Why people love Tabi boots 500 years later 

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Construction workers and Carpenters wear them here in Japan it allows them to climb scaffolding and do other assorted jobs better. They also fit in well with the wide crazy tapered pants that construction workers wear- they are way more high quality than the cosplay versions, but actually a similar price point. Also ankles are wide because you tuck your pants into them. The ones that you used in the vid are just for halloween or relaxing and are not a real representation of a modern everyday utility tabi that is commonly used today . I could send you a pair of real ones if you are ever interested.

I know in Japan the most popular segment for tabi boots is construction because it allows you to use the toes independently so you get significantly better balance. Thats why they have steel toe tabis

Quite popular for surfing wetsuit boots. Feels like they help with balance and stopping your foot sliding around inside the boot.

One thing I've learned. If you want to buy something look for it's Japanese equivalent. It doesn't matter what...it can be scissors, chef knives, boots, furniture,garden pruners, clothes, tea pots,artists paper or paints etc,etc...Japan still values the generational craftsmen. I bought a chefs knife made by a guy who's family made knives for 15 generations and it's the greatest knife I've ever owned.

I was wearing tabi at my part-time construction job when I was a student in Tokyo. As I remember, they were quite cheap (way less than $45, but don't remember the exact prices) and were sold at stores for construction workers and such. I was typically carrying two pairs in my backpack: an ordinary fabric-top pair for dry weather, and a rubber pair for rainy days or for when the construction place was wet. Here comes their first good point: they take almost no space in your backpack, I can hardly imagine routinely carrying two pairs of ordinary construction shoes/boots. Another good point was that they would fit your foot quite tightly, yet without causing any discomfort, you could comfortably put your foot in places you wouldn't dare trying in your ordinary shoes. And, because of their thin rubber soles, you would feel quite well the surface you're standing on. I often had to walk or climb around rebar structures, so that was quite convenient. Finally, I was using so-called "safe tabi", e. g. with hard toe parts, so you wouldn't break your toes by accidentally kicking something heavy. With ordinary shoes, it was rather difficult to find your exact size, you'd always end up with shoes that are either slightly bigger or slightly smaller. The slightly smaller shoes would have _normally_ been okay, except for the hardened toe parts: they would, of course, never stretch and adjust, not even slightly, and after a few hours would start inflicting quite severe pain. The slightly bigger shoes would give you blisters, because your foot would slide inside them, no matter how tight you tie the shoelaces. With tabi, however, I would buy that slightly bigger size and be okay with that, because that additional thing that separates your big toe also stop them from sliding, and so do the very tight fabric top and the "bootleg". Their main bad point was that their thin soles were quite weak, I would occasionally slightly impale my foot on some sharp wire or nail, and a couple of times even no so slightly (tabi were actually banned on some construction sites, perhaps for that very reason). Also, they are not very convenient for simply walking around the city - again, their very thin soles, and the in-between-the-toes part sort of bites in between the, well, toes. Although, not all the locals shared my opinion about that - I once saw a Japanese man descending Mt. Fuji wearing tabi.

They're not cheap, but Reebok + Margiela collaborated to do some of Reebok's most classic designs in a tabi style. That may be an interesting breakdown to explore.

Too bad people think that Tabi look bad. I personally think they look nice.

They're a little weird to get used to at first, but I've found that they make awesome late spring/early fall bowhunting boots.

Never did I ever expect that Margiela would be mentioned in a Rose Anvil video haha, he's an amazing designer! I love my Margiela tabi derbies.

I took ninjitsu as a teen “in the 90’s” I loved my tabi boots and I would wear them everywhere but school where I was mercilessly made fun of for it.

There is also a Tabi sandal from a Japanese brand Suicoke, it has vibram sole and doesn’t look cheap at all!

I enjoyed learning about the history of Tabi boots. I have been waring tabis for 10 years and still learned some things.

I wear tabi socks with sandals all the time, and occasionally inside regular shoes. Even if you can't manage the shoe, I think the socks are worth a try.

I'd love for you to get a pair of real actual tabi from Japan and do a comparison, because there really isn't one between those and the cheap costume stuff like you showed in this video. I've been to Japan twice and acquired a few pairs while I was there, they are super nice and if they wear out I'm 100% spending to get ones made in Japan. It is a shame that Western countries think they're ugly because the utility in them is amazing and I'd love to see more people wearing them outside of costume stuff.

Wildling shoes are amazing and feature a slight tabi style cut. I own 2 pairs and have to say that the walking experience in those shoes is next level.

They are not ugly. They look super cool.

i wear mid calf tabi boots for basic work and such and have 0 issues with closure on them

I might try and track down a better made pair and use them for working out. It seems to be the right constellation of qualities to be really well suited to that.

I did Yoshin Ryu Taijutsu back in the 90s. We wore tabi as part of the training uniform specifically because of the number of foot and leg techniques in that style. It also protected the feet (somewhat) from injury. I modified mine with a elastic side panel and zips to make them more comfortable and to fit my large calves.

Surfers have been using tabi style boots made out of neoprene for protection and warmth in the water for years. They call’em booties. They look almost identical to the pair in this video

I can't believe people think the Tabi design looks ugly. It's the coolest shoe design ever.

These were popular when I was a student in London in the early '80s.They were great - really cheap and very comfortable. Looking back, I don't know why I stopped wearing them. I guess it's high time to check them out again.

I have felt so weird about the look of tabi shoes... But after e few years, they sort of speak to me... I actually think that I will try a pair... The older I get, the more I gravitate towards unique and quirky pieces...

Rikio Jika Tabi are very nice, I wear them often. Much more comfortable than the ones shown, in my opinion.

I really like Tabi design, and would wear some if not for my horribly nonexistent arches, The history lesson and brass hook construction is really neat though, it allows the end user to make their own loop thread with only a small amount of sewing.

Bought a pair from WORKMAN in Japan 7yrs ago for ¥1200, to use for getting stuff done around d the garden and house, and they've worked well. Still wearing them & wouldn't choose anything else.

I wear tabi shoes everyday, they’re a modern laced style. Absolutely love them and would never go back to wearing regular shoes

I feel like these are about to really take off. Firstly in high fashion. Then to the general public. Because of the aspect. If you know, you know.

I think they look awsome and make you feel like a Ninja Turtel!

Try Rikio brand jikatabi. I've worn a pair of those off and on, and while they're practically the same, at least they have a brand name to back them up. There's also a steel toe version made by Soukaido called the VO-80. Those are surprising one of the most comfortable pairs of jikatabi I've worn. Please a make a video on those, thanks.

would love to see a pair of any Onitsuka Tigers or ASICS reviewed, it would be cool to see how Japanese craftsmanship holds up considering their artisan clothing construction with denim, textiles, etc

I have a pair of tabi from Kineya. They have a modern look, I don't care what people think, I wear them for myself.

Ive had my rose anvil wallet for a year. Its perfect except for the scratch from pliers I put on my pocket. Love the wallet

There are some really cool Tabi designs. You also get then with laces or velcro straps, instead of the hook tabs and then they also make Tabi boots for different environments like steel capped for workshops or spike tread for steep inclines and neoprene for water sports. I loved my Tabi. Wore them until the uppers started to disintegrate. I will definitely pick up a better quality pair at some point, I just wish they had a little more arch support.

I’ve been wearing only Jikatabi boots for Years now and all the problems I had with my feet went away, (I used to have Bad Plantar Fasciitis) I wear the steel toe and can smash concrete with them. It took about 2 weeks to get used to them but now I have no pain and better balance and they feel more comfortable than sandals since you don’t grip the “thong” between your toes if they are the right size they just hang from the leg and are slightly snug, so comfortable I have to remember to remove them when sleeping｡｡｡ Lol. I’ll never go back. I usually wear Marugo “Magic” Toe or heavier Soukaido VO-80 Steel-Toe with steel plate if I think I might step on nails, the heavier feel more like boot and the light feel better than Vans

Such an interesting historical vid. Thanks!

Additonal articulation space for the pinky toe would be nice to have as well. It is not only the big toe that suffers bunions from regular shoes.

i think they would be great house slipoers, especially during canadian winters

It’s funny to see this pop up when I saw a whole conversation on Instagram about the fact that the costume designer for “Ashoka” had essentially used off-the-rack tabi boots for the main character’s costume.

When I traveled to Japan, I noticed that the individuals pushing rickshaws at tourist spots were all wearing this type of footwear. Out of curiosity, I bought a pair of these shoes and matching socks in Nara. I found them very comfortable to wear, especially for walking around.

I have to say I love my Vibrum 5 finger shoes. They are the best hiking shoe and river shoe that I've ever gotten.

Just got one of your wallets. You were not lying it smells amazing!

def need to do the margiela tabi boots and more luxury designer shoes in general i’m curious to see if the price are reasonable or are better than the most expensive workwear in design and materials!

More tabis please. I know nothing about these and would love to have the world of tabis opened up the way only Rose Anvil can

Psyched that Margiela had his future here! I'd really like to see you dissect his men's tabi boots and maybe other similair designers that offer boots/ combat boots like Ann de Meulemeester, Dries van Noten, Rick Owens, Saint Laurent, Balenciaga,Prada,Gucci, Carol Christian Poell and Guidi to name a few. All of the designers that I mentioned are rather on the high end of the spectrum budget wise but not up there as having bespoke boots made. The last two although claim to be handmade with intricate attention to detail as in leather choice/ leather treatment, construction of soles and ornaments. Maybe allot to ask for but love the content!

Tabi vs. Vibram's fivefinger shoes. I tried tabi before, but when I heard of vibram's fivefinger shoes, I stuck with them, because they were more comfortable.

One way to make them look good is to complete the rest of the outfit, along with the weapons. Then you’d look totally Ninja!

I have a pair and they didn't feel that different from any other minimalist footwear I've worn. I mainly got them to get better big toe proprioception and to strengthen the "second arch" (the arch of your foot that goes width wise) of my foot. Never wore them enough to notice a difference. I couldn't get over the feeling of wearing "ninja boots" in public though so I stopped wearing them.

For Senior year in highschool, we were tasked with a Japanese presentation for whatever topic we wished. I was incredibly interested in proper and natural biomechanics of barefoot walking and on the random Japanese magazine we had in our classroom, I saw a single image of these 地下足袋/Jikatabi footwear. Needless to say, I did my presentation on them. And my guy, I can say with full respect. I really appreciate you doing your research on it.

I think seeing how the steel toe tabis are would be interesting, since it'd be a different take on a work boot.

You'll have pebbles, mud, and sticks wedged in that slot. We used to wear these types of shoes decades ago in the Pacific Islands.

If it was a tougher material, like canvas, it actually looks like a very practical and ergonomic shoe. However, from my western mind, it really looks so very odd to me. Those actually look like cheap costume or cosplay footware as oppose to what a blue collar worker would wear in Japan. I would like to see a revisit of this for the real deal of this tabi.

I honestly like them because they're comfy. Need to get a new pair because I'm starting to get a tear on the canvas where it meets the sole.

You should make a video on the Onitsuka Tiger next now that you've mentioned it. Specifically the classic Mexico '66 commonly thought of as Bruce Lee's shoes but apparently it's not true

Thanks for this and all your great informative videos. That reminds me I have comfy tabis to wear now that winter is over.

Would love to see a Rose Anvil Builds attempt to create a more functional version of tabis

These are a good conversation starter

The spilt-toe style is definitely an Eastern Worldview shoe. Interesting. I never knew these were actually widely used.

It’s amazing to me that Americans care more about form than function! Actually, great idea in footwear

The construction looks simple enough for "Rose Anvil Builds"! Would You like to try making a Good Tabi? :)

what do you mean wacky looking they look like something a ninja would wear,that's so cool

I like this whole fashion phenomenon came from people wanting to wear white socks with sandals. Who knew the neckbeards were fashionable all along?

I love my Tabi Boots!!! I got some that are kinda like sneakers and have laces. They feel AWESOME to me!!! I want that pair NIKE made! This was awesome! Thank you for the breakdown of it's history! And Thank You for sharing!

Being self-conscious regarding the appearance of something, instead of focusing on its actual functionality and benefits, is pretty sad. It's also really common, which is also sad. Like - do we all think our imaginary audiences are actually paying any attention to us, and that it matters?

We need a hiking boot comparison series… Kenetrek, Crispi, Zamberlan, etc.

I really see the potential in the split look. I think it would be a shame to put material over it to hide that feature

I'm in love with them. Love traditional Japanese aesthetic

I had a pair that were cheaper than that, pretty much looked the same, and i wore them for about 5 years for work. I loved them. Everyone else thought they looked pretty good too. I will say that your opinion is totally just. You definitely kinda have to pull off the look with them otherwise they look completely out of place. Luckily i have a foot long Mohawk and people call me samurai over the work radio, I even wear a black gi in the cold. Lmfao

I've had a few pairs of good Tabi boots, that I've been wearing for about 30 years. For martial arts classes, especially outdoor exercising or hiking.

I'm sorry but this was a really low effort video & frankly ended very disrespectfully. The shoes' name is not "tabby" like a housecat, but tah-bee, two syllables. They are available in leather as well as steel toe from different makers & are much more durable than your test gives them credit for. A shoe built of light materials is not a "costume" shoe. By the standards of this video, a pair of Vans slip-ons would be a "costume" shoe. If you wanted a more durable boot you could have bought a brand like Marugo with the leather & steel toe.

Ninja boots!!! You made past-me happy

"Muhrahgoo" - my man, you gave it a good shot! 😂😂😂 Great review, I wear jikka-tabi (non-slip, composite toe) they are so grippy they squeak like basketball shoes on normal flooring.

I don't know why, but the picture of the Fisherman smiling is such a vibe.

I think they look great!!

Thank you very much for your videos which I really like and greetings from Barcelona, ​​Spain

I have never expected to see Tabi in this channel. It is very good to fwatch, thank you. Tabi is in fact still used in modern Japan by workers such as gardeners who uses ladders or construction workers who build building scaffolding because it is really good for maneuvering on those environments.

Whenever I get dressed up in kimono and hakama (Japanese attire) I wear Marugo jikatabi. I wear the Air Jog type of Marugo jikatabi and they're comfortable to walk around and to dance in (specifically the Bon Odori of the various Japanese Buddhist temples). The pair you have are the Matsuri jikatabi, the entry model level that you can see a lot. If you're doing something more active, people go for the Air Jog which have a better foot bed and more cushioning. They're more expensive ($70 vs $45), but they're my go-to when donning my Japanese attire.

Your history content is the best on the channel love it!!

Perfect hiking shoes, keep a spare pair and if you get wet just hang them off the backpack to dry while wearing the second pair. Great grip and mobility, and they are so cheap you won’t have to babysit them

LMAO. The X-rays when you say you have lady's ankles almost make me spit out the coffee.

Always wanted a pair from Black Belt magazine Ninja ads when I was a kid

More Tabi Boot Content, Please!!

AHH THESE ARE MY EVERY DAY SHOES!! i walk about 10 hours a day pulling and pushing heavy loads on foot . these fixed my feet from flat feet to fullly built and muscular arches! My shins and calves also grew a whole lot. They actually last a long time .. ive had mine for 1 year and aside from a few rips ive sown up on the canvas from hitting myself with a pallet jack a few times, they basically still look new if I paint them up

I always wondered.❤ Thanks for the info!

Growing up in the 80s obsessed with ninjas, I immediately bought a pair of tabis when I moved to Japan. They're a lot of fun, but in Japan, where you are constantly taking your shoes on and off, those kohaze are a massive pain. The other thing is that you have to either wear toe socks or go sockless. Other than that, I love them. I brought them to Thailand and had a zipper and a heavier outsole on them.

There is a shoe called "Nike ISPA Drifter Split" which is a tabi shoe by Nike. Might be cool to check out and cut in half. 👀

i have spiked tabi boots and i went on an 8 hour hike, my feet were bleeding so bad it was the worse pain ever, super cool boots just make sure you have good quality and thick insoles

I was always fascinated by Zuko’s and the firenation’s shoes in Avatar the Last Airbender. Now I know why. Neat

Very detailed review. Nice! 👍

Necessity truly is the mother of invention. And that mother is working class. And the invention tends to be quite elegant.

Those black ones with the rubber sole looks legit id wear them

these are unironically perfect for basketball

me and my husband cosplay and airsoft on our spare time and we find it easy to move around a forest quietly with tabi boots

Definitely wanna see more tabis

this channel got me into shoes/boots love your content

I wore jikatabi when I danced with a group that specializes in Okinawan dance styles. They're very comfortable, but with the wrong soles you get very little arch support, and if you have large calves (like I do) you have to get specialized extenders to get them to close at all. That said I love the look and feel of tabi.

Love my Nike ISPA Drifters, I think a contemporary example done right

I love my Rose Anvil wallet, going on 4 years and it just gets better looking with age. Greetings from Ontario Canada!

Fun fact: The name Jika-tabi roughly means "Tabi that touch the ground"!