stitchdown shoecast

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Chisos Founder Will Roman on How Cowboy Boots Will Save Us All

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Posted: May 03, 2024

For the closeout episode of season 11 (wtf???) of the Stitchdown Shoecast, I sat down with Will Roman, founder of Chisos Boots, a young and growing brand out of Austin, Texas that I dare say offers one of the best values in a legitimately well made,

Exploring What “Handmade” Truly Means With Leatherworker and Bootmaker Bob Henderson

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Posted: Apr 16, 2024

For the penultimate episode of the 11th season of the Stitchdown Shoecast, I’m quite excited indeed to be chatting with the just ridiculously talented man they call Bob Henderson. Bob is the operations manager at Popov Leather, the bustling leather

Fritz Sr. and Jr. of Seidel Tanning on the Art, Science, and Challenges of Making Leather

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Posted: Apr 11, 2024

This time Ben sits down with two, count ‘em TWO Fritz Seidels: Fritz Jr. and Fritz Sr., who every day are continuing on the tradition of the four-generation, 79-year-old Siedel Tanning Corp in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In addition to getting the lowdow

Shoe Care Essentials, How Many Boots is Too Many Boots, Brands We Want Back…It’s The Shoebag!!

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Posted: Apr 03, 2024

Before he bolts for a very important trip to the bread store, Ticho is back in the leather-smelly homestead for perhaps our most comprehensive Shoebag episode ever, in which we discuss which shoe care products are essential and which you don’t

Goods & Services’ Rory Fortune on Handwelting Sneakers, and the Shell Cordovan BIRKENCHONKS

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Posted: Mar 21, 2024

The sneaker and welted footwear worlds are (very slowly) colliding, and Rory Fortune is smack in the middle of the two. In 2019, Rory and his wife Lauren set up shop in LA’s design district to open Goods & Services, a half cobbler shop / ha

The (Mostly) Complete History of Boots with Bata Shoe Museum Director Elizabeth Semmelhack

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Posted: Mar 14, 2024

In one of our favorite—and certainly the most sprawling—Shoecast episodes ever, I chatted with Elizabeth Semmelhack, director and curator of the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto, Canada. Which I believe is safe to say—thanks to more than 15,000 shoe

Bespoke Shoemaker Sebastian Tarek on West-End Outwork and Judging the World’s Greatest Shoemaking Competition

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Posted: Mar 13, 2024

When London (by way of Australia) bespoke shoemaker Sebastian Tarek began making shoes in high school, his grandmother let him in on a little secret: he had been preceded in his journey by 18 generations of family cordwainers. After years of schoolin

Footwear-Addled Actor Adam Goldberg on His Lifelong Quest to Remake James Dean’s Boots

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Posted: Mar 06, 2024

Adam Goldberg has quite legitimately always been one of my favorite actors—and from Dazed & Confused, to the Fargo TV show, to A Beautiful Mind, he has always been EXCELLENTLY attired, right down to his boots. But he doesn’t just play a p

Tony & Tobias of Wyatt & Dad Cobblers on Building a Shoe Repair Mini-Empire

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Posted: Feb 28, 2024

Back in 1989, Tony Wyatt and his brother Lance founded Wyatt & Dad Cobbler Company (and even trained their retired-preacher dad to do shoe repair work, so no it’s not just a clever name). Thirty five years later, the operation has seen endl

Goods & Services’ Rory Fortune on Handwelting Sneakers, and the Shell Cordovan BIRKENCHONKS

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Posted: Feb 20, 2024

The sneaker and welted footwear worlds are (very slowly) colliding, and Rory Fortune is smack in the middle of the two. In 2019, Rory and his wife Lauren set up shop in LA’s design district to open Goods & Services, a half cobbler shop / ha

The (Mostly) Complete History of Boots with Bata Shoe Museum Director Elizabeth Semmelhack

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Posted: Feb 13, 2024

In one of our favorite—and certainly the most sprawling—Shoecast episodes ever, I chatted with Elizabeth Semmelhack, director and curator of the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto, Canada. Which I believe is safe to say—thanks to more than 15,000 shoe

Ken Diamond on the Rare Satisfaction of Making Boots by Hand

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Posted: Feb 10, 2024

Back in the 2010s, Ken Diamond had a booming moccasin business in Vancouver—celebrities wore his shoes, which also secured a hallowed spot on the shelves of Istetan, the Tokyo department store that’s home to likely the world’s great sho

Ken Diamond on the Rare Satisfaction of Making Boots by Hand

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Posted: Jan 26, 2024

Back in the 2010s, Ken Diamond had a booming moccasin business in Vancouver—celebrities wore his shoes, which also secured a hallowed spot on the shelves of Istetan, the Tokyo department store that’s home to likely the world’s great sho