The Art of Shoemaking
Like Duolingo, but for The Art of Shoemaking. Tomo turns the whole topic into a game you play five minutes a day, until it actually sticks.
For the part of you with thirty open tabs that never became anything.
24 levels across 3 sections, about 48 minutes end to end, roughly 10 days at five minutes a day. It moves through Getting Your Footing, Building the Shoe, and Design and Business. It starts from scratch.
Free forever · No credit card · iPhone & Android
Key ideas in The Art of Shoemaking
- The upper is the flexible part of the shoe that holds the foot in place
- The last is the physical mold used to build the shoe
- The sole is the bottom structure that protects the foot from the ground
- The dimensions of the last determine the internal volume and width of the finished shoe
- A shoe cannot be wider or have a different arch height than the last it was built on
- Distinguishing between the upper and the sole
- The role of the last in determining shoe fit and shape
- Heel pitch refers to the angle created by the heel height
- Higher heels move the center of gravity forward toward the toes
- The welt is the middle-man material that connects the top of the shoe to the bottom
- Flat shoes distribute weight more evenly across the entire foot
- Using a welt allows the sole to be replaced without damaging the upper leather
- Toe puffs are stiff inserts that keep the front of the shoe bulbous
- How heel pitch affects weight distribution
- Heel counters are rigid supports that grip the heel and maintain the back shape
- The function of the welt as a structural bridge
You've tried the other tabs
Thirty open tabs. Four facts you actually kept.
You watched. You nodded. By Sunday it was gone.
One answer, then back to scrolling.
Eight weeks. You meant to finish. You didn't.
Tomo gives The Art of Shoemaking the Duolingo treatment: levels, streaks, and quick quizzes that test what you just learned. That game loop is what the tabs above never had, so it's the one you actually finish.
Here's what playing it feels like
A real question from this course. Take your best guess.
Imagine you are in a cobbler's workshop. What is the name of the physical mold used to build the shoe's shape?
Get it right to open this lesson and 23 more in the app.
Where The Art of Shoemaking takes you
Step into the world of cordwaining to understand how footwear is designed, constructed, and brought to market. From the geometry of the last to the economics of a small brand, you will learn what it takes to build shoes that last.
- 1
Getting Your Footing
- The Anatomy of a Good Shoe
- The Magic of the Last
- 2
Building the Shoe
- From Flat Leather to 3D Shape
- Lasting and Bottoming
- Finishing and Detailing
- 3
Design and Business
- Designing for Style and Function
- The Business of Footwear
- Sourcing and Sustainability
3 sections · 8 units · 24 levels. Built to play, not to enroll.
You pick the voice
The Art of Shoemaking is taught in the The Storyteller style: every lesson is a story. Want a different feel? In the app you can spin up the same topic in any of Tomo's teaching styles. Same facts, totally different vibe.
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Start The Art of Shoemaking today.
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