It's Black and White.

This pair will be trotting around Tokyo with Lis. I love the way the break in the ikat naturally fits the shape of the collar. When the pattern of a fabric works with the shape of the shoe in a way I couldn't imagine, i'm very very happy. 

Needles

Some lovely needle packs i'm delving in to as needles on the machine occasionally break (always at the most inconvenient times!), one paper one metal...get your stitch on.

Plumo competition

Visit the brand new Plumo blog to read about shoemaking and design, and enter the competition before the 22nd April. I can't wait to meet the winner and create the special pair!

The Black collection part 1

Stitching around the toes.

I'm using this beautiful black and white indian ikat fabric for the collar. I love the way it looks different on every piece due to where the pattern piece is cut on the fabric.

Hand dyed silk ribbon embroidery. The delicate ribbon subtly changes colour due to the manual dying process. This particular one is shades of light green and really stands out on the back suede.

The Black Collection part 2

This pair is from a small collection of black moccasins. Each customer can choose the motif and colour of the embroidery making it entirely personal to the wearer. This pair has a black and white ikat fabric collar, and is the first of the collection.

The finished pair!

Jewel pouch

The little pouch is perfect for keeping jewellery safe when on the move, or for keeping golden coins in to trade in for something special on your travels.

A day spent clicking

Here we have the basic upper parts of the moccasin - the vamp (which goes under and up around your foot) and the apron (smaller shape which is stitched to the vamp to form the area over the toes).

Card patterns are used which act as a guide to cut around. A heavy weight holds the pattern piece in place so both hands are relatively free and accurate cutting is achieved. This process is traditionally called 'clicking'.

We mark and cut everything by hand. Here Chiara is scoring the shape of the leather soles before cutting them with a knife.