Apr 24, 2017
DEFINITION
A welt is a strip of leather that runs along the perimeter of the outsole and is stitched to the insole of the shoe. The space enclosed by the welt is then filled with cork or felt and the outsole is both cemented and stitched to the welt. This process of making shoes is referred to as Goodyear welt construction, as the machinery used for the process was invented in 1869 by Charles Goodyear Jr, the son of Charles Goodyear of tyre fame. Traditional handstitched welts do not require any machinery; instead, the welt is stitched by hand to the insole, and then the outsole is stitched by hand to the welt .