Pattern cutting to last, top line, bottom line, back seam.

 

Size 6 womens last.

 

 

covering the last with tape

Top of the cone , one third overlap

Vamp point/ counter point





inside outside style lines



197 cm from cp to vp on this shoe

feather edge

seam allowance overlap measurment

standard / mean form



 

awl, dividers, tape pens.





 











At LAST

There has been cancellations, finance nightmares, a missed train and some moments of ungraceful behaviour, but at last it is the first day of my shoe making course, with Prescott and Mackay .
Today we were concentrating on techniques that will assist in the full  five day intensive shoemaking course. Melissa our shoe guru was /is fabulous. An expert in all things shoe shaped and a big fine art fan.
My previous textile skills came in handy, but the attention to detail and precision in shoe making is beyond anything I have ever experienced. Love my new sharp scissors, the roundy- hammer-thingy and the stinky glue. Mmmmmmmm

Using the industrial singer post machine was like getting out of my Peugot and into a Lexus ( One would assume, `cos` ofcourse, I have never driven a Lexus), even the old singer post machine ( nearly 100 years old, bless) was a dream. The walking foot machine was much more difficult. A bit of a    mare really.  As for skiving , (thinning leather by slicing thin strips away), I didn't really master the technique at the time. Practice, etc.

 

Terms- Bagged, folded, toe box, semi industrial Bernina, Pfaff, ethical leather,Notch on the inside, Richard Stenner `Craftsman`, walking foot, skiving, post machine.

 

 

As above below

`As Above So Below` by Sophie Myfanwy Wellan 2014.


I am a great fan of Sophie's work, this piece is so perfect for many reasons. The title is a Hermetic maxim, from Hermes , the Greek counterpart to Mercury- winged messenger of the Roman Gods. Religion , art and science in perfect balance... and shoes!. 
Made from beeswax and bedecked with gold and jewels, I wish I had the money to purchase them. Fairly ironic that my first shoe entry is  in fact the last word in what I would like to be able to create.
Battlestar Galactica going on on this models feet. Seen by someone else at a Jan Taminiau fashion show, Paris.  

 

Pacing The Boundaries

 

 

 

 

http://www.artswales.org.uk/

 

 

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/prescottandmackay

This is the blog for a new Arts Council of Wales funded training project.
The Arts Council of Wales have given me the funding to do two training courses with Prescott and May. Thank you so much to them.
The training events and my research will be recorded on this blog. Stay tuned for unlimited reports of Universal Cobblers!!

Quote from the application - incase you were wondering why...

Since completing my degree I have been using crochet as a familiar media and an easy starting point from which to access complex ideas about the origins of the Universe. I was able to bring 3D form to two dimensional linear drawings by substituting pen and paper for yarn and hook. I feel now that the I have exhausted the possibilities for this particular method, and that my work has become repetitive and stagnant. I am applying to the Arts Council of Wales to fund a training course that will inject new life into my practice, and increase my practical skills.
I have chosen a shoe making course as a change of subject that is a challenge. The process of shoe making also takes a two dimensional pattern and makes a 3D object. I was taught dress design and pattern cutting skills when I was young ,and have many years experience. I see the intensive shoe making course as a development of these skills , and also an opportunity to further my interest in the mathematics that describe form.
I am excited by the contrast of the pragmatism of footwear and the intangible nature of the fabric of the Universe. One form rooted to the earth , while the other defying description out in space. The relationship between the two becomes apparent, when manipulating flat material surfaces into complex curved forms, as I have been attempting to describe with crochet in my work.
The course will inspire experimentation and inform new pieces of work for future exhibitions and interactive projects. My work is usually conceptual, and working with installation means my practice lacks a saleable product. Learning to design and make shoes will also teach me to make a finished item, and help me support my work financially.