As demand for her artisan infant shoes grows, Lou Clifton is turning her attention to a long-term goal - creating footwear for adults. Ellie Constantine stepped into her studio.
Lou Clifton was thinking big when she started small.
The 31-year-old established Lou's Shoes nearly two years ago and started designing and making boutique hand-crafted infant footwear.
From brogues to gaiters, the range is sweet, sophisticated and in hot demand.
While many may be happy with such success, which has resulted in her shoes being stocked in stores all over New Zealand, Ms Clifton's ultimate goal remains ahead.
"I've got it to a point where I'm proud of it and I'm happy with it, so now it's time to go back to the adult shoes," she said.
Her interest in shoemaking was sparked when she lived in Wellington.
"I trained as a photographer and I decided that, after using the computer a lot, I really wanted to get into something more tactile.
"There was a shoemaker in Wellington - Sue Engels - whose job I always coveted. It just looked like the greatest thing, the craftsmanship and the old skills."
In 2009, she completed a three-week shoemaking course at Otago Polytechnic with Angela Buswell, from Minx Shoes, and shoemakers from McKinlays Footwear.
This was followed by a flying trip to Australia, where she spent two weeks further honing the craft.
"That was really amazing. I learnt how to make them and since then I've been practising and collecting equipment. It's a good thing to take time over because you meet cool people along the way."
Her studio, in Glue Gallery, on Stafford St, is filled with tools, leather, lasts and various other bits and pieces from the polytechnic, McKinlays and people from Oamaru and the North Island.
By starting with baby shoes, Ms Clifton was also able to build up suppliers, contacts and industry knowledge before taking the step into a range of made-to-measure adult shoes.
In April, she will return to Australia to get hands-on experience with Stepping Out, a bespoke footwear company supplying theatre and film productions.
Two weeks working with the company, which has been creating footwear for the Hobbit films and previously provided shoes for Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, would be priceless.
"Their shoes are really, really cool. I'm going to take over some samples and they will test them to see if they will still work after three months on a foot. I'm also hoping they will be able to tell me if my technique could be improved," she said.
Upon her return, her made-to-measure adult line, for both men and women, will be launched.
Rather than a bespoke range, where clients come up with the design, at Lou's Shoes, they will select a style from a catalogue of options.
The "particular quirks" of their feet will be measured, moulds adjusted to suit, and, within three weeks, they'll have a new pair of shoes.
While the adult shoes will reflect the same style as her infant shoes, they will have a "very different feel".
"It's going to be much darker. It's still going to reference historic styles, but a lot darker and there will be lots of straps and wraps," she says.
Anyone who appreciates artisan shoemaking will be attracted to Ms Clifton's brand, but pleasing other people is not necessarily her aim.
"To be honest, I'm really going to make them for myself."
Find them
• Visit www.lousshoes.co.nz to buy, or for information about stockists.
