The intricacies of lasting.
The first thing to do is prepare your stiffeners (no sniggering at the back there) and toe-puffs (oh, grow up!). We start with a piece of oak bark tanned belly and cut them out, followed by careful skiving with my extremely sharp knife. The edges must be skived to nothing and the centres must be strong so that the heel area and toe areas do not collapse. In factory shoes these components are plastic and ready made.
There is a third extra piece of strengthening left to prepare. The side-lining, a piece of thin calf or glace kid which gives support to the line from the counter to the toe puff. It must be skived to nothing on the top edge so that it is not visible through the upper on the finished shoe.
There is a debate as to whether to put them in or not. I used to omit them, as I thought they were superfluous, but I now tend to put them in, especially with a foot with a wide joint. In these cases, the shoe can bulge where the toes are and look unsightly.
I started to learn to make shoes in Spain and there side-linings are not used because of the hot climate. The fewer layers of leather the better. But here in England, this is not an issue.
Every shoemaker I've met has an opinion on this and who knows what the definitive answer is?
Thanks, and happy shoemaking.
