Shoemaker tailors Naxi women's feet

Yao Jie, a 52-year-old Lijiang shoemaker, sews the sole of a traditional Naxi cloth shoe at home. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Yao Jie, a 52-year-old Lijiang local, has threaded needles and sewed soles in the Old Town of Lijiang for more than 30 years. His handmade cloth shoes enjoy great popularity among local Naxi women.

He mainly produces baggy shoes with pointed toes, traditional cloth shoes for Naxi women's daily wear and their traditional wedding shoes.

Yao Jie is now an inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage in the town thanks to his grandfather, who was a good hand at making leather shoes.

Yao rented a shop for handmade cloth shoes in the town in 1991, and delved into the craftsmanship of hand-made shoes. At that time he collected many shoe bolts and wedges produced by local small handicraft companies to make shoes.

"The town was not yet a tourist hotspot and had few visitors. The guests in the store were locals and business was not good, so I had plenty of time to improve," he said.

Yao Jie sews the sole of a traditional Naxi cloth shoe at home. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

"It takes almost a week to make a pair of Naxi cloth shoes and if anything goes wrong throughout the process, all the materials are scrapped."

The Old Town of Lijiang has become a favorite destination with tourists from home and abroad flocking there since 1996; many have arrived at Yao Jie's shoe shop.

Yao made improvements in the fabric and color of cloth shoes to answer customers' preferences, making their style and color more consistent with the new Naxi clothing. He also changed the cloth sole to a rubber one, which is not only easy to clean but also non-slip and waterproof.