Lacing shoes

So I just got my first pair of "nice" (i.e. leather-soled) dress shoes in the mail (Allen Edmonds, if you're curious) and was preparing to try them out when it dawned on me that I didn't really know what way to lace them up. What I ended up doing just own my on observation was take one lace, run it over the center and straight across a pair of parallel eyelets, then cross it under the gap and slant it across the center, skip a pair of eyelets (for the other lace), and then repeat the process. It looked sort of like this for one lace: o-----o / o / o / o-----o The end result was that over the center the laces were all straight and horizontal, and under the center gap they were criss-crossed. I think cursory research said it was "European" style. Anyway, I don't mean to seem fussy, but is there a specific proper way to lace one's shoes or does it not really matter at all?

Thanks for the compliment, they fit me really well, and I can't wait to wear them out somewhere. I was actually looking at a Lexington (in chestnut) at the same time and asked AE what the distinction was: mainly the Sanford has been discontinued for the past few years, and like you said the last was the only real difference in the models. The Sanford was cheaper, and I really liked the "bourbon" color so I opted for it instead. If I don't get caught up in the EG/C&J arms race that's been sweeping the board lately, I just might get another pair of AE's in the near future.

I sent an e-mail to AE asking what the "flaw" was, and they told me the model I got had some "uneven burnishing." When I looked at the uppers closely, I could see, for example, some spots where the finish had a few patches that stood out as slightly lighter or darker than the surrounding area. I assume that's what they referring to, though I should note that none of these "flaws" were really visible until I held the shoe up at eye level and examined it all over. If it is in fact a flaw, I don't really notice or care for the most part, and I imagine you wouldn't either if you bought a pair for walking in the rain. Hope that helps.

I found this lacing info site while messing around on google. What I did would match the Straight European style. I assume Koskov is talking about the Straight (Fashion) or Straight (Lazy) style, but I base that mainly on his mention of a requirement of an even number of eyelets. For entertainment value check (no pun intended) out the intricate checkerboard lacing pattern listed at the bottom of the page: if you click the link, the guy even has photo examples. I may have to try that with a pair of old sneakers.