I became a boot maker for a few reasons. One was the need to create, to make something tangible, functional art. Another was a fear of boredom. I was entering a new phase of my life and needed something to do as a hobby. What I thought was going to be a hobby however became a full time job. Continue reading
I attended TSTI …… Texas State Technical Institute in Amarillo, Texas starting in 1978. I completed the boot/shoe repair and saddle making and opened my own shop in Lovington, NM in May of 1980. After a couple of years making and repairing saddles I realized I hated all saddle work. I heard about a bootmaker in Hobbs, NM that might take a “serious” apprentice. I started going to A. W. (Bud) Pate’s shop at night after I closed my shop and he worked with me until midnight or 1am in the morning. Then I would go home and catch a few hours sleep and start all over the next day. After about 6 months Bud saw I was “serious” and he told me that he wanted to sell me the whole shop and that he would continue my apprenticeship and he would “piece work” for me. I will always be grateful for him making me this deal so that a “kid” could survive. Continue reading
As a young person I was attracted to art; drawing, sculpture, and painting. I spent most of my young years when not in school with my Godfather Paul Venne in the shoe department at my Grandfathers store. What a mystery Footwear was, like sculpture only in a practical sense, to fit people’s feet, to make them walk with comfort and style. Continue reading
I grew up in the shop as a young child. My mother and my grandfather did as well. The shop was always our favorite place to be when we were children and I spent most of my early childhood there. I decided after being in the Houston area for 15 years, going to school for audio engineering and interning in a recording studio for a year and a half, producing music, being a DJ and 12+ years in the food-service industry, that I wanted to pursue a career where I worked for myself and used my many talents to make a living. I moved to Abilene in May of 2009 and started learning the process. In May this year I will have been making boots for ten years, over a quarter of my life, as I turn 36 at the end of this month. In short, my grandfather, Tex Robin, inspired me to become a boot maker. Continue reading
The inspiration to become a boot maker came from a family history of leather craft. I am a fourth generation leather worker. Initially I wanted to be a saddle maker. In the late eighties/early nineties we didn’t have internet and access to all the information out there. I stumbled across custom boots by accident and ordered my first pair. After having Duck Menzies make that first pair for me, I became obsessed with the fit and design and wanted other makers as well as Duck to make me boots. Continue reading
