Sasawashi room shoes

I’ve been wearing house slippers for long enough that the simple act of not wearing them feels perverse. Walking through the house wearing the same boots I stomp around in outside, what are you, nuts?! Surely there’s a bundle of germy behaviors I engage in on a daily basis that could be easily remedied (and might even be technically less sanitary than wearing shoes around the house), I’m just saying that wearing my outdoor shoes indoors is a habit I’ve broken for so long now that to do otherwise would simply feel wrong, like writing with your other hand. It’s not good for the floors, after all. And as we’ve had nothing to do over the last year but examine the myriad ways we could conceivably contract and spread harmful bacteria and viruses, it’s been difficult not to think about, really.

In the last few years, I’ve gone through a few different pairs of house slippers.¹ I realize I probably go harder on them than could reasonably be expected, more or less wearing them daily, for hours, occasionally on surfaces they’re meant to avoid (the basement’s cement; the porch’s dusty wood). I went through a couple pairs of these Allswell waffle slippers, which looked nice and were fairly soft but, due to their delicate nature, probably should’ve never made it beyond the walk from the bathroom to the bedroom. Plus, as beautiful as white bath slippers can be, they faded to grey (and then dark grey) all too quickly, a sad reminder of how filthy I am, even at my cleanest. Before that, I went with a pair of Shop Fog Linen’s linen slippers, but I tore through the linen like a puppy at an unguarded Thanksgiving dinner table. I still keep them around, following a small repair from my tailor (I’m not gonna share any stories but rest assured I’ve run my tailor through the ringer over the years), though they’re looking pretty lifeless these days, especially when compared to the Sasawashis.

Fast forward to a few months ago, when my friend Cam recommended a pair of house slippers to my friend Andy who went ahead and recommended them to me, hard up as I was for a new pair. As you may have guessed, I’m referring to the topic of the day: Sasawashi room shoes!² They’re pretty great, and have quickly eclipsed my prior choices. The design is as tastefully minimal as one might expect from the Japanese, with appealingly seamless curves that enhance the slippers’ airy quality. The fabric is also carefully considered - Sasawashi uses some sort of proprietary Kumazasa paper fabric for these slippers (along with a polyester sole), for maximum breathability and anti-bacterial integrity. Rather than creating multiple models and styles like basically every other footwear designer, Sasawashi more or less has this one model (in a small handful of neutral tones), a clear sign of confidence that they’ve whittled down the concept of a house slipper to this singular design. I like that! The open heel is very much open, to the point where they almost slipped off my feet going down the stairs a couple of times, but I’m marking that against me, not the slippers - if anything, the fear of tumbling down a flight of stairs should help inspire me to move at a slower, more considerate pace. I like that too.

Lightweight, comfortable, durable and anodyne, I plan to stick with these for the long run. The whole purpose of my house-slipper journey isn’t to keep buying a new pair every eighteen months, so much as hopefully find a specific pair that can hold up through the foreseeable future. I’m trying to tread lighter on these, but I’ve also already washed them once, and am pleased to report that they looked (and just as importantly, smelled) good as new after air-drying for a day. The only question I’m left with now is, do I need to buy a few pairs for guests? I can’t imagine a classier situation than offering a fresh pair of house slippers to any pal, neighbor or loved one who come over, but are communally-shared slippers a gross concept, on par with shared earplugs? It’s far less wasteful than stocking up on single-use hospital socks for guests, but people can be so weird about feet. If you end up with a pair of Sasawashis, feel to bring ‘em and come on over anytime!

1. It bears mentioning that my personal house-slipper regimen involves alternating between a fall/winter pair and a spring/summer pair. For the past few years, I’ve transitioned to these ascot loafer slippers by UGG as soon as the leaves start to drop. They’re not pretty on their best day, and after two seasons of heavy use they’re mere shadows of their former selves - I can vaguely remember how they originally felt, like nestling my feet between the juicy butt cheeks of a best-in-show Merino ewe. Ultimately kind of a ho-hum, utilitarian house slipper, whose season may shrink considerably, seeing as I’ve been fine wearing my Sasawashis with socks.

2. Displayed here upon fanned bamboo leaves, which of course is exactly how I leave them around my house when I’m not wearing them.