The Time has Come

The time has come.  

For what?  Shoes my friend. Shoes.

It has been years since I needed to think about Shoes but, sadly, the sort I have been wearing are no longer available at a reasonable price, ie, a price I can afford.  Plus, since I started wearing shoes like this, they have been new and improved to  their detriment.

These are a pretty basic little shoe.  Nothing fancy.  No anything but a soft stretchable top and a good grippy rubber sole.  There is nothing fashionable about them.  I found them a couple years before my medical event that sorted out most of my health troubles.  They fit my very swollen feet and there was fantastic grip on the floor.  Having that good grip was a revelation in feeling plus, and this was a very big thing for me, I could feel the floor with my feet.  

Most of the shoes we wear, sneakers and the like, divorce us from the reality of the information that we get from our feet.  A thin flexible grippy sole is the number one thing I need from a shoe. Grippy thin soles are a rare thing.  Okay, grippy thin soled shoes I can afford are a rare thing.  

A very long time ago, I came across Sophie and Me on Ravelry.  The designer had Oxford shoe looking tops and a series of sole configurations depending on the materials you were using.  

At first, I just liked the idea of making shoes. I was gathering materials and then along came my first pair of little cheapie shoes and I didn't think about making them any longer.

Now, need is driving me.  I can't find what I am looking for in the places I have access to.  What I could find, was grippy sole material exactly like I have on my current soles.  I was just going to repair the soles but I started thinking about fit and the things I don't like about the fit.  I wear a 6 1/2 and like many shoes, particularly cheap shoes, they do not do half sizes.  The last pairs I had were 7s so they were a bit long.  This pair is a 6 and I find that a wee bit more room for my toes would be nice, necessary really particularly when I am wearing thicker socks.  

So here we are.  Ready to make shoes.  I have everything ready to make a test pair.  The yarn was picked when I was on the big dig.  Though I don't have any flip flops I have some foam that will work for a test.  Pair one is not going to get the good grippy soles.  It is simply a try out, a toilet if you will, a mockup.  I am not starting them today but they may well be my weekend project.  

Today is a sweater day. It's going well and I am focusing on wearing delicious yarn.