Disclaimer: This post contains a very old attempt at shoemaking, during the very beginning of my journey. I really didn’t know what I was doing at this time, and the post is left online for archive purposes only. Please do not “learn” anything from it, as the post is certainly riddled with mistakes. It’s just a documentation on some of my thoughts as a beginner in this venture. For a more updated view of my shoemaking, please see my latest posts instead.

As a leisurely ramble from regular production, Ivar was made to welcome my nephew into the world.

They are infant sized.

Worn (or at least “put onto a pair of feet”) for the first time:

They were made to match the adult shoes Gefle, owned by the father.

Construction

Like my last baby shoe Natalia (which was larger, weighing in on size 21), I’ve tried to construct these shoes more or less as if making adult shoes. I’ve for the most part used the same methods and techniques that I normally use for an adult shoe.

The uppers were made out of 2 oz vegetable tanned crust baby calf, hand painted with Fiebing’s pro dye.

The shoes were lined like I’d line any adult shoe, with the same 2 oz veg tanned crust baby calf. The uppers were sewn by hand.

Eager to work, I didn’t take too many images from construction. Here’s from the lasting:

I made a combination piece of rand and welt, as I usually do for adult shoes as well. Excess was trimmed off and the shoes were hand welted and filled with cork. In the image below, I have also applied cement before attaching the outsoles.

Construction: hand welted, hand sewn uppers.
Last: Vintage, infant shoe last
Uppers: 2 oz vegetable tanned baby calf
Lining: 2 oz vegetable tanned baby calf
Insoles: 9 oz vegetable tanned shoulder
Sockliner: 2 oz vegetable tanned baby calf
Outsoles: 9 oz vegetable tanned shoulder
Rand/welt combo piece: 4 oz vegetable tanned calf
Heel lift: 9 oz vegetable tanned shoulder