"Can you create a set of giant puppy paws to fit over ice skates?" the
woman asked Earl Duncan, a shoe repairer in Florida.
"I've had many memorable moments -- good, bad, fun and strange," says
Duncan. This request certainly qualified as one of those fun moments. The
woman needed a set of dog paws modified for a costume to be used by a skater
in Disney on Ice. "They were rather large and very fluffy and hairy. These
were for an over-grown sheepdog."
The woman had a list of specifications. The paws needed to be split to
fit over the skates, the soles of the paws were to be black and golf spikes
also needed to be fitted. "Oh yes, and did she mention that she needed the
skates in two hours."
Duncan went straight to work. "I had to first make a pattern and then sew
on a thin soling material. This made the base that the leather sole was cemented
to." Duncan threaded the spikes through the sole, added a black sole guard
and stitched and glued until the skate covers were done.
"These things were large and fluffy and snow white in color, but I think
they turned out great," says Duncan. "They were clean, no excess cement, no
dye color that may have ran or bled and they were functional. They were also
a hit with my customer!"
As soon as the skates were paid for, Duncan was hard at work on the shoes
that had piled up and needed to be finished. "It was rushed, but I have always
felt that Disney pays a lot of attention to detail and I was happy to be a
part of it."
This wasn't the first time that Duncan was involved in shoe repair
for theatrical productions. A Chorus Line was on tour in Duncan's hometown,
and the entire cast's shoes arrived at his shop. "I resoled and heeled
35 pairs of men's and women's dance shoes in two days. I also repaired
a few elastics and fixed a few rips. Each one of them received a shoe shine,
too."
Duncan's hard work paid off. "I have an autographed poster with every
performer's signature on it signed in gold ink. It hangs in my shop with
pride."
Bill Sackman is a shoe repairer in Ohio. "The most traditional and significant
work we do is the rebuilding or restoration of normally worn shoes and boots."
However, shoe repair is changing rapidly. Traditional good-quality shoes
or boots may contain about 200 components. In comparison, modern shoes are
frequently copies of classic designs with no more than 25 parts. "There is
only so much that can be done with these," says Sackman.
Because these shoes often have one-piece soles and heels, they can't
easily be replaced. "Also, synthetic materials are very difficult to work
with. They don't respond to glue, nails or sewing."
Sackman says that many shoe repairers do extra repair work. "Because of
the special tools and equipment we have on hand, most repairers also find
themselves working on purses, luggage, heavy garments for rips and zippers
and so on," he says. "After all, we fix things that break!"
Lisa Diehl repairs shoes in her drycleaning store. "Even though drycleaning
and tailoring are our main services, we have always offered shoe repair."
Diehl decided to learn all about shoe repair in order to better serve her
customers. "We have a lot of businesspeople who come in and are always rushed
for time. Getting into shoe repair was simply a matter of customer convenience.
They can come in the morning and drop off all of their errands in one spot.
"We're happy to take in shoes as a sideline," says Diehl. "It's
always enjoyable to be better able to serve a customer."
Duncan also finds the work enjoyable. "I enjoy being my own boss, working
with my hands, one-on-one relations with my customers, taking an item that
is useless and rebuilding it and putting it back into service. Providing comfort
to someone is a great feeling -- a real sense of accomplishment."