Allen Edmonds Appreciation Thread - reviews, pictures, sizing, etc...

[DJTraveler]

Brown Cronmoks today. My absolute favorite casual boot.

 

[captstatic]

Wearing my Jefferson Walnut Burnished Calf shoes today.

Cheers,
Chris

 

[jjr4884]

Merlot McAllisters today

Need to figure out what colored laces will work with these. Surprisingly I'm having a brain fart thinking what color I can use with them. Red would look nice, but idk.. tough to think of a contrasting color i.e. orange laces on my bourbon strands, purple on walnut strands...

Thoughts?

 

[NamlikeaG6]

Could someone please help me on this. Is the only difference between the Clifton and the Kenilworth is the captoe and broguing on the Clifton? Kenilworth is the plain version of it?

The Kenilworth looks a little chiseled at the toe, is this true?

I can't decide between AE's or Meermin's classic line...

Thank you.

 

[kmdsimpson]



Could someone please help me on this. Is the only difference between the Clifton and the Kenilworth is the captoe and broguing on the Clifton? Kenilworth is the plain version of it? 

The Kenilworth looks a little chiseled at the toe, is this true? 

I can't decide between AE's or Meermin's classic line...

Thank you.

Yes, Clifton is a captoe and Kenilworth is not.

Bigger difference is the last, so they may fit differently. Kenilworth in on the 5 last. The Clifton is on the 8 last. Clifton not on the AE site anymore, but Nordstrom sells it.

Look at pics here and also the last descriptions:

Kenilworth: http://www.allenedmonds.com/aeonline/producti_SF8005_1_40000000001_-1
Clifton: http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/allen-edmonds-clifton-oxford/2892042?pprd=0
Lasts: http://www.allenedmonds.com/aeonline/AllAboutLastsView?catalogId=40000000001&langId=-1&storeId=1

Oh, and bit advantage of AE vs. Meermin is shipping and returns (AE being in the US), especially if you have not tried on the shoes before.

 

[MoneyWellSpent]

Would you say the same for the BB strand?
It too has poron instead of cork.

Pretty sure both have cork midsoles.

Nope. Spoke to the AE factory and store and both said the Brooks Bros versions had poron instead of cork and in addition also had a topy half sole.

I believe you mean to say that it has poron instead of a leather insole. The midsole, or the section that would be visible upon removing the leather outsole (and sole guard), would still be cork. At least, that's how I heard it.

That seems to be the consensus. It is obvious from viewing the BB vs. AE shoes that the insole is different and I believe everything below that is the same, excepting the rubber topy on the BB.

You know you might be right. I just called Adam from the outlet to ask about this but he didn't know..
Where did you get this info from?
If you're right it would only make me love the shoe that much more.

I can't exactly pin down a source, but you could follow this line of thought...

-BB makes no mention of midsole, only the insole.
-AE offers the same shoe design from their website.
-AE allows you to customize the shoe by adding a combination sole like the BB version.
-AE allows you to customize the shoe by replacing the leather insole with poron like the BB version.
-AE constructs shoes with a cork midsole (applied hot).
-AE does not allow you to choose a different midsole, even if you call.

I think it would be odd to have a poron midsole, and I doubt AE modified their fabrication process to include one.

Also, if you search the internet for information on AE for BB shoes having cork midsoles, there will be plenty of references, including statements that the cork would mold to the wearer's foot (like the regular AE).

Guys, there is no question about the shoes having a cork midsole. This has been addressed quite a few times in the last several months regarding the difference between the BB and regular AE shoes. Do a "search this thread" for "poron insole" and you will find plenty of results. We are talking about a basic anatomy issue of goodyear-welted shoes. All goodyear-welted shoes have a canvas rib (gemming) that is bonded to the bottom of the insole. This rib stands perpendicular to the bottom of the insole. This rib is what the welt is stitched to, and when the sole is mated with the welt, there is a void that is left between the insole and the outsole due to the canvas rib. This void has to be filled, and cork is considered the standard filler. It has the best characteristics to serve this purpose, and all goodyear-welted shoes by all brands at the AE level and above use it. Poron is more expensive than cork, so it would make little sense that they would substitute it as a void filler. Not to mention that it would require an additional factory floor step to use Poron because it is a foam that would have to be cut to size to fill the void, while the cork is heated in a soft granulated form that is put in a spread with a trowel to fill the void in one easy step. Some high end companies use cork sheets that they cut to size rather than granulated cork paste (St. Crispin's and JM Weston to name a couple), but they have to custom cut the sheets to fit into the void. You can change the material that the insole is made of, but you don't get rid of the void underneath it. So the BB version simply has a fiberboard insole rather than a natural leather insole like other AE's have. This fiberboard insole is then covered with a thin piece of Poron foam that is wrapped with a very thin piece of leather. The Poron cushion is glued on top of the fiberboard insole. This insole variation and the rubber topy sole with dovetail heel are the only differences between the traditional AE's and the BB versions. There aren't any other differences.

 

[TurboTropic]

Can't believe I missed the Shoebank sale again. Is there a mailing list so that I can stay informed?

 

[cbtaylor]

Can't believe I missed the Shoebank sale again. Is there a mailing list so that I can stay informed?

My local store emails me periodically, so a store could put you on a list, probably the Shoebank too

 

[kmdsimpson]



Can't believe I missed the Shoebank sale again. Is there a mailing list so that I can stay informed?

There is not an official mailing list. If you get to know a sales associate, they sometimes send out emails notifying of sales coming up. But your best source is likely this thread.

Inventory varies wildly, too, so best thing to do is to email the Shoebank periodically and ask what they have in your size. They will send an Excel output showing what's in their inventory.

 

[TheSizzle]

... This void has to be filled, and cork is considered the standard filler. It has the best characteristics to serve this purpose, and all goodyear-welted shoes by all brands at the AE level and above use it. Poron is more expensive than cork, so it would make little sense that they would substitute it as a void filler...

That's exactly what I was saying. I'm surprised it's still a question for some people, but everyone learns about shoe construction at their own pace.

 

[maxmaxmaxmax]



Yeah, my outside pics look close to walnut, while my inside pic looks pretty brown. I think it's fair to say they're pretty in between.

I have so few shoes that I still need to diversify and so wouldn't get the same shoe in "adjacent" colors, but for those that already have one of everything they might be a nice addition.

I've just ordered a pair of the Strand in bourbon into a local store. They won't be here for 4-6 weeks. In the meantime, I've been looking at various pics on the web of these shoes. I've noticed that in most pictures they look like a brown colour in between the brown burnished calf and the walnut, which is just what I'm after. In other pics, such as the "indoor" shot linked above, they look like they have a yellow-green undertone, which I don't particularly like. This can be seen in other pics of bourbon shoes on occasion as well.

Could owners of the recent bourbon coloured shoes from AE comment on which tends to be a more "true" representation of the colour? There are so many variables over the net including the colour balance of my monitors.

Thanks in advance for your replies.

J

 

[nicedream]

FYI - 3 new styles were added to the site: Boca Raton, Lake Forest, and Winter Park. The latter two are from the orthotic line, but they use the "1-511G" last instead of 8-678 like the previous orthotics used. There is nothing on the All About Lasts page about 1-511G, but I'm guessing it's the same as the 1-511 but a little deeper to accommodate the insole.

And speaking of insoles, I saw these shoes last weekend at the new Philadelphia store, and the 2 new orthotic shoes have a new insole. It is more rigid than the previous one, with defined arch support.

 

[MoneyWellSpent]

That's exactly what I was saying. I'm surprised it's still a question for some people, but everyone learns about shoe construction at their own pace.

Quite true! It's not a big interest for some people, so they just don't catch on as quickly. I actually got into the high end shoe market because of interest from a quality of construction standpoint, so I spent inordinate amounts of time studying shoe building techniques and then became interested in the style as a secondary perk. I needed to know why I was justifying spending so much more when many of the styles can be found with cheaper brands.

 

[Winston S.]



The sale actually ended over the weekend and has been supplanted by a much less impressive 15% off sale.  The posters above found a nice salesperson somewhere who would still honor the $130 Sanderson price.  If interested, you might want to jump on them.

As a follow up, the shoe bank is out of the McAllisters in my size.  The salesman advised that I try to find a good shoe shine guy and send them back if he couldn't take care of it.  Given the picture above, does repair seem remotely possible?  For $130, I could almost go for some sort of redye experiment.  I imagine there has to be someone in Manhattan competent for that sort of thing.

Bring them in to B. Nelson/VIP Shoe Restorers. Nick has been honest to posters here about about whether or not something can and should be done.

 

[NamlikeaG6]

Thank you very much for the informative reply.

I think I like the look of the Clifton more because the roundish shape of the "opening" on the Kenilworth is too dull and boring for my liking. The Clifton seems a bit more fun and interesting for casual wear at the office (chinos and OCBD) I can't decide between the walnut and burnished burgundy/brown though. Brown goes with more pants color because walnut and charcoal pants doesn't go very well together to me.

Also, is the Kenilworth a little chiseled at the toe? It doesn't seem to have the fuller, more perfectly round toe that the Clifton has.

You are right about Meermin but their price is lower for classic line (around 220 including shipping) and their lasts and offering is more attractive/sleeker as well.

Thanks again.