2 reviews for Uppermaking for Bespoke and Orthopedic Shoemakers

1. 

   3 out of 5

   James – July 1, 2024

   I purchased this book with high expectations based on the excitement within the shoemaking community surrounding its release.

   Unfortunately and oddly enough, I have found it to be quite deficient when it comes to information about actually making uppers.

   In fact, the book includes almost no information about the work of putting any uppers together really. So that is a bit disappointing.

   I hope this issue will be resolved in the forthcoming volumes if they more sufficiently deal with the topic at hand.
   However, for a book specifically entitled Uppermaking to have no information on the practical assembly and making of uppers seems misleading.

   It would be good for future editions of this volume if the text specified this with a subtitle to denote that; to further clarify that it is more of a generalized and broad overview of basic pattern making and entry level concepts pertaining to making uppers.

   None of this is to say the book doesn’t contain valuable or helpful information, especially for those with little knowledge or experience in shoemaking, for whom it may prove to be a great help. But for those who are planning to purchase it with the specific expectation of further developing your actual upper making skills, I would recommend you look for other resources on the subject or wait until further volumes are released which will more thoroughly address that topic.

   No disrespect intended to the authors of the book. I felt my honest review would be helpful for those on the fence about purchasing the book or expecting something that won’t be found within its pages and can save the money for other shoemaking investments.

   For others who will value and benefit from the more entry level information it provides, it may be more worth your consideration and investment.

   Thank you.

   • 

     Lisa Sorrell – July 7, 2024

     I’m sorry you’re not pleased. If you’d like to return it for a full refund just let me know.

2. 

   5 out of 5

   Titus Bellwald – December 9, 2024

   I bought the original german edition just when it came out and knew it was just the first volume in an epic series. This is going to become a kind of upper maker’s bible. But yes, this is just volume one dealing mostly with pattern making and design questions. Along with the book you get access to a online library of historic manuals. This is planned to be expanded in the future and to later include videos demonstrating techniques described in the upcoming volumes.