Lisa Sorrell, cowboy boot maker

Here’s a link to the January episode of: It’s a Boot Life

I just have to brag a little bit. I remember when it was difficult to find ONE good awl. I’ve filled up 15 drawers now with different varieties of inseaming, outseaming, and pegging awls for sale!

I get to make a pair of full alligator boots. They don’t need any stitch design–the leather is design enough.

My student David has started stitching his boot tops and he’s doing well. By next Friday he will have made a pair of boots!

“By the Time I Get to Phoenix”

Owning a small business isn’t all “skipping through daisies while singing a merry tune.” I recently wired a small fortune to a supplier–at least I thought I did. The bank sent the money somewhere else–no one seems to know where–and meanwhile the supplier was still waiting to be paid, so I wired yet another small fortune. Now I’m eagerly awaiting the return of the first offering to fate, while wondering if I should begin thinking of how to budget if it’s never found.

Today I added a double row of wooden pegs into the soles. This is the traditional construction for cowboy boots.

Look! The elves came in over the weekend and inseamed all three pairs of boots!

Oh, no, wait, that was me.

I have three pairs of boots completely prepped and ready to inseam. It’s a joy to work when my boots (and my shop) are neat and clean.

I lasted these two pairs of boots this afternoon. They need to dry overnight before I can work on them again, which is fine by me because I’m tired.