In our last sandal workshop, we had a rather unusual pair of participants. Wolfgang Klein, 59, had signed up together with his son Maximilian Klein, 29. The father-son duo tells us in this interview how it came about and what the course has to do with a holiday in Mallorca.
Sandalenwerkstatt: How did you come up with the idea of attending the workshop as a father-son duo?
Wolfgang Klein: The idea probably came from me. I saw the SWR programme Handwerkskunst, which also featured the sandal workshop at the Sandalenwerkstatt. At first I thought a sandal was just the little sister of a real shoe — what can you really do with it? Something like flip-flops, nothing to it. But then I watched the episode and was so impressed that I kept watching it over and over, until I eventually thought: my son and I should give this a try. I was looking for a gift for him anyway.
Maximilian Klein: Exactly, so I got the idea through my father. I also found the episode very interesting and thought it would be fun to do something like that with my dad. I was not disappointed.
Sandalenwerkstatt: You have just started making your leather sandals. Can you already say what you think of the block course so far?
Maximilian Klein: I find the hands-on work really exciting. Especially in such a friendly workshop like yours, where you still work in the old premises with traditional machines. What I enjoyed most was working independently with leather under guidance.
Wolfgang Klein: I am equally thrilled. Although I had a slightly different idea of how the workshop would run, much of it is basically as I imagined. The smell and feel of the materials, the tools, or the fact that your fingers hurt. When I scored the beautiful leather surface for the first time today, for example, I accidentally cut into my own skin. That was not a nice feeling, of course, but not a big deal either. You simply make a lot of mistakes at the beginning and need some external support.
Sandalenwerkstatt: Did you face any challenges?
Wolfgang Klein: Everything is a challenge because everything is new. But there was no challenge here where I thought I could not manage. It was explained to me what needed to be done, and then it was clear. If I still had questions, I simply asked.
Maximilian Klein: That is right. Whenever we had questions or felt unsure, plenty of time was taken so that I never had the feeling that what I was about to tackle was beyond me. That helped me a lot, since my gentle educator hands are not used to manual work.
Sandalenwerkstatt: What do you do for work exactly, Maximilian?
Maximilian Klein: I usually work with volunteers and school groups in experiential education. That is what I have mainly been doing in recent years. In the past, I also worked on construction sites from time to time, which I enjoyed. Creating something with your own hands is simply a welcome change from constantly coming up with theoretical concepts.
Sandalenwerkstatt: Are you in the trades, Wolfgang?
Wolfgang Klein: No, I am a police officer. Working with leather is therefore a completely different experience for me.
Sandalenwerkstatt: It sounds like you would definitely recommend the course.
Wolfgang Klein: Any time, without hesitation. Especially for younger people, the block course is an interesting alternative to a Mallorca holiday. The two of us could have simply flown to Mallorca for the price of the course — 450 euros — and drunk ourselves silly. Here you get not only a pair of shoes for the same price, but a great experience on top.
Maximilian Klein: I agree with my father. Especially as a young person, you need to be willing to invest the money in the workshop. I will definitely do the course again once my sandals are completely worn out in 20 or 30 years. It is worth every cent to me.
Wolfgang Klein: Especially since the second time around it will surely be a completely different experience.
