Shoe making

Shoe making progress on my shoe making courses online platfrom

Shoe making Courses Online is an educational video platform that offers video courses designed for individuals who are interested in learning the art of shoe making. 

The platform offers access to 22 courses that consist of more than 550 hours of instructional videos. 

You can learn at your own pace and according to your own schedule, as the courses are available 24/7, and you can download the lessons to your computer.

The courses cover the fundamentals of shoe making, such as last measurements, foot measurements, full shoe pattern-making techniques for practically all present footwear types, and various shoe assembling methods. You'll learn how to make shoes from scratch, bespoke outsoles, custom heels, and customized insoles out of various materials. 

The purpose of this online shoe making platform is to give the best learning experience to learn how to make shoes. The lessons will be available to you at any time. If you are willing to learn this wonderful craft, you will make your own shoes. You will learn here each step of shoe making process and if you want to learn also about shoemaking tools and materials for beginners in shoe amking , you are welcom to read this psot: "Beginners in Shoemaking Tools and Materials Definitive Guide 2023"

Why we need is a shoe last in shoe making

In a professional shoe making craft, you can’t make your own shoes without a last. In shoe making we use last to design the shoe model, to last the upper, hand sewing, sole, and heel attaching. You can learn here more about shoe lasts in this shoe making post “The Ultimate Guide to Shoe Last Types and Shoemaking”. 

There are different types of shoe lasts and each shoe last type has its specific parameters. So in the basic introduction course you will learn how to measure the main parameters of the pump last. You will get the downloadable table of measurements for the standard pump last. So you will be able to check your last if it has the right parameters to make comfortable, wearable footwear.

Also if you want, you can already now find out what is your real shoe last size by measuring the length of your feet and in this post “Accurately Measure Your Feet for the Perfect Shoe Fit” you can learn how to do so. 

Why you need to customize your shoe last in shoe making

More than this, in shoe making there is an option to customize standard shoe last according to the parameters of your feet because we all have different feet dimensions that are impossible to include in one standard shoe last. That is why to have perfect shoes that will fit accurately your feet dimensions, you need to change the shape of your standard last, and in our shoe making platform we have two amazing shoe making courses, where you can learn how to customize shoe last: “English Welted Brogue Oxford Shoe Course”; “Bespoke Derby Handsewn Opanka Course”.

The amazing thing is that after customizing shoe last according to your feet parameters you can use these last and make a variety of different shoe types that will be super comfortable for you. Because by the rull in traditional shoe making process for making each footwear type you need to use the specific shoe last type, you may need to work with many different shoe last types, unless you will know the shoe making secret that I with pleasure will share with you. 

You can work with one shoe last type and make 10 different footwear types, and to learn more about this smart shoe making approach, you can read this post “Perfect Shoe Last To Learn Shoemaking [1 Shoe Last = 10 Shoe Types]” 

Once you will customizing your shoe last then comes the next very interesting step of shoe making designing your shoe model on the last.

How to apply different shoe designs on the last correctly according to the rules  of pattern making

There are different footwear types and each of them has its own rules to apply on the shoe last from the sketch. It is very important to make shoes not only wearable but beautiful and comfortable. When you will make your own shoes, you have to know how to transfer correctly your design to the shoe last. 

In my shoe making courses online platform you will find different courses about different shoe types. In each course, we will start by learning the rules of design and how to apply it on the shoe last for that specific shoe type, like Pump shoes, Flat ballet shoes, Oxford shoes, etc. Here you can see a full shoe making list of courses. 

After you will draw the design of your shoe on the shoe last, you will need to make a full, pattern of this footwear: the upper pattern, the lining, the insole, and stiffeners.

Full pattern construction of different shoe designs

Each shoe type has its own rules for pattern making, but many of them have common features on how to make a shoe. Learning how to make a shoe pattern is not such a complicated science as you may think. Anyone can master it. You need only to put enough effort into it and follow the step-by-step instructions shown in each video lesson.

 So to know how to make shoes you need to know how to make patterns of main classic shoe types. This is the pattern making knowledge you will gain here. See the full shoe making list of courses. 

In each course of this shoe making platform you will learn:

 *How to make basic patterns for each type of shoe

*How to make the pattern of the shoe upper 

 *How to make the pattern of the insole

*How to make the pattern of the shoe sole

*How to make the pattern of each heel layer for leather stacked heels

Besides the most common pattern making techniques that you will learn here, you will learn also many unique pattern making techniques that will help you, to make your own shoes like a pro.

How in shoe making we check the shoe pattern of each footwear style before we will make the actual shoes?

In each shoe making course, you will learn how to check your pattern before you will cut it from leather. It is a very important step in shoe making process because you can avoid many mistakes when you will make your own shoes. 

It is easy to do technique and has many important advantages. You can learn more about it in this post “Save your money on leather, make shoes working with paper patterns “

How to cut leather parts in shoe making?

In shoe making there are few ways to cut leather. 

There is a special cutting machine that cuts with the use of a laser. 

Shoemakers cut leather by hand using a special clicking knife. I teach my students how to cut leather using a simple utility knife. This is one of my approaches in shoemaking to teach beginners in shoemaking how to work with simple tools and make shoes profesionaly.

In each shoe making course  you will learn how to cut your leather patterns professionally without any special shoe making equipment.

Assembling and sewing of the leather shoe parts in shoe making

Every footwear has its own order of assembling and sewing. 

It includes skiving and using different reinforcement tapes to secure seams. 

So in each shoe making course you will learn step-by-step how to assemble each specific shoe type and how to sew it.

This knowledge of assembling order and sewing of most common shoe types will help you to make your own shoes:

You can change the design of your shoes, add decorative elements, or change the sole construction,  but the principle of order assembling and sewing will be always the same.

Shoe insole making before lasting 

To make your shoes you need to have insoles- inner shoe parts, because on the insole you will last your shoes. That means that without an insole you can’t make any shoe.

It could be made out of vegetable tanned leather or differnt types of shoe cardboards. 

At this shoe making platform, I teach how to make insoles using both these materials.

There is a full course about making of insole/midsole: "Creating Handmade Insole Course"

You will learn

*  How to make the pattern of the shoe insole,

* How to construct it from special materials for insoles 

* How to make elegant insole with leather cover

Plus, there is the course about Unisex sandals , where you will learn how to make leather insoles(link for the lesson) for sandals

How to last shoes in shoe making

Every shoe type has its own characteristics not only in pattern making, assembling, and sewing order, but in lasting process as well.

 Lasting is the process, where you place the sewn shoe upper on the last, pull the edges of the upper and lining and attach it to the insole. 

So in this shoe making platform, you will learn step by step how to last different shoe types

How to make shoes with unique heels using different shoe making approaches and how to work with ready-made heels

There are different shoe making techniques to build your own heels working with different materials. You can make heels for your own shoe at your home working with wood, vegetable-tanned leather, cork, and EVA foam. All these materials have their advantages and disadvantages.

 To learn more, for example, about vegetable tanned leather , you can here read this post: “How to Make Bespoke Shoes From Home [with me]”

On this platform, I have courses where I teach how to build heels working with all these materials. 

For example, to create heels with EVA foam you can check this shoe making course: Make Your Own  Dr. Martens Style Boots

To make platform and wedge heels out of cork you can check this shoe making course: “Mule Wedge Cork Sandals Course”

To make high heels for your high heels pumps or any other shoe type, you can follow this shoe making course: “High Heel Pump Shoes Course”

Here you have a great opportunity  to learn all about heels because in each shoe making course you will learn different ways of heel-making:

*How to make low heels in the traditional way of shoe making by constructing  them right away  on the last

*How to make high heels from scratch

*How to make wedge heels in the easiest and fastest  way like a master shoemaker

*How to make a leather cover for any heel type

*How to color your heels

 Besides all this shoe making knowledge that you will gain during each course, you have a unique possibility to learn alternative ways of heel-making. 

There is a special course on the site, on how to make heels in any shape. 

It will give you  freedom in your design and enlarge your possibility to make your own shoes with your personal style. 

How to make shoe sole with different finishing techniques

Shoe soles can tell a lot about the shoemaker that made them. According to the look of the shoe sole you can understand if these shoes have great quality or not.

There are a variety of shoe making techniques to build a shoe sole. At this shoe making courses online platform I teach the most common shoe sole constructions:

*Cemented shoe sole construction, for example, in this “How To Make Moccasins Course”

*Cemented shoe sole construction with welt in this “Loafers Making Online Course”

*Opanka shoe sole construction in "Bespoke Handsewn Opanka derby shoe course"

*English welted construction in this "English Welted Brogue Oxford Shoe Course"

* Stitch-down shoe sole construction in this "Make Your Own  Dr. Martens Style Boots"

Here on this shoe making platform you will learn how to make shoe soles like a pro and will learn different shoe finishing without any special shoe making tools:

*How to color shoe sole

*How to wax shoe sole

*How to create shoe soles with finishing like a suede leather

*How to make shoe soles with colored or waxed border

*How to make shoe soles with personal signature finishing

 How to make shoe sock lining in shoe making with different designs

Preparing the sock lining is the last step in shoe making, and it is not as important as all other parts.

To make shoes with a complete, finished look the sock lining must have the same design features as all other shoe details. That’s why in each shoe making course you will learn how to make different designs of the sock lining.

I currently offer  22 shoe making classes with more than 550 video lessons and the number of courses is constantly growing. See the full list of shoe making courses. 

 All lessons are in video format with verbal explanation, where I teach every step of the shoe making process.

This shoe making platform is suitable for beginners in shoe making and for more experienced shoemakers as well. By the end of each course, you will be able to make your pair of shoes guaranteed.

In addition to shoe making courses, there is a Footwear design course. 

It is an online workshop, where you will learn different techniques on how to design your own shoes. See full description here(link).