Travels in Finland and abroad

January 22, 2010

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

In English:

Have You ever been thinking what tools and things there are in the back room of shoemaker?

My late father was a shoemaker and when I was young boy, I admired his skill to repair shoes or even to make new ones. When living in the north where there are cold, icy, snow and very slippery during winter, those factories which makes shoes, are not thinking about what material soles of shoes should be made of that they are safe to walk without to fall down on the slippery streets. To help people in this important thing for their health, shoemakers are worth of gold.

Well, let us now start the tour in the back room of the shoemaker which I found in the centre of Helsinki and where was working a man who has been in this important profession during decades.

En español:

Soy el hijo de Zapatero, porque mi defunto padre era zapatero.

¿Jamás ha Usted estado pensando qué instrumentos y qué cosas hay en el trastienda del zapatero? Mi padre difunto fue un zapatero y cuando fui un jovecito, admiré su habilidad para reparar zapatos o incluso para hacer unos nuevos. Al vivir en el norte donde hay frio, la nieve, hielo y muy resbaladizo durante invierno, factorías que fabrican zapatos para venderlos en tiendas, no piensan de que materiales de suelas de zapatos deben estar hechos para que uno puede caminar por las calles resbaladizas con seguridad sin caerse. Para ayudar a personas en esta cosa importante para su salud, los zapateros son valiosos.

Pues, comencemos ahora la visita en el trastienda de un zapatero que encontré en el centro de Helsinki y dónde trabajaba un hombre que ha estado en este profesión importante durante décadas.

En francais:

Avez-vous jamais pensé à ce que les outils et quelles choses qu’il ya dans la chambre du fond du cordonnier?

Mon défunt père était cordonnier et quand j’étais jeune garçon, j’ai admiré son habileté à réparer des chaussures ou même s’en faire de nouveaux. Lorsque l’on vit dans le nord où il ya est froid, glacé, la neige et très glissantes pendant l’hiver, les usines qui fabrique des chaussures, ne pensez pas à ce que dois être la matière des semelles de chaussures pour qu’ils sont sûrs de marcher sans tomber dans les rues glissantes. Pour aider les gens dans ce qui est important pour leur santé, les cordonniers valent de l’or.

Eh bien, commençons maintenant la tournée dans la chambre du fond du cordonnier que j’ai trouvé dans le centre d’Helsinki, où travaillait un homme qui a eu dans cette profession importante au cours des décennies. Il est un vrai professionnel.

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

Back room of shoemaker / Trastienda de zapatero / Chambre du fond du cordonnier

16 Comments »

  1. Joli reportage empreint de nostalgie. 🙂
    On a tous en mémoire (et toi plus encore…) ces petits ateliers de cordonniers, avec leur odeur de cuir, cirage, colle.
    Il n’en existe plus beaucoup, parce que maintenant, malheureusement, on répare moins, on échange, victimes des modes, de la société de consommation, et peut-être aussi de la qualité en baisse des chaussures, souvent fabriquées à grande échelle, à moindre coût dans des pays “émergents”. 😕
    Du coup, certains savoir-faire se perdent, et en France par exemple, on trouve principalement des réparateurs “minute” qui font pêle-mêle cordonnerie, doubles de clés, imprimeurs de cartes de visite et j’en passe… 🙄
    Je suis heureuse d’avoir retrouvé pas trop loin de chez moi une cordonnerie comme celle de mon enfance, avec les mêmes odeurs, le même accueil, et le même amour du travail bien fait ! 😀
    Bonne journée Matti, pieds bien au chaud ! 😉

    Comment by Marion B. — January 22, 2010 @ 10:03 | Reply

    • Salut Marion.

      Tout ce que vous dis est valable ici aussi, malheureusement. Peut-être je peux quelquefois voir quelque photo de “ton cordonnier”. Le monde qui nous entoure se transforme et nous avec lui!

      Bonne journée!

      Comment by sartenada — January 22, 2010 @ 11:08 | Reply

  2. What an interesting excursion! I’m wondering how it would like in Ukraine 🙂 We have plenty of shoe-repair shops here but they are usually so small and dirty!

    Comment by Nadezhda Konovalova — January 22, 2010 @ 13:21 | Reply

  3. Thank You Nadezhda. Anyway I guess these persons are vanishing “natural resource”. Nowadays it is too easy to buy new shoes than to make some repations and then by doing this to get “better” shoes then the new ones. It is environmentally friendly to repair shoes and to give some good “specialist” work.

    Greetings.

    Comment by sartenada — January 22, 2010 @ 13:41 | Reply

  4. Those places are very rare nowadays!
    I only know 2 of them and I’m still a customer when shoes need to get fixed.

    Comment by thelocalguide — January 22, 2010 @ 15:10 | Reply

  5. Hi Thelocalguide.

    Very interesting to read that You are using service of “sapateiro”. Maybe it was now for many people the last and final oppoturnity to see tools of shoemaker and all those “unknown worders” there are. 🙂 LOL.

    Comment by sartenada — January 22, 2010 @ 15:20 | Reply

  6. You just don’t see places like this anymore! Wow! A lifetime, it seems, of the business of a shoemaker with all the equipment and tools. Fascinating!

    Comment by Anna Surface — January 22, 2010 @ 17:27 | Reply

  7. Thank You Anna for Your comment, I am really glad. Now after reading many comments I am quite convinced that this is a rarity in our modern world which changing around us and maybe we are adjusting us to it.

    Happy weekend.

    Comment by sartenada — January 22, 2010 @ 17:38 | Reply

  8. Your father was a shoemaker wow!!! How exciting to have an artisan in the family. Should, by any chance, I get another go round with life – in that lifetime I will be an artisan. I will be so proud of that skill. For right now I can only dream.

    Comment by Preston Surface — January 22, 2010 @ 22:19 | Reply

    • Hello Preston.

      First when writing text, I though that I not to mention that, but when I thought more, then I decided to tell that my dad was a shoemaker. He was proud about his profession and now later when thinking, I am too. I have not herited his skills and I am very poor to do things with my hand. But when I was still working, my strength was to make quality statistics, to teach IT-programs and also to encode programs.

      Thank You visiting here Preston.

      Comment by sartenada — January 23, 2010 @ 14:06 | Reply

  9. Good evening, Matti
    I confirm what you think of a shoemaker. Good shoes will last longer and you feel at every step, probably daily. Good shoes are important to the body for that well-being. I visited the workshop of a shoemaker, many years ago from the inside. It was very interesting, as it is set up. In your pictures, you give everything against very good. Here with us you will find almost everywhere, only the Mister Minit service. This service is also very good and one is well advised and operated. Sometimes it pays to repair shoes, where you feel comfortable before you buy new.
    I am grateful that I could watch this page and wish you and Anja, good luck and health to your daily routes. I continue to try to visit your blog. Thank you for your comments on my web page. Sincerely, Christel

    Comment by Christel — January 23, 2010 @ 01:08 | Reply

  10. Gruß Christel.

    As You said like this: “Sometimes it pays to repair shoes”, You are so right, because if one’s feet become accustomed to one’s shoes and they feel good, so why not try to get help from a professional like from shoemaker. I am very glad, that You left here Your opinion.

    Comment by sartenada — January 23, 2010 @ 14:12 | Reply

  11. Muy buen post , y se aprende mucho !
    Yo solo conocía las trastiendas de zapatero , de cuando yo era chica: todo ha cambiado desde entonces!

    Comment by 76sanfermo — November 5, 2014 @ 15:19 | Reply

    • Hola Anna.

      Muy buena de leer lo que has visto las trastiendas de zapatero. Fue una sorpresa para mí. 🙂

      Que tengas un buen día!

      Comment by Sartenada — November 6, 2014 @ 08:12 | Reply

  12. Fascinating. Thank you for this inside view. A comfortable pair of shoes is worth looking after.

    Comment by Lignum Draco — July 25, 2018 @ 11:58 | Reply

    • Hello Lignum.

      Thank You commenting. I appreciate it very much.

      Have a good day!

      Comment by Sartenada — July 25, 2018 @ 12:13 | Reply


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