The Crispin Colloquy

I'll apply cement to the upper lasting margin and pull it down, stretching as I go and use a bone folder to get a clean crease at the transition from lining to sole. I have been using a teflon folder that has a variety of edge angles I like very much:

Once the upper is lasted, I trim the veldt with the five-in-one. I need enough to rest on the curved needles work table, but not too much that I can't push the tables "blade edge" into the veldt crease:
I stitch the veldt on the curved needle. The work guide on the K is disabled in order to get as much depth as possible.
The veldt is re-trimmed and it is now ready for finishing.

Erick

To conclude the essay, I'll comment on some aspects of this construction:

To start with, I really like the look of stitchdown shoes and the continuation of the upper to the flange, so that is the first factor in my exploration of this construction.

In a true veldt construction, it can be difficult to get the upper tight to the last when cementing to the sole/midsole. With the sole cemented to the lining and insole, I'm not fighting this and I get good results. If the last is fitted well, I'm not risking the shoe suddenly being too loose from not being "to the wood".

This construction allows me to potentially get very angular or pointed toe shapes while using fairly heavy (4-5 oz. cowhide).

The "extra" insole and bottom filler increases the finished weight of the shoe, but the payoff is that the construction is very solid and is not likely to break down with proper care, baring very extraordinary circumstances. The stitches are easily protected by a half sole of leather or rubber, which can be replaced by any shoe repair person.

This concludes the explanation. I hope some of you have found it interesting. It is certainly very different from straight cementing and far from the traditional welted constructions many of you practice- sort of in-between (minus the hand stitching).

Erick

Great essay Erick. Glad I asked!!! Is that two coverings over a pegged shank or is it one that you later dyed black before putting on the midsole which I note is also black--predyed?
Thanks alot!
Georgene

Ah, good question- what you're seeing is the cement. The supplier I get my latex contact cement from formulated it for vulcanizing rubber boots- hence the black color.

Erick

Erick,,

It's a nice looking shoe and a good tutorial. Thank you for posting it.

How high is the heel--it's a woman's shoe, I presume?

Tight Stitches
DWFII--Member HCC

Erik, great essay. I really enjoyed it. What are you using for a shank in the 4th picture?

DW and Rick,

Thanks, these were for my honey and perhaps a 1/2" heel.

I did a few things differently than normal- going on a year ago- I think I filled with leather and then rolled and pegged a heavy leather shank.

Erick

Hi Erick,

I'm a new member and also a fan of the stitch down look. Could you elaborate on "I punch strain relief holes at the featherline."

Here's a stitch down shoe I finished recently on a custom last for a client with some foot deformity (hence the deep wide toe) and a 1/2" leg length discrepency.

Greg,

Welcome to the Crispin Colloquy! Glad to have you aboard.

That is a very "professional" looking shoe. What, have you got a spring-heel crepe sole on them?

emmett

Hi Greg,
I'm a CPed from BC. Great looking shoe. Do you have a picture of the right and left side by side? One of only 5 MC's in Canada! I think I've met everyone BUT you. Welcome to the Crispin Colloquy.
Sean

Thanks,

It's a Vibram unit sole with a bit of extra taper at the toe. I should have posted this next picture in the first place as it shows the stitching a bit better. I follow a similar procedure to Erick but stitch to a midsole of neolite and then cement on the unit sole. Most of my clients require rockered soles in some form or another so I use a lot of EVA soling as opposed to leather.

Greg, nice looking shoes for challenging feet. How is the vamp and apron stitched together? Is that a separate binding strip or an overlapping and stitching of the seams for the moc effect?

Thanks,

Georgene

Greg,

Where the veldt stops, I punch a small hole at the feather to minimize the chance of it tearing during the lasting, like this:

Helpful?

Erick

Sorry,the pictures came out smaller than intended- let me know if you want larger pictures. I have to put the computer away for now, though.

Erick

Erick,

That's just a rip stop...I understand what you are doing. That's a good idea!


Tight Stitches
DWFII--Member HCC

Erick, that makes sense now. I was thinking/hoping that it was some secret technique for improving the crease around the entire featherline.

Georgene, it's a one piece vamp with a decorative "plug" for the moc look. Here's a close up of an older boot with a similar effect.

DW,

I got the idea from your vamp blocker patterns in your book.

Greg,

Are you having trouble getting the crease tight, or getting the stitch into the crease?

Erick

Erick,

At times, with heavier leathers, it can be challenging, espcially at the tip of the toe, to get the crease tight and flat on the midsole. As for stitching in the crease - no problem - I'm stitching it by hand at the moment.

Greg,
You mentioned you stitch the upper to a neolite sole. I see it in my catalog but I've never had neolite in my hands. What is it? Why do you prefer it over Leather for the midsole?
Thanks,
Sean

Greg, thanks for the brown shoe photo. It shows the raised seam around the plug for the moc effect better. I'm trying to figure out what machine you used(flat, post, cylinder) and whether the plug overlaps the lower vamp or if that is a separate binding strip to supply the raised seam. What steps did you use in the plug/vamp process. I see one line of stitching on the plug side and two on the overlap. Also curious on which edges of the plug/vamp were skived. This is one of those great details that rarely gets explained, so I'm hoping!!!!!

Thanks
Georgene

Sean, for me, the 2.5mm neolite soling is a good thickness and consistency for a midsole. It has some body and maitains a decent edge on the shoe when combined with a softer unit sole. My personal everyday shoes were made this way and they're going on 4 years old and holding up well. I've resoled them once and they need doing again at this point. I have to grind off the shiny finish on one side but it's much better than another material that I've ordered which is actually sold as misoling. I've recently bought some 2.5mm russet shoulder which I'm going to try out so I've no objections to leather. I expect it to be easier to stitch but I'm not sure it will be as durable. I suspect that the EVA unit soles will bond better to the neolite than to the russet in the long run with exposure to the elements and salt in the winter. As I make only orthopedic footwear, they all include custom footbeds, so the firmness and non-moldability of the neolite is not an issue.

Georgene, I use a rolling foot post bed machine for stitching. I cut about a 1/2 inch strip of leather and effectively split it by skiving both sides using my skiving machine. Then I shape the strip a bit by stretching one edge to make it sort of U shaped. Next, I rubber cement the strip, grain side down, along a predetermined line on the vamp. Stitch it in place and then turn/fold the strip grain side up. I use a bit of thin shoelace to give the plug a bit of body. Rubber cement it all in place, possibly with some little relief nicks in the strip where it makes the sharpest turns a the end of the toe. Stitch the outer edge (the stitching which can be seen in the photo) and finally trim off the excess with some good scissors. I hope that makes some sense.

(Message edited by greg_ashton on November 19, 2007)

Greg, thank you! Can't wait to try this!
Georgene

Georgene,

This sounds like air-cording which I used to do with piping cord instead of the leather, and I always put some thin lining leather on the back to stitch down to. The lining must be well skived so as not to show but it helps the raised area to stand out when stitched. I stitched with the needle against the cord on both sides.

If this isn't the same as Greg is describing then it maybe gives you something else to try.

Tim

Georgene, Tim, Greg,

This may not be moot but we cord the vamps of boots almost every other pair and this same technique can be used for cording on tops etc....

I take a bicycle spoke and the socket that it fits in, and I fill the socket with bee's wax and then epoxy it into the end of a handle. Then I file the end of the spoke so that it is effectively a half round for about a terminal inch. Then I fold over about half an inch of that filed section, making a hook. Ensure that the folded over section is roughly the same diameter as the rest of the spoke.

Then sew lines of stitching that bound the path of the planned cording--for instance sew two parallel lines about an eighth inch apart. Sew through the vamp and into a kangaroo or even canvas backing.

Now gently melt the bees wax out of the socket and screw the bicycle spoke into the socket. Now you have a long, handled, hook.

Thread the spoke through between the two lines of stitching and between the vamp and the backing.

Now fold some cotton twine so that you have a doubled section hooked into the end of the spoke and folded over on itself. Pull this through--you are effectively stuffing it with four cords of cotton twine. Depending on the thickness of the twine, you can literally stuff the space between the two lines of stitching so that it is filled to capacity.

This can make for a very precise cording--whether it be straight cording or ornamental scrolls.

Tight Stitches
DWFII--Member HCC