One of the many things taught at Winter Count this year was shoe making in the form of carbatina or ghillies. These are relatively simple shoes notable for their one piece construction and generally involve very little sewing. I am interested in how things are learned and for me, the process is more important than any other aspect. Hopefully, students take away some knowledge that they can apply beyond the class setting and in an afternoon can learn something that they can use for life.
Historical examples vary widely but tend to have a lot of similarity in the complex toe-cap. Shoes are a difficult piece of clothing and protection because the fit is critical and even minor problems with the shoe will impact the feet in a negative way.
The toe cap is formed by strips of leather overlapping which gives flexibility and room for expansion. The simplest forms are one piece but better versions are found with insoles and outer soles to extend the life and create a sturdier shoe.
These were all made from premium oak tanned leather (ca. 8 oz. or 3.2 mm) which proves to be tough to cut but provides a long lasting shoe. It was a great set of students in the classes and I think we ended up with 17 pair of shoes in the end.
An earlier post describing my journey into Ghillies can be found HERE.
Preindustrial Craftsmanship 
What and were is winter count? Is it a private affair or something for everyone? Just curious. It looks like fun.
Limited but not private. It’s an outgrowth of the Society of Primitive Technology and Backtracks. Two major primitive skills events per year, one in Idaho in September, one in Arizona in February.
Look at past events on my blog or go to http://backtracks.net. Also, check out older photos on http://www.neoanderthal.com/ to see if its your cup o’ tea.
Loads of fun and camaraderie.
Maybe I don’t understand the period samples, but the heal assembly seems….wrong. I would THINK that the heal tab goes inside, then the sides on top. Next I would think that you could sew (or punch) threw all layers, only two if the back is shaped right, to set the seam very flat. Yet I see many examples of recreated shoes with the heal tab outside. Is there a practical reason for the method I don’t see?