Making shoes and making a shoe last!

I am definitely feeling open to new challenges lately and am slowly working my way through all the things I said I would never do! I am not saying 'never' to anything at the moment since I started thinking about making shoes. Shoes, actual shoes!!! It seems like the ultimate handmade item really doesn't it? If I can make shoes then I can make handbags surely, which covers all the bases really on top of the clothes I can sew and knit. Spurred on by seeing these boots in particular by Joost and also these sandals by Jillian I have recently started to believe I can do this. Why not eh?

So where does one start? Well I have done a lot of online research and you need a shoe last (ideally) if you are going to get serious about making shoes. A shoe last is like a mannequin for feet and are actually not very difficult to get hold of. You find them second hand on ebay and Etsy or brand new if you know where to look! UK dwellers can find recommended suppliers on this site.

I have pretty tricky feet (wide with bunions and a high instep which makes most slip on boots a big no), so I was definitely tentative about splashing out on anything too expensive and decided I could have a go at making my own. As I have gained in confidence I now realise I can also modify some pre-made lasts and have a couple of pre-loved pairs on their way. The thing with lasts is that they are specific to heel height and toe shape, so chances are that one style will not be enough for you to play with anyway!

Here are my finished lasts minus their newspaper covering which came shortly after.

The first and fortunate starting point for me was the new winter boots I recently bought. They fit me well and they have a good width at the front. I did buy a size up to get the width though, but they are good enough. Yet another example of compromising with fit for ready to wear items. I wanted to replicate the shape and heel height (mid heel, not too high), but shorten the foot length a touch.

I suppose the main starting point was to create a pattern for the insole. I used the outsole to create this, tracing the foot and bridge of the foot. I held the paper firmly on the sole of the boot and pushed it right into the heel to trace. I then marked notches at the start of the heel and flattening out my template traced the heel onto the back of the main foot. Because I traced the outsole it was a few millimetres wider all around than the insole, so I just marked and cut it a couple of millimetres inside the line. I also folded out the amount of foot length I wanted to lose just after the heel.

I wasn't sure how substantial my last was going to end up being, but I wanted it to have a solid base, so I cut the insole pattern out of a thin wooden board I found knocking around the garage (you could probably use a really thick card). I split it into three sections to cut. The front foot, the arch and the heel. This allowed me more flexibility to get a nice shape for the heel height.

I taped all three sections of each foot together with duct tape so that they were together, but still flexible. I then taped the cardboard toe filler that came with my boots to the front of the insole. I have been thinking of ways that you may be able to achieve this toe shape without a pre-formed filler and maybe if you line the shoe you want to copy with cling film or something similar and push some modelling clay inside up to the start of the foot arch. If you use air drying clay you could wait for it to dry prior to removing for a solid toe to stick straight to your insole.

I have been truly rubbish at photographing this stage, but I created a paper pattern of one side of the boot I was copying (see boot here) from the centre back to the bottom of the laces. With the paper held taught over the boot I just rubbed a pencil around the shape of the top ankle, centre front and arch/heel shape. I made the centre back square with the base of the heel as I added shaping to this area later on in the process. I neatened out my template from this one side of the boot and traced it onto a cereal box, mirroring it so that it would wrap around the outer and inner foot. Apologies for the absence of photos for this bit! My cardboard boot was then positioned onto the insole lining up the centre backs and taped in place. It does wrap over the toe cap and from here various slashes and modifications to the foot shape were made to make it as close to something that would fit me as possible. I also shaped the back heel and ankle at this point, tapering it in slightly. If you have an idea of pattern cutting or model making then you can really draw on this knowledge to achieve a shape you are happy with. I stuffed the form with saw dust as full and compact as possible to create a solid structure. I was thinking along the lines of a tailors ham???

All sealed up I did a quick paper toile and found the foot arch to be too high. I removed some of the saw dust and slashed and modified a bit more until I was happy.

A final stuff to make it really firm and then I closed it up with a section of card taped over the hole.

It was finally covered with some newspaper and PVA to finish. Please excuse the appearance of the beginnings of a shoe upper. This didn't really become anything as I didn't really like it!

Now one thing I realised fairly late on was that there is no shaping from the back heel to the insole, which probably means that this area is too wide at the insole. It should taper in and blend nicely rather than have such a square junction. I might go back and tinker with this pair a bit more, because they seem to have worked out far better than I could have imagined and it would be worth improving them. I also want to seal them up a bit more and open up the top again to pour some plaster of Paris into the main foot for a more solid block.

There are restrictions I am aware of when using my home made lasts, like the style of shoe I am able to make. For instance I would probably not go for a design which would need too much force for removal at the end of the lasting process as I don't think it would be possible without destroying them. I think I can get a full coverage shoe made on them, but it will require some creative thinking to make it work. I really love the shape though so I'm keen to work around this. Maybe one day I might like to carve some out of soft wood to mirror this exact shape and make the refinements I am imagining, oh and also add a hinge. Never say never remember! As with many things, I am finding the self imposed limitations inspiring!

I have started making a pair of shoes from these lasts and I am really pleased with them so far. I have some very thick leather scraps to build a stacked heel which is very exciting and I have gone for a fabric (jacket scraps) upper because I was slightly concerned the fit would be off and didn't want to waste precious leather. I have sneakily removed them from the lasts for a try on and they fit well (I think), but I don't know if it's one of those things that you really cant tell until the whole shoe is finished. I am trying to use only natural materials (apart from steel shanks required to support the arch) and am having great luck in finding pre-loved or surplus materials. Another thing I want to try and achieve is a no glue shoe, but not sure if I am close to knowing how to do that yet!

I was hoping to give you a tutorial to make lasts in the same way I did, but in the end I think that all I can show you is roughly what I did as there is no hard and fast way of achieving 'a thing'. If you are interested in making a pair of lasts then I suggest cruising the internet for ideas and find one that makes sense to you or combine several methods that may work for you! One idea I did particularly like (but don't have shoes I want to ruin) is to take a plaster cast of a pair of well fitting shoes and cut the shoes away to reveal the casts. I guess you would have to then cover the plaster forms with tape or papier mache to stop the plaster from flaking away.

Interestingly I was just browsing for alternative tutorials on making shoe lasts. One of the most common ways I have come across (and a method I was considering) is to take a cast of your actual feet, but this forum here has a fairly indepth discussion of why this might not be the best method. The same rules of wearing ease (negative and positive) apply to the feet, so is something to consider. It actually makes a lot of sense and when I was thinking about bra making and using some form of stand for draping it struck me that a direct mould of my body would be useless because the form for draping on needs the breasts to be in their supported state (if you know what I mean).

It's blooming marvellous what you can do when you start to break an item down into its individual components and I am certainly in the frame of mind where anything is possible at the moment!

Hopefully I'll be back soon-ish with a complete pair of shoes to share with you, but bye for now!

Pattern fantastique Falda jacket

Hello!

This is a jacket I made quite some months ago for the refashioners project hosted by Portia. My original post was published here, but I wanted to do a quick post on my blog too because I really love this pattern!

The pattern is the Falda jacket by Pattern  Fantastique and I basically jumped on it as soon as it was released. I really liked all the versions I had seen, but when it came to this project I made some modifications which just happened rather organically during the making up. You can see straight away that I have not gone for long sleeves, although these were all cut out and ready to go. The sleeve is in two parts with this short sleeve section and another piece which forms the bottom sleeve. I got this far, basted the side seams and decided I really liked this length after all!

The other thing is the length. The picture below shows where the facing ends as per the pattern. I decided to just leave the outer body of the jacket at the cut length and tidy up the insides with loads of bias tape (just don't look too closely at my wobbly stitching).

Working with denim is such a joy because you can be pretty flexible in terms of how you finish it! I obviously veered far from the pattern instructions, but they are all there for an unlined or a fully lined version of the jacket.

 Once the main body was constructed I then just had fun with the finishing details with a nod to the original garments that I refashioned into this jacket scattered here and there.

I really love how versatile this garment is. It's like a thick denim shirt or a different take on a kimono jacket with the short sleeves. I really fancy making a longer coat version, but seeing's as I don't currently need a new coat this is but a pipe dream.

I shall leave you with this picture of todays outfit, which was my prompt for writing this post really. Boho bag lady!

Oh and thanks to Portia for organising the refashioner's challenge! The deadline has now closed for competition entries, but I really don't think this jacket would exist in my wardrobe if it wasn't for the challenge she set!

Pointy edge coat pocket

Here is a closer look at the inside pocket of my recently finished coat and a quick run through how I added it!

The points I have edged my inside pocket with appear to be called prairie points and are the type that can be nested as described in this McCalls post. I saw this idea somewhere else and it was described as a Hong Kong pocket or something similar, so is something traditionally found in tailored garments. Mine is a lot clunkier and less delicate than the example I have seen because I wanted it to look like teeth to scare my children (naturally), but you could make this look far more delicate with smaller nested points.

To start, there was no pattern for an inside pocket, so I just free hand cut into the fabric two pocket pieces. It is a rectangle big enough to store a phone and the extra bit on the side is big enough for my hand to fit in and out of. That extra bit is 1.5cm wider than the bottom edge.

I folded back the edge flap by 1.5 cm (wrong sides together) and pressed along this line on both pocket pieces.

I then marked with chalk the end of the pocket opening so I know where to start sewing when I come to make the pocket up. I used a seam allowance of 1cm for the pocket seams.

I cut a long strip of the lining fabric which measured 6cm wide, but you can alter this to make smaller or larger triangles.

I pressed it along the length with wrong sides together and then chopped it up into short lengths. They look approximately 6cm long, but I don't think you need to be terribly accurate with this method. The McCalls link I mentioned above is far more methodical if you want to work to a more precise formula.

 I then folded the rectangles I cut in half and pressed them to make small squares. The squares have two nicely finished, pressed edges which will form the pocket edging.

My pocket is on the left hand of my coat, so I sewed the triangles to the pocket lining piece with the extra flap on the right hand side (if the right side of the fabric is facing up).

I used the pressed line on the pocket lining as my stitch guide and just kept adding the points as I got to the end of the last one so they are butt up next to each other. I just went by eye to make sure the height of the points are the same, but you could easily draw a chalk line for accuracy.

Important - Make sure the points remain within the seam allowance of the pocket bag!

Yet another example of my non-methodical approach to this technique is the excess from the points in the picture below. Just trim these down in line with the pocket lining edge.

Make the pocket up! Sew the two pieces with right sides together and with the points pointing inside the pocket. Don't go beyond the stitch line along the pocket opening when joining your pocket pieces together. FYI - The seam below at the bottom of the pocket opening is an 'L' shaped seam if you are planning to cut the same shape pocket as me.

Pin the pocket bag to your coat lining centre front edge and sew in place. It is the edge with the points on you are attaching to the lining (although you could sew the points to the coat if you prefer).

Next flip the pocket back around to the wrong side of the lining  and that's pretty much it!

When you hand sew your lining into your coat you can also sew the remaining edge of your pocket down.

I was just making it up as I went along to try an idea out, but you can iron out any kinks and make a much nicer job of it if you have a go!

Finished coat - Vintage Vogue 9939

All finished and I am a bit sad about that as it was a really enjoyable make, but then I am also really happy to have something for the new season and finished ahead of actually needing to wear it. A rarity!

It was such an easy make really. It took time because of all the hand sewing, but there was no fitting because I already new I liked the fit from a previous make and it does not require loads of different interfacings or interior structure. I added interfacing to the centre fronts and collar as instructed and hand sewed it in place rather than heat set it, but that was it! When I hand sew the majority of a garment or thing like this I tend to keep going with it, so although my interfacing had a gluey side, I chose not to fuse it. Crazy huh?

There are more close up detail shots in this post and notes about the length of the coat, but this finished length is what I shortened it to. It finishes below most of my dresses which I like and has retained the feel from the original illustration (I think).

Not much else to say really. I added a pretty cool inside pocket, which I can show in more detail if anyone's interested!

The lining is all sewn in by hand, which I love doing. It is satisfying to get everything sitting exactly where I want it with no pulls or dragging. The lining is a dark brown slinky twill satin. Probably synthetic, but I can't remember. It's possible it may contain viscose, but who knows...

I haven't pressed anything on this coat (apart from the lining). The under collar on the back looks as though it's rolling back, but everything else is laying fine, so I think I shall probably leave it! Also the bottom hem is looking a bit soft in these pictures like it could do with a gentle press, so I may just do that. All seam allowances are sewn down flat and haven't been pressed.

I opted for the fastening as suggested in the pattern which is just at the collar. Well it says loop and button, but a hook and eye is pretty much the same. I think I will add one at waist height, but on the inside of the coat too so it doesn't flap about in the wind, but I do like this simple finish.

Anyway, that's it from me and all set for the cold weather! The olive colour is not really represented in these photos very well, but it basically goes with everything in my wardrobe. As for the boiled wool itself, it seems the perfect texture for a coat like this (although required underlining). I'm unsure how it will wear as it looks prone to bobbling. If anyone has experience with this fabric then please share.

Thanks for following along with me and happy winter sewing! xxx

A winter coat in the making!

I am definitely thinking about my winter wardrobe now, but I guess we all are! The thing I have started with is the thing that's probably the biggest investment in terms of time and materials. A winter coat! I am using a vintage pattern, Vogue 9939, and it's one I've made up before (pre-blog), so know what the fit is like.

I am also using fabric from my stash that I had set aside last year, but never got around to sewing. The fabric I am using a boiled wool from textile centre. They currently only have a small amount of brown left, but I have seen this type of fabric around in a lot of fabric shops. It is admittedly a lot more fluid than I imagined so not quite right as it stands for this particular pattern. I still haven't finished said coat, but I thought I would just post some progress pics of what I have done so far!

To start off I underlined all the main coat pieces with a surplus shirting cotton from my stash. I cut the main fabric first and simply overlaid it onto the shirting with wrong sides together and cut the underling very roughly with an extra 1" or so extra around the edge. I then neatened and smoothed everything and lined up straight edges where they were present before hand basting the edges. You can see the basting stitches left in on the below picture. The idea of the underlining is to add some structure and body to better suit this voluminous coat. It isn't a quick process, but it is absolutely worth it and really transforms the fabric.

The coat pattern is very plain, but has some good quality details that I wanted to highlight. The pattern calls for topstitching on all the seams, but I chose instead to topstitch the darts only and really make a feature of them. How gorgeous are these darts? The stitches sink beautifully into this squishy fabric. The darts are topstitched in the instructions, but as open darts rather than this way.

If you happen to have and are thinking of making this pattern then the length of the coat as drafted is loooong! I cut a good 10cm off the bottom and sewed a 4cm hem. I did not remember this fact from the last time I made it, so merrily cut out as per the pattern, but look!

The length is totally not in proportion with the sleeves if you were thinking that this may have been meant for a tall person. The sleeves have worked out perfectly without shortening, so the body length makes no sense, but this is an easy fix! By the way, don't judge a coat part way through making it. The coat looks nothing like this now...


To resolve the issue of no top stitching on the collar I under stitched the seam allowance to the under collar by hand.

Note - this photo shows the true colour of the wool I think!

 What else did I do differently? Well, the pockets are bagged out with the lining in the instructions, which would have meant the lining would have peered out from some angles. I bagged the top edge only and folded the rest of the edges in over the lining neatening the corners and hand basting everything before machine topstitching in place.

Next up I catch stitched all the seam allowances to the underlining. I have not used an iron or steam on any part of this coat as I was worried about bruising or crushing the fabrics texture. The only bit I did go near was the bottom of the centre back seam as it was looking a bit rippled, but that was it!

So here it is from the inside! Everything is stitched down and from the outside it looks finished.

 A sneak at the outside!

I am so enjoying this project that I am eeking it out quite a bit. I don't want it to end and am loving all the hand stitching.

I shall hand sew the lining in and maybe add a sneaky inside pocket to the facing seam. I have an issue with bagged out linings I must admit. I am not keen on machine stitched hems on the main fabric and it's easier to make sure that the lining isn't going to pull the coat up when you insert it by hand. Each to their own though and sometimes these projects are restricted by time or the fact that you really don't care for hand stitching, which I totally get. I wouldn't say that I sew incredibly beautiful stitches by hand (I really don't), but I do love doing it!