Sharpen your leatherworking skills while learning to build yourself a pair of custom sandals that you shape specifically for your feet, employing a variety of bespoke shoemaking techniques. Learn about different types of leather, their particular properties and best uses in the construction of custom sandals. Numerous embellishment methods will be covered to personalize your work including punching and brogueing, hand edging stitch methods, and dyes and dye waxes. Shoemaking techniques include installing a shank under the insole and using clinch nails or wooden pegs in the heel stacking process.
Level: All levels welcome.
Members: $360 As part of the Summer Series, this class is discounted 20%
Non Members: $430 dollars As part of the Summer Series, this class is discounted 20%
Instructor: Deborah Robertson bio
Materials fee: $85-115 dollars
Materials provided by instructor:
Marble slabs, Landis 5-in-1, Singer treadle sewing machine, nylon thread, insole leather, outsole leather, upper leather, lining leather, shanks, clinch nails, pegs, pegging awl, beeswax, shoemaking hammer, skiving knives, tack hammer, anvils, dyes, dye waxes, punches, rawhide mallet, decorative rivets, rubber soles, extra Speedy Stitcher coarse waxed thread, leather scissors, cardstock,wing divider
Students should bring: pencils, ruler, paper scissors, bone folder, CS Osborne scratch awl No. 478 beeswax, Xacto knife and blades, wool daubers or paint brushes you don't mind getting dyed, rubber gloves, Speedy Stitcher Sewing Awl with coarse waxed thread. Please feel free to embellish your sandals with buttons you bring from home
Students wishing to print onto their leather uppers please bring linocuts or wood blocks you have completed or stencils or even rubber stamps. I will bring a selection of my custom linocuts.
Bring if you have them: skiving knife, tack hammer, French curves, wing divider or compass, and your choice of leather cutting tools (be they leather scissors, round knife or blade).