Soft Leather Ballet-Style Minimalist Shoes For Kung Fu

[kgirl91]

Hey everyone-

I am brand new to the forum so I apologize if any part of this post doesn't adhere to community guidelines or practices. This is a long post- sorry about that. I wanted to err on the side of clarity. Please see my attached image- it should clarify as well.

Here's the deal: I want to make a pair of minimal, soft but sturdy shoes fitted to my own feet for indoor wear while practicing kung fu. They'll be fairly simple, styled somewhat like a ballet soft shoe (pleating near toes- here's an image of what I'm thinking of imitating regarding pleating: ballet shoe) with an insole for cushioning made of a single piece of thick leather (or midsole? I'm not quite clear on the difference between the two but at any rate, my shoe will only have two soles- an inner one touching my foot and an outer one touching the floor) and an upper made out of one solid piece of leather.

My basic plan is this: an insole made out of relatively thick and stiff leather will be cut to the shape of my foot (I'm going to call this the insole unless someone corrects me). An upper, which I would like to make out of pigskin (smooth side out), will be something of a u-shape cut out of one piece of leather (sort of like this), with the round part of the u being the toe and the ends fastening on the outside of the heel with a heavy-duty snap. This upper piece will be wrapped around the insole and attached on the bottom first with stitches on the very edge, and then contact cement for reinforcement. I will probably then shave off extra leather with a razor blade to make the shoe feel flatter underfoot- I've seen this done in a ballet shoe video and figure I can replicate it. One end of the u will wrap around the heel, and they will overlap and be fastened with a snap to enable easy removal since I want the upper to cover my whole foot, unlike a ballet shoe which has a short vamp and covers only the toes (see attached drawing). Finally, a full sole made out of either a very short-nap suede, if this is obtainable, or less-ideally, standard smooth-finish leather, will be applied to the entire bottom surface of the shoe, covering all of the pleating etc. I will probably cement this only as my understanding is that contact cement can be softened by heating when it's time for resoling and the sole can then be removed easily and replaced. I want to make an upper that will last forever and can easily be resoled when necessary.

Thanks for reading that giant explanation! Here are my questions:

1. What material would be most durable for the sole? I put a piece of ebay suede on another pair of shoes and it's falling apart- fibers coming off, bare spots etc. I know dance shoes have a very short, fine suede (chrome suede?) that looks almost like a chamois and it's much more durable, but I don't know if this is widely available in leather shops. And will I be able to remove the original sole easily by heating it with a hairdryer and pulling it off? Or will that damage the rest of the shoe?

2. Is a single layer of pigskin strong and sturdy enough for the upper of the shoe? Again, I want it to be soft and flexible but not floppy, and I don't want them to stretch out so that the shoes slide around. It seems to come in a maximum of about 2oz. Should I use two layers so that one can act as a lining- or perhaps use a layer of the above chrome suede as a lining if I can find/afford it? Would having two layers rubbing against each other degrade the leather faster/should I sew them together anywhere other than the edges of the piece? I could do some sort of pattern on the top of the foot if sewing the layers together is necessary, but the less work, the better. I do need the shoe to have a certain amount of structure so that it holds shape and doesn't twist on my foot or allow me to slip sideways off the insole. I chose pigskin because it's supposed to be the most durable and breathable and is also pretty inexpensive, but if you think something else would be better please recommend. I'd rather not line with any sort of fabric because again, I want to build these once and build them well and never have to do it again unless I want to.

3. Can anyone recommend a particular type of leather I should use for the insole? Its role is to provide some minimal cushioning for my foot and some structure to make this a shoe rather than a sock, but I don't want anything hard or overly stiff because my goal is to feel the floor- so probably no tooling leather; maybe some thick cowhide? I'm not sure if it should be smooth leather or suede either- I'd like it to last forever and my impression is that the finish on smooth leather is more durable, but I don't want my (sock-covered) foot slipping around inside the shoe. Possibly I should sew a piece of chrome suede to the top surface of it (again, if I can find that stuff).

4. What's the best way to finish edges, like at the top of the shoe near the ankle? Leave them raw? Sew a seam just in from the edge? Fold over and hem like fabric?

5. Should I use artificial sinew? Something else? The shoes will be black in their entirety so of course the thread will have to match.

I don't have the time or resources to get heavily into leatherworking, so I'm trying to make the simplest and most optimal shoe without all the heavy duty equipment- I'm not interested in purchasing lasts, a machine, etc. I'm hoping to get by with a new pair of sharp scissors, a few glover's needles and some tough thread. I do have a fairly large awl that might be good for punching through the insole- I don't think the thinner pigskin will require punched holes (correct me if I'm wrong).

Here's a quick drawing I made to hopefully clarify what I've said above.

If you've made it to the end of this post, thanks for reading and I appreciate your help!

Edited September 26, 2012 by kgirl91

[niftycurly]

1) you will probably fare best with 6-8oz veg tanned cowhide for soles that you can feel the floor through. Though you will probably also feel the pleating from your upper as well unless you skive very carefully. (that which you call shaving is "skiving", a belt sander also works wonders) I see that you are in Los Angeles - visit SavMor Leather (under the 10 freeway on Wall Street). They often have shoe sole sized pieces in the scrap bins, $3/lb. They also have a cheap skiving tool called a skife.

2) Pigskin is often used for shoe linings but almost never for the outside of uppers unless it's just decorative. It's just not strong enough. And it is very floppy so it won't do what you are asking. All leathers will stretch unless backed by a non stretch synthetic material. Make your shoe very tight so it doesn't get too big after a few days of practice. Again, go to SavMor and look in the scrap bins, they'll have lots of shoe sized pieces of assorted leathers. Pull on them to see how they stretch and know thatntheyll stretch more on your feet. Some are very spongy, some are super firm. Bring your patterns with you if you have them. A single layer of chrome tanned upholstery weight will be ok for most of a soft shoe but you will need to at least add a stiffener for the heel, called a counter, this can be more of the same leather or something else stitched or cemented in. You may also want to add extra support in the toe area. Actual ballet slippers have layers and layers of muslin and adhesive under the leather. Except for moccasins and Toms, very few modern shoes are made with a single layer.

3) in general, shoemakers use thinner leather for the insole and thicker for the outsole as the outsole will wear out much faster. I'd recommend you do the same, but if you insist on going the other way just find a veg tan weight that feels right to you. You will need to roughen the smooth side of the outsole before cementing it on if you want the suede side out.

4) you must finish the raw top edge, called the topline, or it will stretch out of shape and very likely fall off your foot mid practice. If you can get your hands on some topline tape you would at minimum want to skive the edge, tape, turn and stitch like a hem on fabric. If you can't, then find some good non stretch ribbon like cotton grosgrain or tightly woven twill (not bias tape!) and bind/sew the whole topline. Not as good but will help keep the shape.

5) for this one project you could get away with heavy duty upholstery thread (fabric store) or waxed linen (leather stores like Tandy). Sinew is too heavy for is type of shoe. You can sew the upper on a domestic sewing machine with the upholstery thread if you get a leather needle (fabric store) and a stick some tape under the presses foot so it's smoother. (normally I'd say get a Teflon foot but tape will do for just one project)

If you're handsewing, you'll want to prepunch your stitch holes no matter the leather to save your fingers. Pliers and a $6 stitching awl (Harbor Freight Tools) will make your life easier.

[kgirl91]

SavMor is where I'm going! Planning to go tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully the types of leather will be labeled so I can pick out the right weight and type of tanning- I don't really know what to expect. Good to know about the scrap bins though. I guess I'll have to just look and see what I can find for insoles. What weight is upholstery weight? I see 3-5 oz as a recommendation for upholstery leather online, is that about right? Thanks for the tip about the counter; I think I might also add a toe cap or something like that depending on the leather's feel. The ballet slippers I was talking about are the soft shoes (I think you might be referring to the hard shoes which are made with a type of fabric maché) and at least the pair I tried are only one piece of leather, but I think I would like my shoe to be sturdier than that.

I'm thinking that it will be easier to form the shoe without a last if the insole is thicker, but I may change my mind once I actually have my hands on the leathers. A softer leather for the sole will give me more grip than a harder one though- would pigskin be good for a sole (durable, resistant to tearing/wear through) or not? It's surprisingly hard to find info on pigskin online. That is so good to know about the topline tape, thanks for the tip. I will definitely try to track some down- would SavMor have this?

Thanks so much for responding and for all the information. I really appreciate it!

[niftycurly]

Nothing's labeled at SavMor, the guys that work there are really nice-just ask them any of your questions.

Pigskin is fit only for linings. It is NOT durable or resistant to wear at all. It's just thin and very inexpensive.

Vegetable tanned cowhide in heavier weights is best for soles. For a simple shoe like this you don't need a last, though for designing and patterning a last is always helpful.

Unfortunately, top line tape is pretty hard to come by unless you're a shoe manufacturer. SavMor doesn't have it, perhaps Saderma (Western between Santa Monica Blvd and Melrose) or your local shoe repair shop does.

[kgirl91]

Just wanted to update and say that the project is going really well. They were out of the really nice looking 3 oz cowhide in black, so I'm using a deerskin in about the same weight that's good although the surface seems to be easily scratched. I've realized that a last would have been immensely helpful, although it would have to be a custom one since part of the reason why I'm making my own shoes is because I'm never quite happy with the fit of commercial shoes. Next pair, perhaps For the topline tape, I'm planning to subsitute a very narrow grosgrain ribbon- it's nonstretchy and when cemented down it should be pretty satisfactory.

Nothing's labeled at SavMor, the guys that work there are really nice-just ask them any of your questions.

Pigskin is fit only for linings. It is NOT durable or resistant to wear at all. It's just thin and very inexpensive.

Vegetable tanned cowhide in heavier weights is best for soles. For a simple shoe like this you don't need a last, though for designing and patterning a last is always helpful.

Unfortunately, top line tape is pretty hard to come by unless you're a shoe manufacturer. SavMor doesn't have it, perhaps Saderma (Western between Santa Monica Blvd and Melrose) or your local shoe repair shop does.

[Anti19]

Can't wait to see pictures! If you don't mind, please take pictures of the progress, and maybe dimensions. I'm really interested in doing something similar. Thank you very much!

[Phil2011]

Hi Kgirl91 ! How about your project? It sounds very interesting to me because it's a style of footwear I would like to make for my wife! Please post some news and pics! Thanks a lot in advance!

[kgirl91]

Hi Phil-

Unfortunately I overcomplicated the project and subsequently got busy so they are nowhere near done. My procedure so far is roughly:

1: cut thick vegetable tanned leather to exact size of each foot when standing (have someone else trace)

2. Create pattern from spare stiff material like denim. My pattern is sort of a horseshoe, much wider at the top/toe part to cover the instep, and longer on one side to wrap around the heel. I wanted to make a seamless upper except for the fastening but it didn't work out that way so there's a seam going down the top of the foot like the opening on a running shoe. Next time I would probably just plan on having two halves (left and right of foot) and make it easier on myself. Using grommets and laces would have been WAY easier too.

3. Use chalk and much second-guessing to trace on upper piece where it will contact the edge of the insole piece. Wrap insole over sole and sew to bottom of shoe (next time I would just USE GLUE). If sewing, start at toe, do one side, start at toe, do other side. Doing the toe while one side had been sewn would be impossible because of the need to get one hand inside to sew the wraparound upper. While doing this, I tried on the shoe and double checked my chalk lines frequently. I used a punch to make sewing easier but it didn't help THAT much.

4. After having sewn most of the toe area, I realized that the leather was already forming to my toes/making toenail marks in the uppers, so I cut out another part horseshoe to wrap over the front and double up the toe area. You can see the two pieces together in the first pic.

5. Finally having sewn around to the heel area, I made a half circle piece to cup the heel out of the veg leather. I sewed it on just like a simple running stitch that had been pulled apart a bit so that the layers could be perpendicular (up through sole, back through heel, forward through heel, down through sole..) I made an image to hopefully help explain. I punched the sole holes as close as humanly possible to the edge to avoid having long stitches that could be worn down. The curvature of the heel piece forced it to stay upright even though the stitches were pulling it forward. Just to make sure, I believe I whip stitched around the outside of the heel too.

6. I finished sewing the upper around the heel leaving an opening on the outside ankle area of the shoe. This is where I ran into problems- I thought I could twist my foot into there easily enough and not need an opening in the top of the upper (like a slip on where the opening just happens to be to the side) but it was tight and I was worried that the upper would stretch out and look ugly. So at this point I cut down the top of the shoe. Then I had to figure out how to solve that unsightly problem- so I made another piece to wrap over the top of the shoe and cover the opening, and ended up having to sew a bunch of little seams into it to make it conform properly. This part isn't fully done but I believe I redid the seams three times because I couldn't decide if I liked them better flat or raised/buttstitched.

7. I believe I also sewed a second layer to the outside edge of the foot to keep that side from stretching in response to a lot of lateral movement. At this point there are two layers the whole shoe except for maybe the inner heel- so buy thicker leather for uppers than I did! All that resewing was frustrating.

Plan from here- I got stuck when I was nearly done sewing on the new contoured wrap-over upper cover because it didn't quite line up on the outside edge of the foot. Once I fix that, I plan to shape the fastening area (I'm using a snap, so I need to put a few layers of leather in there for stiffness and decide how I want it to look). Next I'm going to sew black grosgrain ribbon along the slit in the top of the shoe to keep it from stretching out. I don't think any further fastenings are necessary in that area because I don't like bulk on top of my foot. I will probably do a double layer of grosgrain and leather for the top of the shoe and around the fastener area for a decorative look. And then I'm planning to slap a bunch of Barge cement on the bottom of the shoe, pleat the leather and press down, and then trim excess with a knife. Search youtube for "How Ballet Pointe Shoes are Made" for a visual of this step (around 2:00- I'm hoping it will work for me too). Then I'm going to glue on another sole, probably the suede side of a thicker leather than what I'm using for the uppers for more durability, and hopefully be done!

I purposely made the shoe tight (most shoes you buy would never have a sole the exact size of your foot). I expect the leather to stretch to fit.

Depending on what you're looking for, I just bought a pair of Capezio Agility gym shoes in leather and I'm hoping they'll be a substitute until I finish these shoes. They have a part suede, part rubber sole and look really low profile. Haven't received them yet. I believe Balera has a similar style as well.

Pics- first is the drawing of the heel stitching. It got rotated- toe is toward the left (or the bottom if you rotate it so that the writing is right-side-up). Next is the pattern pieces for the main upper and the toe. Last are two pictures of the shoe before I cut the slit in the top and added the instep wrap, but after most of the stitching was done.

[Phil2011]

Hi Kgirl! Thank you very much for such detailed explanations! Well, if I understand well (english is not my first language), your wish is to make ankle high footwear which could fit like a second skin, with minimalist construction? If I had such a project, I think that I first could buy a pair of leather gym slippers. I could dismantle them to draw patterns from the different parts. Then I could use my own leather to make a similar new pair and I could draw the ankle part to sew it on the new slippers. I think I wouldn't use a snap to close them, but shoe lace on external side for better fiiting. What do you think of this idea?..

[Phil2011]

I like your 4th picture a lot: the design of your shoe looks really great!!! Very good work, indeed!

[kgirl91]

Hi Kgirl! Thank you very much for such detailed explanations! Well, if I understand well (english is not my first language), your wish is to make ankle high footwear which could fit like a second skin, with minimalist construction? If I had such a project, I think that I first could buy a pair of leather gym slippers. I could dismantle them to draw patterns from the different parts. Then I could use my own leather to make a similar new pair and I could draw the ankle part to sew it on the new slippers. I think I wouldn't use a snap to close them, but shoe lace on external side for better fiiting. What do you think of this idea?..

The person who inspired me to start this project did something similar (bought a pair of shoes, dismantled them, and made his own pattern). It worked great for him, so if you can find a shoe that would work for you, that's a great plan.

At the time that I started the project, I couldn't find anything affordable that fit the bill (or I would have just bought that and worn it) and I didn't want to spend $60 or $70 just to tear it apart. The ankles on my shoes ended up being lower than I wanted, but it's fine (that part was just another headache in terms of pattern making). I have thought about adding a top ankle part when I get to the hemming stage.

Laces are a good idea. I just didn't want anything that could get caught/would need to be retied. Now that I have a flap on my shoe, I might eventually end up putting laces underneath it.

[Phil2011]

Hi Kgirl! I agree with you about buying shoes to dismantle them! Better find cheap ones, of course!.. On the other hand, once you got patterns from a dismantled pair you can make several new pairs, even including some variants in construction or détails which finally look way far from the original shoe! For example, I made these soft soled boots: ...from a pair of traditional french slippers called "charentaises" like these ones: I Wonder if you could post some pics of your kung-fu shoes as you wear them, because I have to say that it's a bit difficult for me to make images in my mind, even if your description is very complete. If I see pictures, maybe I'll have a better idea than shoe lace...

[Gump]

Hi Kgirl; Your shoes look like ninja shoes. Check out some ninja sites [yes they exist] and you might pick up some ideas. Gump