Fine details that determine a shoe’s impression

Not mere ornaments, each and every detail of the upper on a pair of HIRO YANAGIMACHI shoes originates from design and possesses both meaning and functionality. The beauty that comes from finely understanding and meticulously controlling upper leather that is less than 2 millimeters thick is unique to handmade shoes.

Materials full of possibilities

The materials used for uppers is primarily leather and thread. The individuality of the materials themselves, however, and the methods used in the making and finishing stages produce a surprising variety of expressions. Please take a look at the wonderful beauty that the human hand is able to bring out in these materials.

The aesthetic beauty of handmade shoes

The fact that handmade shoes still exist today, when most shoes are machine made, is because there are certain forms that only the human hand can create. Please take a look at our shoe sole designs, which possess function and beauty from long-standing shoemaking traditions and the continuous advancement of shoemaking techniques.

Different materials for different purposes

Leather was originally the only shoe sole material. With changes over time and in how people wear shoes, however, various sole materials and designs came into use. These materials and designs each have their own inherent functionality and expression, which are brought out through the skill of the shoemaker.

Thinking with the hands, moving the hands with feeling

Here we show the process to produce an upper that has both warmth and fine details. In order to successfully reproduce the lines drawn on the last onto the upper and achieve the right fit with the shoe, we continue to accumulate complicated and delicate techniques based on a thorough understanding of the last and materials.

Forms only made possible through handwork

Here we show the shoemaking process that brings the various parts of shoemaking together as a whole. Through the use of appropriate tools at each stage, dynamic movement of the hands at some stages and fine movements at other stages, and other numerous handwork processes a pair of shoes is completed.