For anyone who cosplays Bleach characters, one of the hardest things to find is the sandals that the shinigami (soul reapers in the dub) wear. The sandals are based off a traditional straw sandal from fuedal Japan known as waraji.
Traditional waraji sandals are made from woven straw. They are constructed on a loom and are a little smaller than the foot they're made for, ending just behind the toes. The toes hang out over the end of the sandal. Along the sides of the sandal are four small loops (two on each side) and four strips of woven rope come through the forward end and back end of the sandal. These are threaded through the loops and wrap around the foot and ankle to tie them in place.
When you do a search on ebay or different "cosplay stores" for Bleach cosplay items, you'll usually find these sandals sold along with a set of tabi socks. These sandals are more traditional but have several problems that don't make them ideal for cosplaying.
First of all, they don't look very accurate to the manga or show, and if you're like me, accuracy counts on a costume as "simple" as this. I don't mean simple to construct, but the fewer details a costume has, the more crucial it is to get those details right.
These sandals also don't hold together well. I had ordered a set, and put them on a few days before the con while making the costume to get used to the way they felt. After wearing the sandals for a little over two hours on concrete, linoleum, and carpet, they completely fell apart. Other cosplay friends that have ordered these sandals have had the same problem and you see this happen at cons all the time - I've never seen anyone wear the same set for more than one day without them being severely degraded, fraying, or falling apart.
Shinigami sandals as shown in the manga and anime differ from traditional sandals in two ways. Shinigami sandals extend all the way to the end of the toes much like a normal sandal. The sandal itself also extends past the heel to wrap up around it and end at the Achilles tendon. It's a very subtle effect but one of the most distinctive characteristics of the outfit. I've never seen sandals online that you can buy like this, so I decided to make my own.
These sandals take a few hours to make. The first pair costs about $15, while subsequent pairs can be made for a third of the cost. You can size them to your specific foot, which is also comfortable. Best of all, you can wear these sandals to a con for three days of walking for 10 hours each on concrete and asphalt before they break down.
All in all, definitely worth the time invested and always turn heads. I've never worn these without people rushing to comment on them and asking how they can make their own!
Traditional waraji sandals are made from woven straw. They are constructed on a loom and are a little smaller than the foot they're made for, ending just behind the toes. The toes hang out over the end of the sandal. Along the sides of the sandal are four small loops (two on each side) and four strips of woven rope come through the forward end and back end of the sandal. These are threaded through the loops and wrap around the foot and ankle to tie them in place.
When you do a search on ebay or different "cosplay stores" for Bleach cosplay items, you'll usually find these sandals sold along with a set of tabi socks. These sandals are more traditional but have several problems that don't make them ideal for cosplaying.
First of all, they don't look very accurate to the manga or show, and if you're like me, accuracy counts on a costume as "simple" as this. I don't mean simple to construct, but the fewer details a costume has, the more crucial it is to get those details right.
These sandals also don't hold together well. I had ordered a set, and put them on a few days before the con while making the costume to get used to the way they felt. After wearing the sandals for a little over two hours on concrete, linoleum, and carpet, they completely fell apart. Other cosplay friends that have ordered these sandals have had the same problem and you see this happen at cons all the time - I've never seen anyone wear the same set for more than one day without them being severely degraded, fraying, or falling apart.
Shinigami sandals as shown in the manga and anime differ from traditional sandals in two ways. Shinigami sandals extend all the way to the end of the toes much like a normal sandal. The sandal itself also extends past the heel to wrap up around it and end at the Achilles tendon. It's a very subtle effect but one of the most distinctive characteristics of the outfit. I've never seen sandals online that you can buy like this, so I decided to make my own.
These sandals take a few hours to make. The first pair costs about $15, while subsequent pairs can be made for a third of the cost. You can size them to your specific foot, which is also comfortable. Best of all, you can wear these sandals to a con for three days of walking for 10 hours each on concrete and asphalt before they break down.
All in all, definitely worth the time invested and always turn heads. I've never worn these without people rushing to comment on them and asking how they can make their own!
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Signing UpStep 1: Gathering the materials
Gathering supplies for the sandal isn't hard and can be bought at any home improvement store such as Lowes or Home Depot.
Scrap of wood larger than your foot to make the loom
10D finishing nails
Dr Sholls gel inserts (these are optional)
1/4" Sisal or Jute rope*
Jute twine**
The only tools you'll need are a hammer and a pair of sharp scissors.
*Sisal and manilla rope are easy to find but are very rough and scratchy, so if you cosplay as a character that doesn't wear socks, you'll end up with raw skin and may even end up with it through the socks. Jute rope on the other hand is very soft but you may have a problem finding it down at the Home Depot. You can however find 1/4" jute rope online, as it's very popular for jewelry and bird toys.
**Make sure you use Jute twine! Sisal or binding twine do not hold up nearly as well and are very scratchy. Jute has some cushioning to it which is important if wearing them for a few days.
Scrap of wood larger than your foot to make the loom
10D finishing nails
Dr Sholls gel inserts (these are optional)
1/4" Sisal or Jute rope*
Jute twine**
The only tools you'll need are a hammer and a pair of sharp scissors.
*Sisal and manilla rope are easy to find but are very rough and scratchy, so if you cosplay as a character that doesn't wear socks, you'll end up with raw skin and may even end up with it through the socks. Jute rope on the other hand is very soft but you may have a problem finding it down at the Home Depot. You can however find 1/4" jute rope online, as it's very popular for jewelry and bird toys.
**Make sure you use Jute twine! Sisal or binding twine do not hold up nearly as well and are very scratchy. Jute has some cushioning to it which is important if wearing them for a few days.
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I also have a request to the author. Could you also put this article to wikiHow? Instructables requires a Pro account to download a PDF for easier viewing and printing. wikiHow at least has free print version of pages (and its quite simple to make a PDF out of the print page). wikiHow also uses the same license in all its articles as you have in this one.
Thanks for this great article. I'll report on my progress when I get a chance to make a pair of these.
I will definitely be making my own now.
Thanks!
The only jute twine I could find is kinda thready/frayed on the surface. Is this typical or should I keep looking?
I saw the patterns but didn't use them. This is about the fifth or sixth version of the sandal I made. The old ones were just larger versions of the standard waraji sandal, so the toe portion of it only came up to the ball of the foot with the sandal thongs coming out through the front. This caused some blisters when walking on hot concrete and asphalt since the toes hang out over the end of the sandal. This version makes them much larger as you can see in the photos.
Let me know how they turn out!
The only other thing I can recommend to make it easier on your feet is to buy some good quality gel inserts and put them in your sock when you wear the sandal.
Making my second attempt with some thick hemp I had lying around to see how it turns out as an alternative.
Don't worry, the first one I made fell apart as soon as I tried to tie it. Keep at it!
Got pics?
The next two turned out much better, especially after finding jute twine that wqas thick enough. We have a small Bleach group heading to Otakon so I'll finally have pictures soon. Any chance you might be there? It would be nice to meet up with some more Bleach cosplayers who know what they're doing.
http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-15341/Twine-Rope/140-lb-Tensile-Strength-5-ply-Jute-Twine
probably enough to last your lifetime and even a friend or two. god knows *im* getting it from here. especially if im gonna be making a new pair every week.
BUT, the point is
I have a size 16 foot, and well, Japan doesn't have waraji that big, so I am THRILLED to be able to have made size 16 waraji for myself.
Thank you.
Glad you like it!
"It is better to have 6 tabs on your sandals than 5 then you will not catch pebbles between your sandals and feet when crossing rivers, or marching on rough roads." http://b-and-t-world-seeds.com/Waraji/weaving.htm
here you see pics of vintage waraji with 6 tabs http://www.karankoron.com/waraji.html
here is 6 tabs
http://www.nagomijapan.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=487
http://www.worldofstock.com/slides/TAJ1211.jpg
http://203.138.130.68/shofu/shirayama/english/life/wits/7-clothes/photo-07.jpg
5 tabs
http://www.janm.org/collections/item/2004.1.62/
6 tabs
http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnlander/page202/
i think that should just about do it. hope this helps
Should the weave be tight or loose?
One question, though; is there any way to make them so they'll last longer than a few days? That seems kind of short for a pair of shoes, especially, ones made like this.
Also, keep in mind that these sandals are being used on many hard, rough surfaces like asphalt and concrete, and often for several full days in a row. My sandals lasted the whole con but not because they fell apart - because the con only lasted four days! I have no idea how long a normal pair would last. Mine still worked fine, they only had a minimum amount of fraying.
I'm also not a cosplayer - but these are good for buddhist monks on begging rounds too - and yes.. way better than the ones on ebay
I had tried to use more nails but they simply got in the way of weaving the sandal, especially the area around the heel that wraps up around.
Thanks for the comment, I greatly appreciate it! Glad to know people think these are better...and so much cheaper, too!
I am living and working around a farm. So, theese sandals are perfect for my life style!! Isn't there any way to cover the bottom with sth for to stop wetting? It have to be sth!!
Thank you very much!!!
Devrim