The first Oxford shoes were crafted from a single piece of leather.

The Alessandro Oxford shoe – an icon of the BERLUTI fashion house – captivates not only with its timeless beauty but also as a charming work of art. With its distinctive classicism and inherent pure spirit, the BERLUTI Alessandro Oxford is a true companion for shoe enthusiasts in their quest for love and perfect beauty throughout the ages.

When the carpenter started making shoes

The story of how Alessandro shoes were born is also the story of the Berluti fashion house itself. In 1882, inspired by a veteran shoemaker from his village, the ambitious young Alessandro Berluti, driven by a passion for crafting unique leather shoes, abandoned his stable career as a carpenter in his hometown of Senigallia – a small port city in the Le Marche region of Italy – and went to the "fashion capital" of Paris, France, to seek an opportunity to change his destiny.

Paris at that time was a fashion capital and a dazzling metropolis. Understanding this, he decided to leave his comfortable and safe harbor village behind and go to a country vastly different from his homeland, with the purpose of crafting shoes that embodied the fierce determination burning in the heart of the young Alessandro Berluti.

Driven by a desire to break free from the constraints of his time, Alessandro Berluti applied his knowledge of woodworking, carving, and measuring skills as a carpenter to the craft of bespoke leather shoes. Possessing skillful hands, a keen aesthetic sense, and an avant-garde spirit – reflecting the boundless values ​​of creativity, innovation, and uniqueness – he invented the first Oxford shoe crafted from a single piece of leather, bearing his own name, Alessandro Berluti, and adopting his surname, Berluti, for the brand. From there, the great journey of BERLUTI's shoemaking began.

A classic milestone in the history of leather shoemaking.

To assert his unique style and become a pioneer of his time, Alessandro Berluti created the first Oxford shoe, handcrafted from a single piece of leather, seamlessly and perfectly crafted without any visible cuts or seams. The shoe's pristine lines quickly became famous in the shoemaking world of the time.

Creating a wholecut shoe requires a large, original piece of leather and precise cuts, demanding high skill and meticulous attention to detail from the shoemaker. The leather used must be a flawless, blemish-free piece, as there will be no cuts or stitches to conceal imperfections. The texture of the leather also needs to be consistent throughout the entire shoe, and finding such rare pieces of leather is not easy.

Furthermore, assembling a single piece of leather onto a wooden mold shaped to fit the foot requires intense concentration and skillful use of hand strength to stretch the leather without losing its original structure. According to shoemakers, "wholecut" oxfords are one of the most difficult styles to make.

In 1895, the design of the Alessandro Oxford was a unique creation, a departure from the ornate and heavily embellished styles of the time – remnants of the Victorian style of the late 19th century. The special thing about the Alessandro Oxford lay not only in its perfect leather construction but also in its reduced exaggeration in design, focusing instead on the natural essence of the pure leather and the basic function of a shoe for its owner.

Furthermore, with Italian blood flowing through his veins, founder Alessandro brought the art of Italian shoemaking to France through these shoes, specifically the Blake sole construction – commonly used by shoemakers in his homeland.

Completely handcrafted, using pure leather and retaining the traditional Blake construction, Alessandro's new designs captivate enthusiasts with their original purity, blending modern details while respecting traditional values, inheriting and developing the essence of handcrafted shoemaking with a unique, one-of-a-kind spirit. This is clearly demonstrated in the Démesure and Galet lines.

Exclusive creation

In the 1980s, Olga Berluti, with her artistic eye and desire to breathe life into men's shoes through color instead of the traditional black and brown, created the art of Patina. With a forward-thinking spirit and a deep passion for beauty, Olga developed the Patina technique, covering leather with vibrant new coats, inspired by the reflection of moonlight on skin pigmentation at night.

The patina finish is created through sophisticated techniques, requiring masterful understanding and craftsmanship, to give the shoes color with varying degrees of durability and depth, much like the patina caused by time and wear.

And what Olga needed was the perfect material to turn her dreams of patina finishes into reality. Soon after, she developed Venezia leather. This is a full-grain leather, smooth, supple, and carefully selected from the finest hides, then processed using Berluti's proprietary secret methods.

BERLUTI was born, beginning with the Alessandro shoe. This iconic shoe was designed with the bold yet profound intention of the craftsman – a timeless and enduring design. Its construction from a single piece of leather was not only a rare breakthrough in the shoemaking world of the time, but also a testament to masterful craftsmanship, a deep understanding of leather, and a high regard for the artistic value of the work.

With over 120 years of inherited craftsmanship, BERLUTI is not simply a renowned leather goods brand, but also represents a unique and iconic artistic style. Now present in Hanoi, Vietnam, BERLUTI is a home for leather enthusiasts and shoe lovers, where you can admire the finest craftsmanship and experience the legendary Alessandro shoe designs.

Phuong Thao is an editor at Travellive magazine. She is passionate about traveling and enjoys capturing moments with her camera in every place she visits. Travel, art, and lifestyle are Phuong Thao's favorite writing topics.

Phuong Thao