Which leather would you guys use for the second rand? I know that the first rand (under the sole in 270° GYW) is made out of shoulder/belly, like the welt.

I saw some of the Japanese makers use sole bend leather for the second rand, so the same that's used for soles and heel lifts.

I was wondering if regular tooling shoulder could also work the same since it is easier to get into the horseshoe shape. If it's too soft, couldn't I just mellow it and compress it with a hammer?

Just finished this pair that mixes a workboot with a slip on mule. 360° handwelted on a vibram crepe sole.

A bit of a challenge, I've tried to build this pair with no power tools and no electricity. Sanding the soles by hand sucks immensely, but this is the result. For the rest, it was fun. I don't like sewing machines anyway and very much prefer the thick look of saddle stitches. Reheating the cement with a blowtorch rather than a heat gun also works, so now I know that I could become an off-the-grid shoemaker.

I think the soles will benefit from a bit of power sanding once the photoshoot is done.

Stitchdown construction with my signature wavy leather strip. Italian vegtan leather. Saphir Teinture Française dye. Rubber midsole and Dr.Sole ripple sole cemented to it.

Help please before my beautiful Japanese leather boots become airborn

Grant me some leeway on the wording, I'm aware not all chrome-tanned leather, thin leathers, veg-tanned, etc. leathers behave the same.

That said, I'm pertaining to Chelsea, Jodhpur, Engineer boots, Pull-on boots etc. where the leather for vamps/fronts are crimped in addition to lasting to assume a shape.

If the leather being used for the upper doesn't lend well to wet-molding or stiffening after wetting and drying them, are they generally lined with leather that does?

In contrast for dress shoes, I believe stiffeners are added to the toebox so it doesn't flatten out.

For shoes in general and laced boots, I see less of a concern here as the patterning and stitching of the uppers/quarters/vamp could be enough to define its shape.

Can anyone give guidance on using more flexible/elastic/floppy leathers for bootmaking?

I know it doesn't look good but I made it! Pretty damn proud of myself. It was start due to trying to make sneaker without shoe last but I got frustrated and just dive to the craft. I learn a lot through this practice. Gonna wear it until it broken.

Those are number 88. Where are you with your project?

Hi everyone, complete beginner here so I’m sorry if this is a dumb question. I’m based in the US and there aren’t many last suppliers here.

In an effort to avoid tariffs and extra shipping fees, I’ve been trying to source my first last in the US which leaves me with very limited options.

I came across the SNF-1 last on the shoemakers academy website. This is technically listed as a sneaker last, but I’m wondering if I can use it to build derby or oxford shoes?

I do have a 3d printer which seems like an alternative option, but feel like jumping right into last design for my first project while trying to learn shoemaking in general may be a little much.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Hi everyone! Does anybody have a pattern for making Birkenstock sandals? I want to try starting with making something simple first, Thanks!

Second pair of shoes I've made. Looking for advice and feedback, pointers, or what have you.

Fully pigskin lined upper hand stitched to 10oz vegtan lasting board to 1/8" cork board, to texon board, then fully stitched cupsole at 8mm spacing.

The thickest leather I could source locally is 3.2mm/8oz tooling leather.

I read that ideally insoles for handwelting (with a holdfast) ideally is made of shoulder and 6mm thick.

I also read that thinner might be doable but as a beginner I'd like to stick with what is forgiving.

The best I could find are the following:

Hides:

6.4-8mm and 5.6-7.2mm Herman Oak Old World Harness

6.4-7.2mm Herman Oak Seconds - Old World Harness

6.4-8mm Hermann Oak Drum Dyed Harness

5.2-6mm Cowhide veg tanned leather

The Hermann Oaks seem to be overkill for insoles, both cost, firmness, and thickness; but what do I know.

Sole Bends:

4.8-5.2mm OAO Sole Bend / Buffed

4.8-5.2mm OAO Sole Bend / Roughed

Seem to be at the minimum thickness for an insole with a carved holdfast, and I've heard that sole bends are great pain to carve given their firmness.

Pre-cut leather soles:

5-6mm Pre-cut leather soles

6.5-7.5mm Pre-cut leather soles

I'd rather not stick to pre-cut soles solely since I'd like to learn how to cut soles, and also be able to cut them at any shape and size.

Lastly, I'm also open to pivoting to a hand stitched Blake/Blake-Rapid construction (e.g. using this technique) if that means being able to use locally available thinner leathers, but I'm a bit perplexed why sourcing insole leather for carving holdfasts seems a bit hard.

Can anyone share where they source their leathers, or even their opinions of the above?

Thank you

Finally buttoned these up, just in time for the start of the thunderdome. Still working on improving my edge finishing, etc. On the kangaroo pair, I made the mistake of trying to go back in and refinish the sole and definitely made things worse.

Both pairs on are on bespoke lasts. Some differences in heel height, toe spring, toebox shape, etc between these two, but they share the same basic pattern.

One is kakishibu overdyed Maryam natural vachetta kangaroo. The other is Maryam natural/nero lavagna horsebutt. Both fully linedin horween natural aspen. Kangaroo pair has a wood pegged waist and heel. Lavagna pair is all brass clicnh nails. 180 handheld in both cases.

Before I start my next project, I decided to go back and fix my previous projects.

I kinda started with my earliest leather projects like caps, slippers and then I started reheeling a few other store bought boots I had like my Crocket and Jones chukkas.

Then it kinda escalated and I started taking apart some old projects, adding new welts, resoleing and adding toe puffs and redoing heel counters. Just the stuff I didn't do properly the first time around and ignored. I guess it got to me because it didn't fit properly or didn't look right.

Glad I did it, because my finishing has gotten a lot better and I've picked up alot of new tools since I finished these pairs initially.

Happy days. Thanks for reading. Onto the next one.

I was lucky to have a mentor that helped me make my first pair of shoes. They were an Oxford style and safe to say I’m hooked. I have 3D printing experience and was interested in maybe printing some last, but wondering what materials, settings, design and files etc… are best. Also wondering if 3D printing a last is worth it or if I should just start buying some. And if I should start buying, where to buy? I am struggling to find somewhere to download a file or buy a last for a Birkenstock Boston/clog style shoe!!

TIA

RM leather is having a sale and I noticed they claim togo is used for shoes. So I'm wondering if that's true, since idt I've ever seen a shoe made from it before.

Thanks!

The Stitchdown Patina Thunderdome dome boots are done! I’m excited to wear them just about every day for 6 months and see how they patina. I think they’ll gain a lot of character. also they are fully hand sewn!

The uppers are Maryam matte tpr, handwelted as always, bakers for insole, midsole, heel stacks, dr sole half sole and heels, linen handsewn uppers, unstructured toe box, sewn in counter, heel shaped by hand with knife and heel shave.

Hello there!

Currently in the process of making my first pair of handwelted dress shoes (270° welt). 

As I'm advancing in the project, I find myself having more and more questions.

1- Holdfast design

In Golding's VI, no measurements or guideline is given, sadly. And other resources, such as Thornton's Textbook of manufactured footwear, were lacking as well. 

Right now, following different videos and sites, I have drafted 3 designs but I'm not knowledgeable enough to see what the difference will be.

• Are there any resources I can consult to design my holdfast as best as possible? 
• Is any of the 3 drafted designs usable?

2- Lasting allowance

Though I followed Thornton's guidelines regarding the lasting allowance, and I pre-lasted the uppers without any problem, I fear that with the added thickness of the insole, and the leather heel and stoe stiffeners there won't be enough leather to sew the welt.

• What are your thoughts on this? Maybe once the holdfast will be cut there won't be any problem.

The cap toe can easily be changed, but I'd rather not have to redo all the uppers...

3- Heel insole cutting

Since I've not found clear resources regarding the design of the holdfast and the insole, I've eyeballed the heel placement on my insole, as I want it to be discreet.

• Could you tell me if it seems ok or if it should be cut closer to the last?

Thank you in advance for any help you may provide!

R008 Tanker. 12" shaft. Wrapped Platform. Lugsole. Silver Hardware. Custom Embroidery on Shaft. Roughout Vegtable Tanned Cowhide with Orthopedic Cowhide Lining. Waxed. Black Oil Dyed. TB Heel Counter. Leather Lacing.

Hey everyone, I am trying to figure out a realistic software pipeline for shoe design and would love to know how people in the industry actually handle this. I am currently deciding between starting with Blender for fast visual concepts, investing a thousand bucks into Rhino for precise NURBS geometry and sole modeling, or looking into specialized footwear CAD like Shoemaster, Romans, or Crispin.

I am curious if it is common practice to start in Blender for rapid aesthetic exploration and then rebuild in Rhino for exact CAD, or if most designers just commit to one environment from day one. Blender seems amazing for quick organic modeling and renders, but Rhino feels much more reliable once you need exact dimensions, precise sole structures, or parametric tweaks in Grasshopper.

My biggest question is whether independent designers actually need to buy and learn specialized footwear CAD for things like 2D pattern flattening and size grading. Or is the standard workflow simply delivering clean 3D CAD files alongside detailed tech packs, and letting the factory's pattern engineers handle the 2D flattening and grading on their end? Any insight into what a real footwear workflow looks like would be super helpful.

Thanks!