Allen Edmonds Appreciation Thread - reviews, pictures, sizing, etc...

[bespoken pa]

I am not too fond of the last, really wish it was on the five. I was considering a mto is cappuccino or burgundy.

 

[MDeKelver]

Ask and you shall receive. We spent this afternoon reviewing shoes for our Rediscover America Sale in the Fall. Your Strand in very dark brown suede is on the list!

Best wishes,
Paul

And they are. Very nice, thank you.

 

[MDeKelver]

Has anyone picked up a pair of the suede Strands? I love my brown ones and have been looking for a pair of casual suede shoes, but I noticed the suede Strands have a different model number (1614). Do they not fit the same as the regular Strands, which are on the 5 last?

The model numbers seem to vary, but the Strand all should be on the 5 last.

 

[AdamAdam]

Hey, everyone. What makes a shoe recraftable? Does it need to have a Goodyear welt? Right now all of my nice shoes are AE but there are a few gaps that I'd like to fill that I haven't found in the brand. I see some styles from other lower-quality makers like J&M, Cole Haan, etc. that I like. However, I don't want to buy something that I'll need to throw away in a few years. With that being said, I may only wear these styles every now and again so if something catches my eye I'd like to grab it. But, I still want something that I'll be able to renew when the time comes. On J&M's website they list the shoes that are repairable. When I'm in a store how do I tell? I live near an outlet mall with Florsheim, J&M, Cole Haan and at the Bloomingdales outlet I see To Boot and others. I often see things that are aesthetically pleasing but how do I know if the quality is decent?

Thanks!

 

[random-adam]



Hey, everyone. What makes a shoe recraftable?

Spoiler: Valid points

Does it need to have a Goodyear welt? Right now all of my nice shoes are AE but there are a few gaps that I'd like to fill that I haven't found in the brand. I see some styles from other lower-quality makers like J&M, Cole Haan, etc. that I like. However, I don't want to buy something that I'll need to throw away in a few years. With that being said, I may only wear these styles every now and again so if something catches my eye I'd like to grab it. But, I still want something that I'll be able to renew when the time comes. On J&M's website they list the shoes that are repairable. When I'm in a store how do I tell? I live near an outlet mall with Florsheim, J&M, Cole Haan and at the Bloomingdales outlet I see To Boot and others. I often see things that are aesthetically pleasing but how do I know if the quality is decent?

Thanks!

Disclaimer: everything I know is from lurking.

My impression is that other manufacturers use lesser-quality leather, more glue than stitches in their shoe construction, or (usually) both. I would have suggested sticking solely to Goodyear- or Blake-welted footwear except for one line in your question: "I may only wear these styles every now and again". If you like the looks of a shoe and don't plan to wear it more than a couple times a month, it probably doesn't need to be built to the same level of durability.

In addition, per previous threads, any decent cobbler can resole just about any shoe... just be aware that they're forced by its construction to use techniques that will hold up for a correspondingly shorter amount of time.

 

[New Shoes1]

Hey, everyone. What makes a shoe recraftable? Does it need to have a Goodyear welt? Right now all of my nice shoes are AE but there are a few gaps that I'd like to fill that I haven't found in the brand. I see some styles from other lower-quality makers like J&M, Cole Haan, etc. that I like. However, I don't want to buy something that I'll need to throw away in a few years. With that being said, I may only wear these styles every now and again so if something catches my eye I'd like to grab it. But, I still want something that I'll be able to renew when the time comes. On J&M's website they list the shoes that are repairable. When I'm in a store how do I tell? I live near an outlet mall with Florsheim, J&M, Cole Haan and at the Bloomingdales outlet I see To Boot and others. I often see things that are aesthetically pleasing but how do I know if the quality is decent?

Thanks!

Have some fun building your collection with other makers that fill a gap in AE's collection. I would look to Meermin, Loake, Carmina, C&J (at Brooks Brothers), Kent Wang and others. I'm pretty loyal to AE when it has a style I want, but these other companies have some good models as well.

 

[peppercorn78]



And they are.  Very nice, thank you.

Has the RA sale information been released?

 

[AdamAdam]



Have some fun building your collection with other makers that fill a gap in AE's collection.  I would look to Meermin, Loake, Carmina, C&J (at Brooks Brothers), Kent Wang and others.  I'm pretty loyal to AE when it has a style I want, but these other companies have some good models as well.

I'm interested in doing that but those brands aren't all that easy to find (as far as I know) and I have goofy feet so I need to try them on. It took me three tries to get my sizing on the AE 5-last correct. For instance, these Cole Haan are $250. Are they "quality" and repairable? Will they last?

PS - I know that AE makes a similar monk strap but m just using as an example.

Thanks for the education.
http://www.colehaan.com/air-madison-monk-british-tan/C10242.html?dwvar_C10242_color=British Tan

 

[mimo]

They are nothing like the same quality, and AE can be found just as cheap. Check the outlets, and also go to the store to know your size 100%.

After which, take NewShoes1's advice and look around. Forget Cole Haan, J&M and other nasties. There is a world of reasonably-priced shoe wonders out there. Here's some previous advice:

http://www.styleforum.net/t/79716/a...t-all-quick-questions-here/22605#post_6451546

http://www.styleforum.net/t/79716/a...t-all-quick-questions-here/22635#post_6453044

As for being able to repair shoes, all shoes can be repaired in theory. But a goodyear welt is designed specifically to make this easier: to put it simply, without the welt, every time you changed the outer sole, you would damage the insole a bit, and eventually need new shoes. But with the welted shoes, you damage only the welt, and when that's gone after a few times, you can change that. Which in turn damages the insole, but less often. It's effectively a multiplier on how often you can re-sole a stitched shoe. Incidentally, "goodyear" refers to the method of machine stitching it on, but now tends to cover any welted shoe, colloquially.

And the reason you want a stitched shoe is that the sole won't fall off. With a glued shoe, it will, sooner or later. Simple as that.

 

[AdamAdam]



They are nothing like the same quality, and AE can be found just as cheap.

Understood and I bought a few pair of brand new AE firsts for that price but I'm trying to understand the difference. Leather quality certainly makes a huge difference. I assume assembly makes a huge difference as well and customer service from AE is priceless. Bit just fornthe sake of education, are these Cole Haan examples repairable? If not, why? I saw a similar J&M monk strap the other day for a very good price in a color that AE doesn't make. I didn't get them because I don't want something that is disposable. I'm just trying to learn. Thanks for the education.

 

[mimo]

They are "repairable" theoretically in that a cobbler could try to glue the ****** plasticated sole back onto the ****** plasticated leather, but let's not continue with this, eh?

Check out those links, and the links to which they link, and the linked links' monks. That way happiness lies.

 

[mezentius]

A crosspost from the quick questions thread - figured you guys might have more expertise:

I just purchased some unstructured 10.5 AEs online. Previously, I had bought some Gravati shoes which were 10.5 US, which converts from my normal size of 9.5 UK and fits pretty well. However, AE lists on their site a 9.5 - 10 UK-US conversion. Any thoughts?

 

[mimo]

Check the width fittings too. Personally I also take a 9.5 UK - usually. Sometimes 10, very occasionally 9. I also sometimes need a wider fitting, depending on the last. I have one pair of AEs, in a size 10E. They are most comfortable. I have four more on the way.

A 10.5D might fit me (seemed OK when I tried another US maker), but theoretically then so would a 11C or even 11.5D. I tried on some Corthays the other day in a US 11 - fine. The thing is, though, I would advise against going up in length and narrower in width, because it would mean the toes are not fully in the toe box. This can mean the toe box chops your toes and the creasing on the vamp will be worse and in a strange place.

Anyway, this is all very simple: print off the AE size chart and see - it's on the site. Worked out totally accurately for me.

 

[spitshine123]

Very nice to see the suede strands will be on sale in the upcoming promotion, I have been eyeing them for a while. Anybody else have any additional information? I hope there are some options on the 3 last!

___

Also, for anyone sized 9D in the 5 last. I just put 2 pairs (Walnut grain park ave and black fairfax wholecut) up on ebay with no reserve! Please see my sig for the classified listing with the ebay link within.

 

[mimo]

^^ Sorry, Spitshine, what promotion? And how do you know what will be on offer?