Flip Flops Tutorial

[Reegesc]

27 minutes ago, MonicaJacobson said:

BTW, @cseeger -- your boots have come a long way in what, eight months? Keep it up! I don't have the inclination myself at the moment, but I'm impressed with anyone who does.

Thanks Monica.  You're a peach.  I guess you never saw the thread where I said "it was all due to competing with you"?  Something like that.    me competing with you.      I thought for sure that would illicit a giggle or two.  Lemme see if can find it.  btw. you haven't been around much either.  Do you two know just how damn hard it is or someone to do battle here all by themselves?  Geez....

Ah here it is. The squeaky toy thing.   I'm sure this left  a lot of people scratching their heads -- "What in the hell is he talking about?"  Haha  And it certainly didn't help that you didn't at least pop in the convo with a little haha yourself.  Nope, just left me twisting in comic limbo.    

 

 

Ya know it  just occurred to me that that could be a terrific way to multiply the compliments exponentially, right?  Instead of eating the whole compliment like a greedy attention grub, you take a bite then deflect it to someone else who takes a bite and deflects.  You could probably feed 20 off a single compliment.    Then, before you know it there's love and admiration ricocheting all over the place.    You getting this Monica, for your Presidential gig?

You remember me talking about how this entire industry needs a massive makeover and a massive visionary leap forward?  I was visiting a friend in Houston a couple months ago and I made it a point  to visit one of their THREE Tandy locations.  THREE!  We've only got one in Dallas and it's pretty pathetic.  It's like shopping in somebody's garage,  ok, a four car garage.   Years back I made a similar Houston trip and visited my first "Mega Narrow Interest Store."  That particular store was a Sausage/Meat Curing & Smoking Mega store.    It was way into sausage making back then and up to that point all my shopping was done online.  This store was incredible, they had every swinging thing there could possibly be for the sausage making enthusiast.  They had stuff I had no idea even existed.  And because of that trip I  I just said it my mind that Houston was Mega Store Town.  That no matter what you were into, some bright opportunist would see to it to open a super store catering to your intererest.    This was on my mind heading to the "Mega Tandy Store" I was fantasizing about on the way-the-hell-out-of-the-way-trip to get there.  The closer we got the more excited I got.   Maybe they'll have some great indoor specials?   Maybe even a class going on?  The possibilities seemed endless.    

Then we pulled up to the nastiest, falling-apart strip mall and a tiny decrepit Tandy Store.  So small that with 6 people in it it felt crowded.  IT was dark and dingy and the crap on the walls had been there since Reagan was in office.   It just looked tired and sad and dead.   Is was embarrassing is what it was.   I imagined our entire country comprised of just more of these little s*** hole stores and that was the public face of an entire industry in the same state just wheezing through it's final days in a dingy corner of a nursing home, an industry grave yard. And I'm thinking it doesn't have to be this way.   It isn't this way in Europe.  Heck, they have.... what?  Three year degree programs in Europe?  This line of work is an esteemed profession.  Where are all the bespoke shoemakers.   Europe.  I havent' researched this, its just my sense from being around it for the past decade.   But I had visions of how it could be  completely turned around and only needed ... who knows.  It's in such a sorry state that it can only go up.  Do you buy Tandy or just bury them?  Probably easier and cheaperand more effective to start fresh. Then create an industry group chartered to promote and educate.  Let's say a couple hundred million you could pull it off.    Joan Krock philanthropy  money.   Mega Lotto money.  Completely Doable.    A full pronged, all out reinvention of the industry in every respect.  Put together some schools and elevate the profession again at least on par with the Europeans, and a PR campaign to promote the craft to the public and especially young people.  Goes without saying you would have a Mega Leather Supplies Super Store in every major city in the US.    So anyways, the first mega huge El Grande lotto I win, that's what I'm going to do and hire you two to run it.    Hey, it could happen.  So don't too comfortable in your current gigs.   I'm serious.....

 

 

 

 

 

 

[MonicaJacobson]

LOL, on several counts. No, sorry, I didn't see that, and yes, it's all the funnier since if I tried to make boots they'd look .... terrible.

Have you been to the Ft. Worth Tandy? It's pretty sweet, but then again it's the face of the company store, as that's where the first one came from. Tandy is cool, and what they do (or could potentially do) is very valuable, but I stopped using their leather when it started having tire tracks on it.  Give me Maverick any day. 

I expect benefits and sorry, minimum wage isn't going to cut it.

[Reegesc]

On 2/24/2017 at 5:01 PM, Leerwerker said:

Is there any indication of the length of the top straps for general flip flops, or are they always custom made and fitted to an individual's feet?

 I've searched a lot on this topic.  Not just for strap lengths, but also of ergonomic standards/averages for feet in general.  I'm certain this  information exists but I've not found it.   Closely guarded secrets so it seems.       

In the case of strap length, I would think there is a standard ratio of strap length to sole length, like 75%, that can be applied to any sole size.   It would be relatively easy to test that hypothesis by measuring a full run of sizes of a particular style or two or three of Flip Flops.   And Walmart always has Flip Flops for sale on its shoe racks.    Hmmm?       

Ok, I just measured two pairs of mine and the ratio is ~ 60%      (6.75"/11.5")  But they're also the same size (10) so that's not much of a statistical sample.   But it is a data point that you can compare to your own size.  Also keep in mind 60% is just to the sole.  You would have to add another two inches to that for going underneath the top sole.  So the formula would be (60% * sole length) + 2"

I'm assuming you are asking the question because you want to make a pair for someone who isn't readily available for a custom fitting, or perhaps it's a surprise gift.   In that case, I would definitely take a trip to Walmart and at least measure that particular size.  

Let me know what ratios you come up with.

[Reegesc]

Merry Christmas Fellow Footwear Friends, 

Here's my latest flip flop creation.  It's hard to see in the pics but I used beads for the toe stem (toe thong as some refer to it).  What's cool about using  beads is they freely rotate and hence no rubbing.  What's not cool is figuring out how to attach them and get a smooth transition from the uppers to the sole.  In this case I cut off the pointed end of the uppers to make a flat end.  Then I made a cover that folded from the bottom and punched two holes in the fold so that the beading wire could loop through the holes  then straight down to the sole where it is secured underneath with a spacer bead and bead crimps.  To further aid in the visual transition I used two beads, one for each wire, as it exits the cover.  I then crimped the wires as one to maintain the position of the two top beads than strung a single row of beads as usual.  You need to use large hole beads so that it will cover the crimp.  This helped a lot in the visual transition from the cover to the toe stem otherwise it looks too abrupt with a single file row of beads.

I'm not sure what to make of these.  Jamaica comes to mind, maybe something Usain Bolt would wear.

Edited December 26, 2017 by cseeger

[Grey Drakkon]

Daaaaaamn how did I miss those?!  Now those have CHARACTER.  ;D

[Reegesc]

On 1/11/2018 at 9:02 AM, Grey Drakkon said:

Daaaaaamn how did I miss those?!  Now those have CHARACTER.  ;D

The only reason I post on this xxxx xxxxx website is to get praise from you Grey.  ;-)  Thank you thank you thank you.   

Hey, you're an artist and do jewelry work.  What do you think of my recent offering on ebay?    https://www.ebay.com/itm/302610090254?ul_noapp=true

Give me an honest consumer appraisal and I'll make you one for free even if it's the last thing on earth you would be interested in buying.  Because if it truly were the last thing on earth you would buy, that would be a pretty interesting thing to have, wouldn't it? 

Hey, I like giving stuff away for free, particularly to those who never ask for anything or expect anything.  Which reminds me...I have this false memory of sending you a box of LEDs and the switchy things that come with them.  But I keep "re finding" them here in the shop and every time I do I think "I thought I sent this crap to Grey?"   So, could you please make up your mind and decide whether you want this led stuff or not?  Geez....

[Grey Drakkon]

Hey that's a really neat looking caddy!  Very professional and clean.  I particularly like the leather wrapped base, it adds an extra something to it that makes it a bit more special.  I think the only thing that would improve it is magnets somewhere on it to slap small files on it!  

Tell ya what, I can't just get that thing for nothing, the shipping alone would be crazy (especially since rates just went up yet again) I think I mentioned to you that I've been doing lampworking, if you want some custom beads I can hook you up.  Not really a fair exchange as far as size and cost to ship goes, but they're pretty fun. 

You already sent me the LED paraphernalia, and how odd that you bring it up since I just had a customer come in talking about getting an etched glass backlit with LEDs set into a frame.  

[Grey Drakkon]

On 1/20/2018 at 11:26 PM, cseeger said:

The only reason I post on this xxxx xxxxx website is to get praise from you Grey.  ;-)  Thank you thank you thank you.   

Hey, you're an artist and do jewelry work.  What do you think of my recent offering on ebay?    https://www.ebay.com/itm/302610090254?ul_noapp=true

Give me an honest consumer appraisal and I'll make you one for free even if it's the last thing on earth you would be interested in buying.  Because if it truly were the last thing on earth you would buy, that would be a pretty interesting thing to have, wouldn't it? 

Hey, I like giving stuff away for free, particularly to those who never ask for anything or expect anything.  Which reminds me...I have this false memory of sending you a box of LEDs and the switchy things that come with them.  But I keep "re finding" them here in the shop and every time I do I think "I thought I sent this crap to Grey?"   So, could you please make up your mind and decide whether you want this led stuff or not?  Geez....

Whoops, realized I should have quoted you when replying. 

[Reegesc]

On 1/22/2018 at 0:07 PM, Grey Drakkon said:

Hey that's a really neat looking caddy!  Very professional and clean.  I particularly like the leather wrapped base, it adds an extra something to it that makes it a bit more special.  I think the only thing that would improve it is magnets somewhere on it to slap small files on it!  

Tell ya what, I can't just get that thing for nothing, the shipping alone would be crazy (especially since rates just went up yet again) I think I mentioned to you that I've been doing lampworking, if you want some custom beads I can hook you up.  Not really a fair exchange as far as size and cost to ship goes, but they're pretty fun. 

You already sent me the LED paraphernalia, and how odd that you bring it up since I just had a customer come in talking about getting an etched glass backlit with LEDs set into a frame.  

That is a most generous offer.  I accept and shall ship your goods forthwith, with Godspeed and safe passage.

[battlemunky]

I know this is an old thread but it is soooo good! 

First, thanks to @cseeger for the tutorial and the inspiration. Seeing all the different variants of flip flops made me give it a swag. See pics below.

I used paracord in the toe-between to avoid the possibility of the 3-4 oz breaking at the chevron over time. I lined the underside of the straps with suede with the desire of keeping undue break-in of the wearer's (my daughter) feet. I cut pretty deep grooves into the soles for grip and then took some inspiration from those offensively expensive bag makers and stamped my mark all over the soles, also with the hope of some more traction. I think next pair I'll either make up some goop or get some crepe rubber or maybe some old tire, we'll have to see. I used the "wax on felt and rub like hell" trick on the edges to "age" it a bit. Fiebings glycerin and canvas on the edges followed by an ebony burnisher. All comments are welcome.