Sewing a Samba

brief: make a shoe to understand the process, construction, and patterns of footwear

With an internship at Adidas in the summer of Sambas, I wanted to learn the process of constructing a shoe from start to end. Adidas offers a Samba making class from choosing the fabric, to sewing, and assembling. I loved the look of Wales Bonner Shoes so my inspiration came from the lace and stitching of those shoes with an all suede upper to emulate the Spezial material execution.

Tools: Post-Bed Sewing Machine, Zig Zag Machine, Strobble

happy accidents and material

I originally selected blue suede for accents, metallic silver for the stripes and mustache, and a shiny white (in the tongue) as the main body. But the white looked too much like a superstar so I flipped it and the back (a light blue) looks like a suede which is what I ended up using. Thankfully, the color matched the blue suede I chose for the toe cap and accent pieces. Because of this choice, I flipped the stripes backwards too so the brown is actually the metallic material seen above. To add the lace detailing inspired by Wales Bonner, I put lace over the stripes and compliment the sole. I wanted a feminine piece so the light blues and lace really brought out a softer side to this shoe.

I learned about shoe glue

Assembling was the most daunting part. I went to the Sample Room to learn how to add the tooling. First they strobbled it so it was ready to be fit for tooling. We had to sand the tooling so the shoe glue would stick and hold. I also learned shoe glue smells gnarly.

We (sample room) heated my shoe so we could put it on the last. The last was specific to the samba. When the fitting the shoe on the last, it was a moment of truth and it thankfully fit. After the glue cured on the tooling, we assembled it to the sole and let it dry.

final thoughts and product

shoe making is an art form and so much thought and craft goes into it from the material selection, accent details, and assembly itself (not to mention the marketing and distribution). Super appreciative I was able to experience the process of making a shoe and all the machines and components that go into it. If I were to make another I think I’d plan the coloring more because I got lucky that all my materials went well together despite turning them all the the “wrong” side of fabric. This Samba would cater to girls through the lacing, low profile, and material execution and possibly lean into the country look from the brown and blue pairings.