Carmina Shoes - Definitive Thread (reviews, advice, sizing, etc...) - official thread.

[RogerP]

Oops wrong thread.

 

[Bakes11771]

shell is much worse now than a few decades ago. He blamed this primarily on horses being bred up too quickly these days.

I proposed this explanation in the Alden thread about 2 years ago, and it was scoffed at. I've come to realize that not everyone that appreciates nice shoes can understands elementary concepts of business, economics and manufacturing.

 

[NAMOR]

Navy shell bal boot. Shell is nice and thick

 

[Journeyman]



Navy shell bal boot. Shell is nice and thick

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

NAMOR, those are outstanding. Are they on the Robert or Forest last - and where did they come from?

 

[rc121]



Navy shell bal boot. Shell is nice and thick

wow, look wonderful in the sunlight

 

[NAMOR]

thanks guys. boots are on the robert last. mto from carmina directly before the mto surcharge increased

 

[NAMOR]

i kind of forgot i had them so when I pulled them out today i remembered why they havent been worn for 8 months:

after a little procedure of wipe, apply cream, apply venetian, bone, brush, wipe and voila:

what i used

 

[europrep]

Very nice namor

 

[RogerP]

Love that navy shell.

 

[Pastor]



i kind of forgot i had them so when I pulled them out today i remembered why they havent been worn for 8 months:

after a little procedure of wipe, apply cream, apply venetian, bone, brush, wipe and voila:

I bought my Carmina MTO navy shell single monk after seeing your boots. The navy shell on my looks the same as yours after some hard wear. These Carminas are difficult to maintain a good shine. They look good when polished but it's work keeping them up.

 

[wklq76a]



i kind of forgot i had them so when I pulled them out today i remembered why they havent been worn for 8 months:

Did you wear them through rough conditions to get them to that 'before' state? Or is that just bloom?

 

[RogerP]

I bought my Carmina MTO navy shell single monk after seeing your boots. The navy shell on my looks the same as yours after some hard wear. These Carminas are difficult to maintain a good shine. They look good when polished but it's work keeping them up.

That hasn't been the case with my navy shell wholecuts - they have been almost maintenance-free, take a nice shine and have never had that flat / chalky / waxy look.

But then I wouldn't call wearing them to / at / from the office "hard wear". I haven't really ever understood the application of that term to a dress shoe. What is the nature of the hard wear that your single monks have been subjected to?

namor - love the before / after shots.

 

[Pastor]



Did you wear them through rough conditions to get them to that 'before' state? Or is that just bloom?

That hasn't been the case with my navy shell wholecuts - they have been almost maintenance-free, take a nice shine and have never had that flat / chalky / waxy look.

But then I wouldn't call wearing them to / at / from the office "hard wear".  I haven't really ever understood the application of that term to a dress shoe.  What is the nature of the hard wear that your single monks have been subjected to?

namor - love the before / after shots.

By hard wear I mean wearing them out in foul weather or wearing them for multiple days in a row. I try to avoid both of those scenarios with all of my shoes but sometimes it's unavoidable. I travel to teach a college residency every year and I usually only take one pair of shoes with me. This past year I took the blue carminas and they looked a lot like NAMOR's at the end of the week. I don't think my Allen Edmonds or Alden shells would have looked that bad. Also, if then get wet, forget it, they look terrible. They shine up good and I'm still happy with them and I'll continue to buy Carminas in the future. My other Carmina shell shoes do not require as much maintenance.

 

[greverif]



By hard wear I mean wearing them out in foul weather or wearing them for multiple days in a row. I try to avoid both of those scenarios with all of my shoes but sometimes it's unavoidable. I travel to teach a college residency every year and I usually only take one pair of shoes with me. This past year I took the blue carminas and they looked a lot like NAMOR's at the end of the week. I don't think my Allen Edmonds or Alden shells would have looked that bad. Also, if then get wet, forget it, they look terrible. They shine up good and I'm still happy with them and I'll continue to buy Carminas in the future. My other Carmina shell shoes do not require as much maintenance.

I can relate to that. My carmina navy Shell looks much crappier then my cognac Shell looks when used in the same weather.

 

[RogerP]

By hard wear I mean wearing them out in foul weather or wearing them for multiple days in a row. I try to avoid both of those scenarios with all of my shoes but sometimes it's unavoidable. I travel to teach a college residency every year and I usually only take one pair of shoes with me. This past year I took the blue carminas and they looked a lot like NAMOR's at the end of the week. I don't think my Allen Edmonds or Alden shells would have looked that bad. Also, if then get wet, forget it, they look terrible. They shine up good and I'm still happy with them and I'll continue to buy Carminas in the future. My other Carmina shell shoes do not require as much maintenance.

Okay - fair enough - we wear them differently. I don't wear any shoe for two days in a row, much less multiple days, and generally don't select shell for sloppy weather. All of my shell shoes - Carmina, Alden and AE - require immediate after-wear attention when worn in wet or snowy conditions - very unattractive waxy spotting is the rule. It's not a problem that a quick application of Saphir Cordovan Cream doesn't solve, but I find I just more often go with calf or suede when the weather is bad.