- Joined
- Mar 22, 2010
- Messages
- 2,656
- Reaction score
- 1,333
Hi All,
Sorry to have not seen the last few posts - I didn't get the normal notification emails and have been busy so haven't browsed as much as normal. My replies are below.
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To Gerry - Fab, glad you like it! The Bakers Australian Nut is a lovely leather, you really can't go wrong with it. Very nice photo as well!
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To Naive - We can certainly make a Hazel Lined and Raised with contrasting thread, be it white or another colour. The belt would all have to be hazel, including the edges though, we can't do differential lining colours with it unfortunately. Regarding the Italian leather belts, we're going to keep them as a special order item I think, bridle leather is what we do best and I think we're going to stick to that for our core products. The big advantage of the Italian leather is we can make a much thinner belt, the Italian Lined and Raised higher up in the thread is only about 4 1/2mm thick so much more of a summer suit belt than our normal Lined and raised belts are. We can custom make you a belt in that style perfectly happily if thats the kind of thing your looking for?
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To Jay687
The first thing I'd say is I'm about your hight so have some first hand experience. I'll try to answer your questions in order -
1) Either the West End or Kensington are fine for casual wear - personally I wear west Ends in various metals for nearly everything. The West End in my opinion is probably the smart of the two so if your own style is more formal I'd probably recommend the West End, but either belt is very suitable and certainly people wear both styles for both casual and formal wear.
2) I think 1 1/8" is fine for casual if thats the width you like, but I would tend to wear 1 1/4" for smarter chinos/cords and 1 1/2" for more casual things personally. If you feel thats too wide for you then maybe 1 1/8" and 1 1/4" would be right for you? If you have jeans that have loops for 1 1/2" belts they might look a bit empty with 1 1/8". Just my opinion - I started out wearing 1" belts years ago (I still have it as well, it was the first belt I made 16 years ago) and have gradually worn wider belts over the years and I think that filling the belt loops isn't a bad rule of thumb.
3) We can aim for 31 3/4" without a problem, just let us know at the time you order thats what you want. I'd say a 3/4 gap is probably best between the holes if 1" is too far apart for you. We have done 1/2" holes before but I do think it will shorten the life of the belt. Maybe 5/8" as a compromise? 5 rather than 7 holes is fine
4) Both shoes are some where between Australian Nut and Dark Havanna, probably closer to Dark Havanna I'd say. I can happily send you samples to look at if you like?
5) The boots have brass fittings so brass would compliment them. I'd say satin is the less formal of the finishes, but the metal choice is down to your taste really and the rest of the metal you'll wear. The nickel is lovely and is my personal favourite, the stainless is extremely popular and the brass will give you the widest choice of buckles and widths. We have some very nice pewter 1 1/4" West Ends that might be worth a go - the colour of the stainless but the more refined shape and the lustour of the nickel. I always say buy the one that jumps out at you and gives you a gut feeling of I WANT THAT - doesn't matter what the rules say I don't think, buy what you love not what people tell you to have. The same advice goes on both leather type/colour and width. You should love what you own, not just be content with it
Hope this is some help,
Charlie
Sorry to have not seen the last few posts - I didn't get the normal notification emails and have been busy so haven't browsed as much as normal. My replies are below.
-----
To Gerry - Fab, glad you like it! The Bakers Australian Nut is a lovely leather, you really can't go wrong with it. Very nice photo as well!
----
To Naive - We can certainly make a Hazel Lined and Raised with contrasting thread, be it white or another colour. The belt would all have to be hazel, including the edges though, we can't do differential lining colours with it unfortunately. Regarding the Italian leather belts, we're going to keep them as a special order item I think, bridle leather is what we do best and I think we're going to stick to that for our core products. The big advantage of the Italian leather is we can make a much thinner belt, the Italian Lined and Raised higher up in the thread is only about 4 1/2mm thick so much more of a summer suit belt than our normal Lined and raised belts are. We can custom make you a belt in that style perfectly happily if thats the kind of thing your looking for?
----
To Jay687
The first thing I'd say is I'm about your hight so have some first hand experience. I'll try to answer your questions in order -
1) Either the West End or Kensington are fine for casual wear - personally I wear west Ends in various metals for nearly everything. The West End in my opinion is probably the smart of the two so if your own style is more formal I'd probably recommend the West End, but either belt is very suitable and certainly people wear both styles for both casual and formal wear.
2) I think 1 1/8" is fine for casual if thats the width you like, but I would tend to wear 1 1/4" for smarter chinos/cords and 1 1/2" for more casual things personally. If you feel thats too wide for you then maybe 1 1/8" and 1 1/4" would be right for you? If you have jeans that have loops for 1 1/2" belts they might look a bit empty with 1 1/8". Just my opinion - I started out wearing 1" belts years ago (I still have it as well, it was the first belt I made 16 years ago) and have gradually worn wider belts over the years and I think that filling the belt loops isn't a bad rule of thumb.
3) We can aim for 31 3/4" without a problem, just let us know at the time you order thats what you want. I'd say a 3/4 gap is probably best between the holes if 1" is too far apart for you. We have done 1/2" holes before but I do think it will shorten the life of the belt. Maybe 5/8" as a compromise? 5 rather than 7 holes is fine
4) Both shoes are some where between Australian Nut and Dark Havanna, probably closer to Dark Havanna I'd say. I can happily send you samples to look at if you like?
5) The boots have brass fittings so brass would compliment them. I'd say satin is the less formal of the finishes, but the metal choice is down to your taste really and the rest of the metal you'll wear. The nickel is lovely and is my personal favourite, the stainless is extremely popular and the brass will give you the widest choice of buckles and widths. We have some very nice pewter 1 1/4" West Ends that might be worth a go - the colour of the stainless but the more refined shape and the lustour of the nickel. I always say buy the one that jumps out at you and gives you a gut feeling of I WANT THAT - doesn't matter what the rules say I don't think, buy what you love not what people tell you to have. The same advice goes on both leather type/colour and width. You should love what you own, not just be content with it
Hope this is some help,
Charlie
The quality of the leather is fantastic and I have no doubt it will serve me well for years to come.
