1840 "Boots": Complete?

 

I have been being extremely lazy these days. And who could blame me I feel like I'm about to explode... But I digress, here is what I'm hoping will be the finished boots.

 

 

And yes I can actually put them on and walk in them. Stunned? Me too. The sad part is that I don't think I'll make it to Dickens. I'll never forgive myself if I'm in Riverside and go into labor. We will have to see what my midwife says.  : (

 

 

I was toying with the idea of adding a piece of suede onto the toe. But I don't know if I care enough at this point. Especially after the struggle I had sewing the upper to the flat. I broke two carpet needles and have various puncture wounds. As usual I sacrificed blood to my project.

 



1840's "Boots" Update

So I took a little hiatus from doing too much sewing due to a horrible tooth ache. So I haven't much to show but here's what I have so far.

 

 

 

The flats I got from Payless. I paid more than I wanted to but they fit well enough. And just between you and me, I was anxious to start the project.

 

 

Here we are sewn together and pinned on the flats for a sneak peek.

 

After marking off the holes for my grommets I closed my eyes and punched holes.



 

And luckily it turned out ok. A little crooked in some spots but hey. Who cares?! I also sewed on the black grosgrain ribbon and covered the metal grommets with buttonhole thread. Next to figure out where to sew in the "tongue" to fill the gap behind the lacing. And finally to attach them to the flats.

 

 

Shoot for the moon!

 

So I kinda have a crazy idea.......I want to make some boots.

Whew! I said it, err typed it.

I had found a pair of booties at Wal-Mart for super cheap that I thought would work well for a day's use. Well turns out they are out of stock in every size. Which is beyond me because they were not attractive. But then I had a thought, maybe I could make my own 1840's style boot. So here is what I've though up initially. The idea will be to take a cheap pair of flats and make an upper to be sewn onto them.

 

So here are the three generations of the pattern I mocked up last night. I used my Roper boots to start and traced those. Then I sewed the first pattern and made adjustments from there for a better shape. I've left the toe portion square in order to fit it onto the flats I buy.

 

 And today I made a "cast" of my foot with duct tape and cling wrap. I stuffed it with printer paper to give it weight.

 I almost let myself cannibalize a pair of flats I already own but decided I liked them too much.





 

Lastly the upper I've put together. This one is made of canvas with muslin lining and exterior. I still need to decided exactly where I'll place the lacing on the side. The reason I made the cast of my foot and calf.  I intend to go and get fabric today and I'm thinking maybe a grey or black wool and grosgrain ribbon to line the edges.

 

Here are some extant examples that I was looking at while making the pattern. I've discarded the idea that I'll get a square toe or an exact replica of the shape. But it's fun to give it a try. Wish me luck!