So where to the hobby level shoe makers hang out online? I tried hanging out with a bunch of professionals, but they're getting pretty huffy about now about those of us that are not authentic true students of the one and only true way...

I wear minimalist shoes I've made myself all the time now. I don't have a picture of my current lace-up shoes, but here's a previous pair of moccasins:

I have made some shoes. I am working on a pair right now using a canvas upper and forms made from duct-taping a sock while it was on my foot. So far so good. Yeah, the pro shoe guys don't seem to look so kindly upon the non-traditional dabblers.

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I was born [upon the prairie] where there were no enclosures, and where everything drew free breath. I want to die there and not within walls.
--Ten Bears

I found a re-enactment group.

I've decided to work on a website for all shoe makers, minimalists, survivalists, earthers, re-enactors, etc... A couple minimalists are helping me get it started up. I might have something ready next week.

I used the masking tape over plastic bag method to make my form. I think next time I want to put an insole inside the bag to flatten the bottom and smooth out around the toes.

Cool, keep me posted on that.

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I was born [upon the prairie] where there were no enclosures, and where everything drew free breath. I want to die there and not within walls.
--Ten Bears

Yes, I'd be interested, too. I've made moccasins, dancing slippers and soft-soled boots. My kids are/were involved in Society for Creative Anachronism and I made their clothing.
Oh, and we made mukluks when I lived in Alaska. Dad made a form for the ugruk (untanned walrus) sole, we used felt liners and caribou on the inside for insulation and seal for the outside. Worked really well at -65*, but lousy for the wet weather here in Oregon.
I've been noticing free leather couches on CL and thinking of all that leather... Ugruk just isn't available down here.
Kit

where did you get your leather...I think I'd like to try some slipper-type to begin.

I get mine from Tandy, but lots of folks report the scrap bin at their local leather shop is the best place to start. The pros use veg tan, the native Americans use brain tanned, I've found upholstry leather to be rather cheap and fairly water resistant. I'll switch to veg tan when I think I've become more proficient at the stitching and have a pattern I think is worth doing with better materials. In the mean time I don't want to waste good materials.

I can probably have something up in a few days. I have a prototype running on my home server, I need to get a domain name registered and professional space to host it.

Still a work in progress, but ready for conversations to begin:

http://diy-shoes.com/forum/

If the link does not work for you, give it 24-48 hours. I just registered the domain name today, and some parts of the internet take longer than others to see new domains.

This is such a valuable thread, even for us who aren't making shoes yet!

Having a natural foot is antithetical to commercial shoes. I used to be able to get ankle moccasins with an outer side lap that tied to a concho - haven't found anything like in years of searching.

I can't help but think shoes crafted with the "minimalist" thought would find a ready market.

There are a lot of comanies that will make moccains for you, but most of them are pretty expensive.

Cheapest: http://www.medievalmoccasins.com/
Reasonable: http://www.softstarshoes.com/adult-shoes/moccasins.html

Soft star used to do custom fitting, but when I wanted a newer model custom fit they couldn't do it for me. My feet are the wrong shape for standard sizing.

I encourage you to post over at DIY shoes if you're thinking of making a pair.
http://diy-shoes.com/forum/

Thanks for the leads - for such a nice style that all the local girls wore it's hard to believe they've just dropped off the earth. They were the go-to if you didn't need your boots on - just the thing for bare-back riding.