Shoes are made in pairs, that’s been the case throughout history. As such, they are expected to look the same as each other. Even the cheapest shoes have rather high demands of a sync between each other, and then of course the higher the price the higher the demand. For a pair of really expensive bespoke shoes it’s expected that they are more or less identical down to the smallest detail.
When I spend time in bespoke shoe workshops, as I did when I shot this photo above in the workshop of Marquess in Tokyo, it’s something that always strike me: the constant comparison. Throughout all steps of the making, of small and large details, the maker compare the right foot to the left, and make sure that it looks the same. If feet differ a lot, it can be extra tricky to maintain a uniform look of some parts. Yet when you hold up a pair of finished fine bespoke shoes, they are impressively well-aligned.
