ExIT Shoes

Pair Number 12

by jeff

November 1st, 2005

Brown. I made these for a friend who has provided a lot of help and support to me in my learning process. I’ve spent a lot of time in his shop, taken advantage of his tools and expertise which he has generously shared with me. Green laces, Italian soling leather. This pair incorporates a layer of shock absorbing foam sandwiched between the leather insole and leather outsole. This fateful pair was my first customization. I leathered out the last of the right shoe afer extensive measuring, and experimentation with vacuum forming. They were not without peril. This was the first pair that I ruined in production. While sanding the heel I gashed the upper just above it. Actually, the entire heel ripped completely off and the shoe flew out of my hand and smacked into the tray below the sanding wheel. For a while, I felt differently about my sander, but it taught me a good lesson. I reattached the heel and finished it anyway just to make myself feel better and to show that sander I was not so easily frightened away. I was prepared to make the right shoe again, but my friend told me “I’m the customer, and this is the shoe I want. I want it like it is.” Thank you so much.