Small components often tell an interesting story about how a Western boot is made.

 

The pull straps at the top of a boot shaft may look simple in the finished product. Their purpose is practical: they give the wearer a place to grip and pull when putting on the boots. But before a strap can perform that job, it first has to be made as an individual component.
The image shows one stage of that process.
A prepared leather piece is positioned under a computerized embroidery machine, where the decorative stitching is applied according to the specified pattern. Because the working area is relatively small, the placement of the embroidery needs to work with the shape of the component and the later assembly process.
After this stage, the piece will continue through additional preparation before becoming part of the boot shaft.
This is one reason footwear manufacturing is often about more than the major construction steps. A finished Western boot is assembled from many individual parts, and each one follows its own sequence before everything comes together.
The pull strap is a good example. It begins as a small piece of material, receives its own stitching and preparation, and eventually becomes something the wearer may use every time the boots are pulled on.
Function may be simple. Making that function part of a complete design takes several steps.