Shoes from Budapest – with hand-sewn welts. From Heinrich Dinkelacker.

Dinkelacker shoes were first made in 1879 in southern Germany – and later shifted to Budapest, the Mecca of the shoemaker’s art. With these shoes simply everything is right – style, fit, comfort, and above all finish. It takes a whole day for a Dinkelacker craftsman to produce a single shoe: the process involves no less than 300 separate steps! We’d love to describe them all in detail – but in the interest of economy we confine ourselves here to a few special features. First, the classic Hungarian wooden shoe lasts with unusually elevated toe, and slight upward slant, on which the leather that makes up the shaft is shaped after steaming. This shaping process takes half an hour with an ordinary shoe – but a whole week at Dinkelacker’s. Then, there is triple soling with a cork lining to ensure durability and comfortable walking; the areas subject to most wear and tear, the heel, toe, and ball of the foot (see illustration) are reinforced with a total of 132 small brass tacks, in traditional groups of six. The tips are reinforced at both ends: at the toe, with a small brass plate, at the heel, with a strip of extra-tough rubber.
The triple soles have the characteristic slightly rounded form. At the first wearing they will feel a little stiff, but will soon come to have the same ‘give’ as a thin-soled shoe – but will still grip the heel nice and firmly.
Each shoe has its individual quality check number printed on the inner lining.