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Lasts
Usually many types of lasts are kept in stock. They
can be altered by stitching on small pieces of leather,
so that the last conforms to the shape of your foot.
However, as this has its limits when the leather compresses
and deforms in the lasting process, wooden lasts can
be made to measure.
All of the handmade lasts are made in the same traditional
way.
Hardwood logs (12" x 24" in diameter) are
split into spokes, the ends are sealed, and then they
are dated. These are then left to air-dry for two years.
When the spokes have dried, they are cut to length,
chopped with an axe and an adze into the rough shape.
They are then shaped on a rough emery wheel. The last
is measured by tape more and more as the wood approaches
the desired end shape. The emery wheel gets finer until
the finished shape is achieved. The last is drilled
and a wedge shape is cut out of the instep so that the
last can be removed from the shoe. A single pair of
lasts can take two days to make, at a cost of £250.
"Before 1590, there were medieval left and rights
(lasts), ...then straights...this was because there
was a big panic, (due to fashion) for the desired heel
height...Because as the heel gets higher, your joint
position moves forward, and out, because your weight
is going on your metatarsals, or actually it is squashing
them, and so it gets harder to make a matched pair of
lasts for a high heel. So they solved the problem...by
just making one last! It's easier making symmetrical
lasts than it is two asymmetrical lasts, and because
you only have to make one...that reduces the cost by
half. Most lasts were wooden (very few were metal) now
they are plastic."
Construction Techniques
Welted
Vertical welt,
triple stitched
Norwegian
Veltschorn
Stitchdown
Cemented
Costs
Depend entirely on time taken, the complexity of the
design, and the construction techniques involved.
Glossary
Welt
Toe Band
Vamp
Eyelets
Quarter
Stiffner
Back Strap
Wood sole
Outsole
Side Seam
Heel Lifts
Heel Top Piece
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