World Championship of Shoemaking 2026: Full Breakdown of the Top 3 shoes | Kirby Allison

Every two years, the world’s best bespoke shoemakers are given the exact same brief — and asked to forget everything they’d normally compromise on for a client. This year that brief was a black Chelsea boot. What came back from Russia, China, and Japan could not be more different. I brought the top three shoes from the 2026 World Championship of Shoemaking, plus the winning shoe from the World Championship of Shoe Patina, back to my office in Dallas to go through them in detail — the construction, the techniques, the hundreds of hours behind each one, and the story of how this year’s champion was decided. One of these boots nearly didn’t make it to the final at all. 🔍 MORE PHOTOS & INFORMATION 🔸 Website: https://shoegazing.com/2026/08/23/world-championships-of-shoemaking-2026-all-competition-shoes-pt-1/ 🔍 Official rules for the 2027 World Championship of Shoemaking 🔸 Website: https://shoegazing.com/2026/10/06/world-championships-of-shoemaking-2027-call-for-competition/ 🙌 SUPPORT THIS CHANNEL https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCygkzPpueoIJQsLUnGEqFdA/join 📽️ Join this channel to support our content with independent craftspeople and artisans: https://www.patreon.com/kirbyallison 🛒 Shop All Kirby Allison Products: https://www.kirbyallison.com #bespokeshoes ​ #shoemaking #menswear #luxurycraftsmanship #KirbyAllison 📽 OTHER SUGGESTED VIDEOS 2025 World Championship of Shoemaking https://youtu.be/o1IgkjtHbBU?si=EXqnn9D5lzr8Y4Uw 2024 World Championship of Shoemaking htt