Future of shoemaking as a craft — profession and/or hobby

[Webicons]

I highly recommend “The Book of Men’s Shoes Making” publishes by StudioTac.  It’s totally written in Japanese but the photos are so detailed that you can easily understand it.  Google translate on my iPhone also works well enough when I need it.  Full step by step from lasting to hand welting. 

I am working on my first pair of Derby shoes in my spare time.  It’s a fun hobby and cheaper than a therapist. 

 

[bikermutt07]

Well, I did break down and order the Hand made shoes for men Friday night. It is cowritten by Laslo Vaas. 

If it doesn't work, I will get the Tim Skyrme book.

But, the HCC site has downloads for making lasts from scratch. I will be checking into that as well.

[Wyowind]

10 hours ago, bikermutt07 said:

Ok guys, we have hit the motherload.

Today I was searching for more last suppliers and ran across an old thread here.

It was of course someone trying to make shoes with no guidance. Well, some one suggested the Honorable Cordwainers Company. This is a 501c non-profit dedicated to the preservation of the the shoe making craft.

They have free digital downloads, a library, as well as dozens of DVDs available from annual demonstrations from the 80s or 90s.

Here is a link. I believe I will be signing up for this.

http://www.thehcc.org

Thanks for the link, Bikermutt! Very interesting site that I’m looking forward to digging into for some great knowledge... I really enjoyed the history section.

[Jesleright]

That Hand Made Shoes for Men book is look at the steps of bespoke shoemaking. It's not a how-to book; It's more of a "How It's Made" kind of book that you would see on somebody's coffee table.

The Bespoke Shoemaking book by Tim Skyrme is very detailed. He only teaches how to make shoes with lasts, though. If you can find a good source for lasts, then i highly recommend his book. If you are in the USA, you can order this book from http://www.walrusshoe.com. You'll need to call to place an order. He also has other shoemaking and last making books, as well as some lasts.

The books by George Koleff are also worth a look. i have the Last Designing and Making Manual. It is a good book to have if you want to make your own lasts. i'm sure his other books are good as well.

There is a dvd set called Healthy Handmade Shoes by Glenn Leisure. This one is $150, and teaches how to construct Veldeschoen (lastless) shoes. You can find the website here:http://www.healthyhandmadeshoes.com/dvd/ . I don't have this one, so i can't say if it is any good.

[bikermutt07]

Thanks, @Jesleright. @Wyowind I downloaded their first 2 books last night. It mentioned dialup taking 30-45 minutes. It was on my phone in about 6 seconds. Amazing how fast things have gotten in 20 years.

[kiwican]

42 minutes ago, bikermutt07 said:

Thanks, @Jesleright. @Wyowind I downloaded their first 2 books last night. It mentioned dialup taking 30-45 minutes. It was on my phone in about 6 seconds. Amazing how fast things have gotten in 20 years.

True that. I remember watching the TV show Stargate and the opening theme had the modem dial up sound. My kids asked me what that sound was lol

[bikermutt07]

Yep, what I downloaded was over 300 pages.