Shoe sole stitching masterclass

Today I delivered a lesson on stitching soles to the felted shoes.

Short masterclass for feltmakers, they usually make felt slippers and here we discussed how to make outdoor shoes. We met in Kaunas (UAB Partis, thanks for the meeting space).
Meeting, greeting, fingering tools and materials:

During our Summer camp Danguole have made felted shoes. Today we took them as an example and added outdoor rubber soles. Shoes were felted on the flat sole shoe lasts, so we've chosen flat rubber shoe soles for these shoes. We cutted special cellulose board to be put between the shoe and the sole. It covers the grids of the sole, they won't emboss through the wool felt.

Carefully marked the place of the soles. Applied the adhesive for shoemaking. This adhesive usually is very volatile and it is necessary to work in well ventilated place. We worked at the window. Layers of adhesive must dry before putting parts together.

Cardboard will be used to cover grids in the heel of the sole.

Moment of attentiveness - soles must be glued in the right place.

I stitch the soles with speedy stitcher sewing awl. It tightens the stitches by itself and saves your fingers from doing it :)

Me - shoemaker?! :)))

Next pair of the shoes:

And the result after few hours of work:

So soft and so warm and so made by hands:)

Supplies for felt shoe soling you can find here

Good luck with your projects!

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All guests of this masterclass made their fish for the Museum of Fishing in Moletai to support an artistic campaign "Fish pendants"