Canvas is a coarse cloth material made of hemp that is used in a number of things including sails, tents, boards (used for painting on, i.e. painting canvasses) and shoes. The canvas shoe is a very basic form of casual shoe or sneaker. It is constructed very simply with a canvas upper and a rubber sole. Canvas shoes can be purchased in high top or low top and are available in almost any color you could ask for. Some canvas shoes, especially those made for children, have cute designs on them as well. On the other hand canvas shoes do not have much shock absorption, cushioning or support and therefore are not suitable for any type of “pounding the pavement” sort of activities. If you run, do aerobics, play tennis or any other sports then go in for an honest to goodness pair of sneakers and leave the canvas shoes for the beach or backyard. Canvas shoes are fun, casual, and versatile and are also not that pricey. You can buy a decent pair of them for anywhere from twenty to thirty dollars (and sometimes less).