Making An Old Dream Come To Pass With a New Pair Of Kicks

About 6 weeks ago, I took a sneaker class at the Chicago School of Shoemaking and Leather Arts. I had so much fun! I especially enjoyed being the student :)

Below is my work in progress. The shoe that you see at the top of the photo was my inspiration piece. Below the shoe, you see my pattern, tools, and my shoe in pieces.

The class was 2 full days of instruction. I made a mistake on one of my shoes while attaching the top of my shoe to the sole. At that point in the day, I was quite tired, and ready for a break, so I elected to just finish my shoe at home. Last Sunday I finally sat down, redid the stitching, finished the shoe, and ordered my laces.

Ta Daa!!! My finished sneakers. I love them!!!

I have never been a big sneaker person, but these are not typical sneakers. Thankfully, my husband and I don't wear the same size shoe, or I would lose these! 

Pure fun :)

I have no intention of making all of my shoes. It was just a fun class to take. A bit of a dream realized, well, almost. When I was maybe 8 years old, my shoe wardrobe consisted of a pair of shoes to wear to church, a pair of sneakers, and a pair of school shoes. And there were times when all I had was a pair of sneakers. I so wanted a pair of cute sandals, so I decided that maybe I could make a pair. I found some cardboard, glued a few layers together. Between the layers, I glued some heavy string, punched holes through the top layers, and made the loops to hold my "sandals" on my feet. After all the work I did, I was so proud of what I had fashioned. They lasted about half a day before they completely fell apart. I never would have dreamed that I would one day own a pair of leather sneakers. Life does get better :)

Here's to realizing our dreams!
Rhonda

Fun With Sneakers

I made a fabulous soup this past week that I will share, but my time is a little short this morning as I am taking a class this weekend. So look for the soup recipe on Tuesday.

A friend of mine sent me a note about a leather sneaker class that was being offered at The Chicago School of Shoemaking and Leather Arts. I have wanted to take a class, but I haven't made it a priority, so my desire continued to be placed on the back burner. When my friend told me that she was taking the leather sneaker class and asked if I would join her, I said, "Sure!," and I am SOOOO happy that I did.  

I did a little research before I went to the class, but just wasn't sure about what I would like to do. When I arrived, the sample pictured below grabbed me, and that was it! Loved the design.

Below is a sneak peek at what I am doing. When  I arrived, there was a table full of leathers to choose from. I vacillated between a red crocodile embossed leather and the teal blue crocodile embossed leather that you see below. I went with the teal blue, after all it is my favorite color :)

You're seeing the sides of my shoes and the tongue. In the background you see the inspiration sneaker. So today I will be sewing the shoes all together. Can't wait to see them all come together. 

I'm off to get dressed and head out for a super fun day! 
I'll post the finished shoes tomorrow.

Happy Sunday!

Rhonda

Monday Morning Inspiration/Sneakers and Printing

This morning I awoke to find an email from a friend who had forwarded a link to a class that she's taking this upcoming weekend, and thought that I might like to take it as well. Here in Chicago, we have a wonderful school devoted to working with leather, Chicago School of Shoemaking and Leather Arts. This class will be  a 2 day intensive on making your own sneakers. I don't know if the class has filled, but in the event that it sounds like fun, there is a discount code, 25KICK. The code will give you a 25% discount at checkout. You can find a link to the signup page HERE. Below are a few of the examples that others have made in the class. 

One of our Haute Couture members has taken a number of classes at the school, and everything she's made has been fabulous. Next Monday I'll show off my new kicks!

For those of you who are Project Runway fans, you may remember Miranda Levy from season 12. 

She lives in Milwaukee, WI and she will be teaching a class in July at the Jewish Museum Milwaukee on the craft of working with wood blocks to create repeating patterns using traditional Indian patterns. I am so excited as I think it will be such a fun afternoon. 

Below is an example of the traditional wood block that is used to create the prints on fabric.

Below are a few examples of the printing being done and the lovely fabric that is created.

If you are anywhere near the Milwaukee area and think you might like to take the class, it will be held on Sunday, July 15, 2018. In the class, you will be making a silk scarf. All supplies are included. The fee for the class is $42.00 for non-museum members. You can find all the info HERE along with a link to register.

Have a fabulous week!
 Rhonda