• Hi, I am the owner and main administrator of Styleforum. If you find the forum useful and fun, please help support it by buying through the posted links on the forum. Our main, very popular sales thread, where the latest and best sales are listed, are posted HERE

    Purchases made through some of our links earns a commission for the forum and allows us to do the work of maintaining and improving it. Finally, thanks for being a part of this community. We realize that there are many choices today on the internet, and we have all of you to thank for making Styleforum the foremost destination for discussions of menswear.
  • This site contains affiliate links for which Styleforum may be compensated.
  • 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.

Shoe Antiquing

RIDER

Distinguished Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2004
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
147
So, we had an 'Italian Street Fair' this weekend here in Richmond and the shop asked me to go and do some of my antiquing work at the fair. Not exactly used to people observing and asking questions as I work, but here are a couple of shoes I was doing this weekend....not finished, and alot of dust was blowing around on the street, but I thought it would be good to see some of the results that a few hours work can bring. One of the local tv stations filmed it....don't know if it aired or not - was too tired to stay up until the newscast last night. The lace-ups started as solid tan, I was just doing the antiquing in contrast as a demo...one man watched me on Saturday and came on Sunday and ordered a pair done the same way (different!) in his size -

4rsuv8.jpg
[/IMG]

2py8ehx.jpg
[/IMG]

2up37f5.jpg
[/IMG]

szjrcj.jpg
[/IMG]

2q3ar74.jpg
[/IMG]

wlsj6e.jpg
[/IMG]

Ron
 

wgiceman

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 3, 2006
Messages
179
Reaction score
10
Those look fantastic! Can you briefly detail the steps you took to do this? I would like to try it on a pair or two. If I can get results even half as good as this, I would be ecstatic.
 

Panzeraxe II

Timed Out
Timed Out
Joined
May 6, 2006
Messages
1,080
Reaction score
10
Originally Posted by wgiceman
Those look fantastic! Can you briefly detail the steps you took to do this? I would like to try it on a pair or two. If I can get results even half as good as this, I would be ecstatic.

Amazing work! I would have an interest in learning the steps as well.
 

nmoraitis

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 18, 2006
Messages
947
Reaction score
15
+1
 

RJman

Posse Member
Dubiously Honored
Spamminator Moderator
Joined
Dec 10, 2004
Messages
19,158
Reaction score
2,082
Wow, you can call those "Riderlutis"...
 

ragdoll

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 15, 2005
Messages
236
Reaction score
0
Ron

You should start an 'antique-ing' service. I'd send you a couple of pairs of JLs that need a little something extra....
 

lasbar

Stylish Dinosaur
Joined
Oct 13, 2006
Messages
22,718
Reaction score
1,322
Rider work is simply Berlutesque....Very good antiquing job...

A guy in Paris is making a few euros doing exactly that...
 

Thurston

Distinguished Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2006
Messages
1,176
Reaction score
2
Originally Posted by wgiceman
Those look fantastic! Can you briefly detail the steps you took to do this? I would like to try it on a pair or two. If I can get results even half as good as this, I would be ecstatic.

+400
 

DunninLA

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2007
Messages
62
Reaction score
0
That is really a great look, on all the shoes.

I have read a few posts about antiquing. Seems it usually involves a little black or also Navy Cordovan creams. I second the request for a recipe-style narrative on antiquing a brown shoe.

I have a pair of inexpensive Santoni Brenden that I would like to see about antiquing much darker... perhaps like an EG Dark Oak color.

Here is a pic. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...ayphotohosting

Are these already too dark to get the proper contrasting that makes antiquing look so good?

Does the stitching around the apron absorb the polish? I had thought it did but I see the stitching on your shoes is still white, and I can't imagine how you could achieve that look and still avoid getting dark polish on the stitching.

Last question! On the balmoral, it looks like the leather under the medallion punching is still light... except for one of the punch holes. I assume one must be very careful with punched areas not to let the dark polish touch it?
 

Shikar

Distinguished Member
Joined
Aug 12, 2007
Messages
3,062
Reaction score
66
*Ron's guide to Antiquing*, would be nice!!

Regards, Azam.
 

Tarmac

Distinguished Member
Joined
Mar 19, 2006
Messages
7,134
Reaction score
39
Beautiful work. If you do reveal your method, this should be stickied as the definitive antiquing thread.
 

RIDER

Distinguished Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2004
Messages
1,357
Reaction score
147
Can you briefly detail the steps you took to do this?
Amazing work! I would have an interest in learning the steps as well.
Beautiful work. If you do reveal your method, this should be stickied as the definitive antiquing thread.
I accept Paypal......
devil.gif


You should start an 'antique-ing' service.
I've done this for years.....just never mentioned it here, I don't think. It takes me about 2-4 hours per pair and I charge $100-$200, depending on the time. I started doing this type of work about 15 years ago when Church's opened a shop in Baltimore and they did not sell cordovan shoes, and only a few dark brown models. Customers would bring new shoes up to our shop (we had a regular street shop and the best shoe repair in Baltimore based out of the basement in the downtown area) to be dyed darker as most of the models they sold were tan or black. It was always just side cash for me and something to do on Saturdays when we had little or no business. One time I really botched a guys' shoes and I thought for sure I would have to buy him a new pair, but he ended up liking them and brought me more to 'screw up'. I thought it was pretty cool and started playing around with different things....kind of taught myself. Of course now it's called 'patina', or 'antiquing', or 'verigated'....then it was just a mistake.

Really, doing 'antiquing' work is easier than plain finishes....don't have to hurry as much. And now that I have hired a salesman and am not traveling much at all, I am around the shop here more and doing these things in a more 'visable' way. Never really stopped though.

Maybe I will put together something with pictures on the process....I don't know, though - took me a long time to learn myself.

Wow, you can call those "Riderlutis"...
But then I would have to find a way to get the finish to crack! Can I charge more for that?
 

luk-cha

Distinguished Member
Dubiously Honored
Joined
Jun 1, 2006
Messages
4,530
Reaction score
83
+1 i would like to learn how to do this i think a how to youtube is called for!
icon_gu_b_slayer[1].gif
icon_gu_b_slayer[1].gif
 

acidboy

Stylish Dinosaur
Spamminator Moderator
Joined
Mar 13, 2006
Messages
19,672
Reaction score
1,555
Wow. Perhaps even an online tutorial, Mr. Rider. Please?
 

Featured Sponsor

How important is full vs half canvas to you for heavier sport jackets?

  • Definitely full canvas only

    Votes: 45 40.5%
  • Half canvas is fine

    Votes: 44 39.6%
  • Really don't care

    Votes: 5 4.5%
  • Depends on fabric

    Votes: 18 16.2%
  • Depends on price

    Votes: 25 22.5%

Staff online

Forum statistics

Threads
504,436
Messages
10,573,971
Members
223,697
Latest member
Martinezeye
Top