We would like to welcome House of Huntington as an official Affiliate Vendor. Shop past season Drake's, Nigel Cabourn, Private White V.C. and other menswear luxury brands at exceptional prices below retail. Please visit the Houise of Huntington thread and welcome them to the forum.
STYLE. COMMUNITY. GREAT CLOTHING.
Bored of counting likes on social networks? At Styleforum, you’ll find rousing discussions that go beyond strings of emojis.
Click Here to join Styleforum's thousands of style enthusiasts today!
Styleforum is supported in part by commission earning affiliate links sitewide. Please support us by using them. You may learn more here.
Legend.
That seems to be one of the more disturbing trends in menswear (yes, even more than some of the horrors we've seen in Pitti street photography).
The problem with the artisanal concept in an Internet world is that it is self-defeating. Let's say I run a one-person, bespoke shoe operation somewhere in Central Europe. Someone buys a pair of my shoes, posts them on SF. Everyone goes, "where can I kop", and within no time, my order ledger is more than full. Now, I've got a choice: I either up prices to reduce the demand, or hire another person to increase my production. In the short run, however, that will cost me in productivity, as I need to train this person, etc. etc. Also, it increases my overhead as I need to start paying someone else a salary, so that will also result in a price increase. Similar things happened to the brands and producers that got picked up by SF and other websites, such as Drakes, Liverano, WW Chan, Crockett & Jones, etc. Sometimes, the next step is a corporate takeover, as the business is now so profitable that it becomes a clever investment. There are two ways to stay ahead of the curve: purchase from new artisans when they are discovered and stay with artisans that give you "old customer prices". Another thing you could think of is localizing your strategy. In the UK, for example, there's an increasing number of traveling tailors who provide their services at the fraction of Savile Row cost. There are great tiemakers popping up everywhere on the Internet. I have a friend who's become his own shirtmaker. In other words, you're not IN traffic, you ARE traffic.
I think they just use the reverse side. I've seen some nice ones.
Would love someone who knows to explain this finish.
No, it is actual the outside of alligator/crocodile leather which got sanded or sand-blasted to achieve a matte finish. Market leader in unusual finishes for exotic leathers is Roggwiller (formerly "Tannerie Des Cuirs D'Indochine Et De Madagascar") which is owned by Hermes. (They used to have a web-site, but they have taken it down. Probably got too many hits by dunces like me, who were only ooh-ing and aah-ing.)
Two GazianoGirling samples in sueded alligator:
I have seen samples of sueded shark and elephant leather.
There probably are other tanneries which offer unorthodox and unusual finishes. I'm sure, a visit to one of the main leather fairs would show a lot of interesting stuff.