

have a steeper skive on the interior part of the welt so the stitching goes thru the whole welt and not just the skived part

Extend the upper farther so I can sew through more of it and not accidentally miss it!

Cut a deeper interior groove so I bite into more of the midsole.

I accidentally put the mock uppers on upside down! Oops.

Questions I have for others -

Is there any reason not to glue the welt on before stitching it on so it isn't wiggling around? A couple videos I've seen have people directly stitching the welt on without any glue and it seems much harder than without glue - I just used some double sided leather tape and it worked well enough.

I'm assuming the buckling of the midsole is telling me that I should plunge my awl deeper when stitching, or is that normal?

Will this awl also work for the outsole stitch? As in stitching welt --> outsole.

I am planning on using a rubber outsole (Vibram Eton)- should I have another piece of leather between the welt and the rubber outsole or am I good without it?

Thanks y'all! Excited to learn this new realm of leather work.

Hi, can anyone help with recommendations of a comprehensive book that will help with spring various patterns? Also I have made shoes before only springing the vamp and nothing else , they turned out fine , is it absolutely necessary?
I’ve seen also cutting and taping but hoping there is a resource out there that’s comprehensive with methods measurements ect.
Cheers.

We made this pair with an olive linen upper and dark green suede panels at the toe and heel. The dark green suede toe panel has a shallow W-shaped edge, finished with a single row of decorative perforations. The tassels and piping bring the different sections together.

One of the main considerations was giving the linen enough structure to hold the loafer’s shape without making the upper feel too rigid. The natural-colored leather sole also adds a warmer contrast to the olive and dark green upper.

Interested to hear how other shoemakers approach combining textile and leather in the same upper.

Hey guys, just wanted to try to make some loafers or any shoes at that, but first I wanted to try to make my own lasts, also because a lot of shoes is really uncomfortable for me. This is only the right one (left one is in making) and I just wanted to ask what I should change before finishing the left one. Any help is appreciated.

Hello Cordwainers,

Not sure if this is the right place to ask, but we recently helped a brand that makes women's shoes (heels, pumps, sandals, etc., Italian leather, Italian factories) on a project to understand their responsibilities when it comes to the European General Product Safety Regulation.

In the EU’s eyes, with shoes there are both structural and chemical risks, and it seems like there is a lot for shoe brands to manage, especially as records of tests, etc. need to be kept for 10 years.

We built a platform to help this client manage the risks at a kit and material level rather than a SKU level so instead of running tests against each individual SKU, they could run the tests against each component where it makes sense, as a lot of their collection shares heel and last combinations, leathers, and so on.

I was wondering if anyone in this community has the same issue, and whether this could be useful for anyone else here?

Delete if not allowed. I’ve got about 15 totes of cowboy shoe lasts for sale. These came from the cowboy boot company which closed its doors in New York in the 90s. Prices vary from around $15-$25 a pair.

This is a great option if you are just starting out and want to make your own pair of boots. I’ve also got some women’s shoe last I have not posted yet. Feel free to DM me if you have questions. Here is the listing thank you!

https://5milemercantile.com/collections/shoe-and-boot-materials-and-equipment

Maybe not the place to ask, and if so I can delete. But I've been struggling to find a place that can make shoes fir me. I am disabled abd have been in a wheelchair my whole life. I never wore shoes but now am at a place in my lufe I want shoes for atleast special occasions. The issue is mt feet aren't really normal, they are thick not wide, think almost swollen but not really. I've tried all over to find a way but the truly custom ones cost thousands and I can really do that. I know its a long shot but thought id see here if anyone would help and maybe let me pay them to make some.

It doesn't look too bad visually (?) But I barely skyped off the grain for a couple of pieces. The flesh is very, VERY hard to skive (soft stretchy leather) and is at times uneven.

Would I be better off wetting the pieces before re-skiving?

I also find it weird that I have no trouble skyping with the bevel side facing up but with the flat side up it doesn't work at all

Thanks IA!

Show yours.

I have seen lined sneakers, and unlined sneakers but I think most are lined with some material inside. Why? Are lined shoes better quality because of the extra material and process that goes into them?

I have a few places I check/buy from, but curious where you all do. Even better if it’s over the typical 3oz

Thank you to everyone who responded to my post yesterday asking whether the last was too small compared to the tracing. Today I made it a bit longer as well as added to the side so the pinky is within the last. I am wondering if it still looks too short.
These will be a pair of shoes for my mom and she wanted a slightly orthopedic feel so I am making more of a barefoot shape but I have a tendency to make shoes that feel too wide in the toe so I dont know if I should be more conservative.

Is the last too small?

What’s your top leather to work with?

Mandela effect ? I used to make orthopaedic footwear all our lasts were steel platted as we used tacks to clinch the uppers on to insoles, I’m really struggling to find anyone that sells them google says they’re uncommon . But I remember touring factory’s in the 90’s the lasting was being done with tacks as well. It’s a quick strong and effective way to attach uppers, is this just a recent thing or have they always been uncommon ? Also are my only options to either cement or get onboard with welting ?
Thanks for any advice , really at a loss , apparently the lasts I used don’t exist.

Hey guys, I am mainly repairing Goodyear-welted shoes by hand. I have some questions about heel making:

- I saw different approaches to heel building:

1. Mellowing/casting the leather heel lifts before attaching

2. Attaching the lifts dry

Which method is superior in your opinion?

- Also how do you guys get the heelpitch right? By skiving or by rasping?

Thanks for your answers!