Zen & the Art of Bootmaking ...

I love all thing Tolkein & lo and behold along came a very Hobbit-like, (without the hairyness!) pair of feet, along with the rest of said radiant being, wishing to be shod. (un-hobbit-like hmm??)
However, with winter approaching the need was real.

So, I set about making/finding a pair of lasts to fit, only to find I was going to have to make two patterns as these paws were much wider than they were long. So with the width of the foot and the instep as the main consideration I built up, most Heath Robinson, the pair of lasts that would accommodate the front of the foot. This was a size 10 men's last.

I then made the back part of the pattern on a men's size 8, and joined the two pieces together. This was/is a first for me as a shoemaker, and I had to undo my work many times and rethink & remake & recut. This is the boots being molded on the front side, which takes a few days to dry in our humid climate.

Then follows, the remaining stitching and molding the heel/length of the boots.

Numerous fittings later, attaching bottoms and adding a tad of earthy colour, this is what emerged.

These boots are very light to wear, Zen does fire-dancing, he is not so lightfooted on his shoes, so they returned to the mother ship for some mods and some tlc. I found these cool antique buttons to secure the side flap. Hopefully now they will take him many furlongs & may his shadow never grow less ...