***The official Alden thread *** Share enthusiasm, reviews, sizing, advice, and photos.

[roboterkampf]

Sadly, we need to remove our shoes at airports now, so I guess that solves that problem

 

[Pastor]

Does anyone know if the Cigar Indy boots at the NYC Madison store have commando soles?

 

[advan031]



Wearing my Indy 405s to work today since it's raining in Baltimore. These have been my trusty bad weather/adverse conditions footwear since 2003, and were my first pair of Alden shoes. I've taken them to Japan and back three times, now - super dependable and good for all-day travel. (always take an extra pair of laces - when you are on the other side of the world and your laces snap against a speed hook in a restaurant you're leaving, you're effed). Man, there's nothing like your first pair.

Very nice looking 405!!! My 403 still looks fairly new.

 

[NotClever]

hey guys do you think i will be able to fit in a aberdeen last in 8c if im wearing alden indy in trublance last in 7.5d?

Depends how narrow your foot is, but I wouldn't risk it. Aberdeen is their narrowest last if I'm not mistaken. It fits me TTS, so perhaps if you're on the narrow side of D you could fit. However, especially in cordovan, which doesn't stretch much, it's a risk.

I'm about to invest in a new pair of dress boot. Either cap toe or wing tip - I'm either going to get calf leather or cordovan. But I have never owned cordovan - I know how to live with and care for regular leather but I'm a little worried about living with and caring for with cordovan. It will be a big expense.

Any thoughts or experiences will be helpful. Do creases bother you? The changing hue over time? I'm looking into color 8.

Yeah it's super easy to care for compared to calf. No real polishing, just buff it up with a brush and cloth and you're good to go the majority of the time. Everyone obviously swears by the mac method, which advocates only using wax every 15 to 20 wears and even then using just a dab of wax.

The color changing hue is one of the big reasons to like cordovan, IMO. It looks quite unique as it ages. I think color 8 tends to both darken and lighten, but I've only got one pair so take me with a grain of salt. Once they break in they fit like a glove. They do squeak a bit while walking, but I don't think it's too noticeable.

Oh and to top it off I find out there is no way in hell a Barrier last fits the same as a truebalance... I wear an 11.5d in true balance and the 11.5d Barrier was squeezing my foot to death

Heh, sizing is weird. I'm a 10D in Trubalance and a 10C in Barrie.

 

[FrankCowperwood]



Wearing my Indy 405s to work today since it's raining in Baltimore. These have been my trusty bad weather/adverse conditions footwear since 2003, and were my first pair of Alden shoes. I've taken them to Japan and back three times, now - super dependable and good for all-day travel. (always take an extra pair of laces - when you are on the other side of the world and your laces snap against a speed hook in a restaurant you're leaving, you're effed). Man, there's nothing like your first pair.

Those look great. The wear on them suits the style. My original pair of Aldens is actually a pair of their lace ups from the Cape Cod collection. It was a transition from LL Bean moccasins. Nothing fancy. Had them resoled once, and recently discovered pitch blend to care for them. Don't wear them that much anymore as my shoe collection has expanded quite a bit (mostly shell Aldens), but they've proved to be an excellent buy. As your Indys seem to have been for you. Continue enjoying them.

 

[FrankCowperwood]



Alden makes a normal "wingtip" balmoral
http://www.aldenshoes.com/Store/DrawProducts.aspx?CategoryID=95&ParentID=94&PageID=&Action=
And they will also do a "shortwing" in a special makeup that is very similar to the RL Marlows
http://leathersoulhawaii.com/2011/09/12/alden-shoes-8-shortwing-for-style-forum-lsw-lsbh/
I've only seem the "Atom" done for Leffot and Tassels - it is very similar to the Church's Grafton I posted earlier
http://www.tassels.com.hk/en/made_to_order_details.php?id=66
The Obscura captoes also borrowed heavily from the old Atom (they basically but a captoe up front instead of a wingtip pattern)
http://www.gq.com/style/blogs/the-g...bscura-magazine-x-alden-boot-and-wingtip.html

Thanks, that helps explain it. I happen to think it's a nice looking shoe. I could see picking one up someday in the right makeup. I guess if someone offered it to me in #4 I'd have to take it, just to be able to show it off.

 

[PorterInjax]

Wearing my LS short wings again. Once last week and again this week. So, another pic of them

 

[bucksfan]

Do you own cordovans? This may sound strange - but how are they to live with? When you are out and you look down at your shoes - what do you think? Are you pleased? How does the leather feel after they are broken in? Thanks...

I actually have 9 pair of shell cordovans, both shoes and boots. For the majority of them, a damp cloth and a horsehair brush at the end of the day makes them look good as new. I have two pair that have the dreaded "welting" problem if they get wet (the spots where water droplets sit on the shoes raise temporarily). For these, I try to be careful and not get stuck in the rain - but if I do, a good drying out, followed by an application of Saphir Renovateur or the AE cordovan cream seems to get rid of the marks.

Shell is much tougher than calf dress shoes. The leather itself has a tighter grain, is much less porus than other leathers, and during the tanning process is "hot stuffed" with oils and fats. This makes it less permeable to liquids and more able to handle the bumps and scuffs that come along with daily wear.

What do I think about my shoes when I look down at them? I am proud to be wearing them. Even when scuffed up at the end of a day, they look so much better than a similar pair of calf shoes.

I wear each pair of shells 3x as much as each pair of my calf shoes, and the calf shoes still look older and more beat up.

Shell begins its life a little stiffer than calf, but quickly softens up and after a while fits more like a slipper in my opinion. I also really like the patina that shell develops over time.

The one place I still use calf shoes almost exclusively is with fine wool suits - I have a couple pair of black calf shoes in appropriate styles for those situations.

 

[brokeassp]



hey guys do you think i will be able to fit in a aberdeen last in 8c if im wearing alden indy in trublance last in 7.5d?

You will need Aberdeen 7.5E or 8D

Yup this is what I did.
People usually recommend sizing 1/2 down for the trublance/modified last due to the rounder, wider toe box but instead of sizing down in length, just size down in width. Ie. If you`re 7.5E in Aberdeen/Plaza, go down to a 7.5D for the Indy. YMMV though.

 

[advan031]



The color changing hue is one of the big reasons to like cordovan, IMO. It looks quite unique as it ages. I think color 8 tends to both darken and lighten, but I've only got one pair so take me with a grain of salt. Once they break in they fit like a glove. They do squeak a bit while walking, but I don't think it's too noticeable.

I absolutely love this about Color 8 as it's almost like breaking in a pair of raw denim. I kept looking at my cap toe yesterday...lol

 

[lagsun]



Act fast, and you can get the Aldens off J Crew for 25% off. They allowed me to add them to cart, and 'HOLIDAY' still works even though the deadline has passed.

Thanks for the heads up. I had a couple of sweaters in the cart that I was considering. Saw your post and added the snuff LWB I've been going back and forth on. Let's see if they honor the 25% off as they aren't supposed to ship until end of Feb.

 

[mr chorizo]

http://www.gq.com/style/blogs/the-g...he-street-five-fresh-flea-goers.html#comments

whiskey LWB on senor plett? looks very dark...

 

[poena]



Thanks for the heads up. I had a couple of sweaters in the cart that I was considering. Saw your post and added the snuff LWB I've been going back and forth on. Let's see if they honor the 25% off as they aren't supposed to ship until end of Feb.

did you get the discount to show in cart? I am not able to get discount to shoe in cart with code "HOLIDAY"

 

[lagsun]

Yes but I ordered last night around 9:50 pacific time. Another person posted J.Crew closed the loophole....

 

[zissou]

Yeah, the code no longer works. Glad it worked out for a few of you guys.

I ordered the alpine black LWB with the first sale a few weeks ago, and the order has just said 'releasable', which means that they will ship out as soon as they arrive at J Crew.