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

[hohneokc]



Congrats on a new pair...but just out of curiosity, how does one wear 36 pairs? Do they get even rotation? Are there any you no longer wear? Not trying to be offensive, just bloody curious! Also, would love to see sole pics!

I have some that are summer only, some that are winter only, and some that are year round. The boots are winter weekends and the boat shoes are summer weekends.

On the non-boot / boat shoes, I never wear the same pair in a week and rarely wear that same pair in a month. Some days it's 2 pair - one to work and one out after work. Some do not get a lot of wear now - the black Park Avenues have been worn maybe 1-2 times in the past year as I don't wear suits to work any more.

I had a couple of pair that did not fit well (I was trying some different lasts). We recently hired a guy out of college and I found out he wears the same size as I do. He was wearing less expensive shoes the typical recent college graduate wears. These 2 pair fit him perfectly, so he got a jump start on his AE collection with 2 relatively new pairs of shoes.

Chris

 

[Numbernine]



I found that the finer grit clogged with the removed dressing pretty quickly. So, I had better results with the 80 grit (medium) paper to actually remove the dressing. After i had removed all of the dressing, i went over the edge with the 200 grit (fine) paper to smooth out the leather. I would like to know if anyone has had any success with Renovateur or another product as the sanding was quite tedious.

Ive done this a number of times I use acetone just be very careful to keep it off the upper

 

[g-banger]



So if I use a tiny Q-Tip (or small-tip screw driver) to nourish the Brogue holes - what Saphir color or product do I use in the leather holes to maintain the darker contrast?  Or do I use Saphir Renovateur?

David

Hi mate,

no i didnt use anything, i just spent more time brushing the brogue holes to darken them.

I think I may do this as well. Did you use AE cream polish or Saphir? To mirror what another said, if you used Saphir, which colors?

what brand polish did you use? Cream not wax I assume? I would love more detailed info.

Thanks!

Okay here are the steps i took to darken my Walnut strands:

1. Polished them with Collonil Leather Conditioner to clean them
2. I then used Collonil Waterstop Colors Shoe Cream in Mid Brown (only mid brown cream available at cobblers locally)
3. I applied approx. 4-5 coats of this on the shoes over a few weeks, letting them dry 2-3 days between each. Im sure you could do it every day if you wanted to.
4. After the coats of the mid brown cream, i got a little annoyed that there hasn't been much progress so bit the bullet and started to use Herring Shoes Dark Brown Wax i received with my herring shoes.
5. Over the course of a month i would have applied 5 coats of Dark Brown wax on these, i was becoming pleased with the results so i then put some leather conditioner on them to clean them.
6. i was going to apply a another coat but noticed I ran out of herring dark brown wax, luckily i received my meermin shoes with Dark Brown Saphir wax inside.
8. Applied 2 more coats of Dark brown Saphir wax on them letting them dry 1-2 days between coats.
9. Applied one last coat of leather conditioner.
10. Done

I hope that helps! remember just keep applying until you are happy with the results.

Cheers

 

[DerangedGoose]

Just to clarify, Allen Edmonds will NOT recraft Brooks Brothers or Ralph Lauren shoes, even though they produced them?

 

[New Shoes1]

Just to clarify, Allen Edmonds will recraft AE's made for Brooks Brothers, but will not recraft AE made for Ralph Lauren.

FTFY.

 

[DerangedGoose]

Thanks for the clarification. Any particular reason why?

 

[New Shoes1]

No, not really. The real reason is that RL and Brooks Brothers have to sign agreements to have their shoes eligible recrafting and, for whatever reason, RL has chosen not to do so.

 

[mediahound]

Interesting, b/c Alden will recraft the Alden Brooks Brothers models no problem.

 

[Cold Iron]

Interesting, b/c Alden will recraft the Alden Brooks Brothers models no problem.

Ahh such a confused sole soul....

Well played New Shoes1, very well played good sir.

Nice to see 3 shell Strands today

 

[DerangedGoose]

A juicy tidbit, newshoes! Though hyperbole, Im sure the fashion world still works in this way, to some extent.

If anything it I could see how AE wouldnt recraft anything that doesnt have their name on it. If you are faced with the choice of AE models or 3rd party under contract, you might decide to spring for the AE knowing they can be recrafted.

Also, can anyone comment on the boardroom in person? From what I understand it is simply a park avenue on the roomier 7 last. I have kenilworths in size 11 on the 5 last and enjoy the slender profile. someone posted a picture of their Boardrooms and with the added girth of the 7 last, the toecap looked a little stubby...but it may also be because their shoe was a smaller size. I am considering the boardroom in brown. Is a brown captoe an anachronism? Is it too formal for jeans and untucked shirts?

 

[marmot8]

Gentlemen,

Thanks to this thread, I recently started my journey into the world of AE and have acquired three pair since the beginning of the year. Having some sizing issues (please see below).

The collection:






My first purchase was a pair of Verona. I tried on both the 11D and the 11.5D and decided to go with the 11.5D, planning to use a tongue insert. I have yet to wear them (got them for a summer internship) and am now considering if the sizing is wrong. Does anyone know if they come in 11E? The website doesn't list E for this shoe in any sizes, but perhaps they're sold out (unlikely, I know).








Next, I scored a pair of Patriot off "the Bay" for $60 with shipping. They seem to be in great shape, but are perhaps a bit tight width-wise, though also maybe in length. I'm going to wear them a few more times and see if they break in any more- it doesn't look like the previous owner wore them many times.









Finally, I just purchased the BB Strand over the weekend through the friends and family sale. For this one, I was able to try on 11.5D, 11D and 11E and think the 11E fits perfectly. Not sure if that helps gauge what size I should be in the others.





Thanks all- I have appreciated everyone's expert advice.

Best,
marmot8

 

[rickrone]

Just to clarify, Allen Edmonds will NOT recraft Brooks Brothers or Ralph Lauren shoes, even though they produced them?

they will resole, but not to sure on recrafting. i would give them a call.

 

[Veridis]

Walnut and Bourbon Strands, walnut Cliftons.
The bourbon is actually much darker than walnut, which is a surprise to me.

(The walnut strand is 5 months old.)

 

[MoneyWellSpent]

Walnut and Bourbon Strands, walnut Cliftons.
The bourbon is actually much darker than walnut, which is a surprise to me.

(The walnut strand is 5 months old.)

That is a fantastic picture!

 

[AdamAdam]



I wore my Mcallister shoes for the first time today and they are very comfortable in general, but I noticed that the insole is no completely flat and that in the part of ball of my foot has a little bump which I think it's there to acommodate the shape of the foot which is great because my left shoe fits perfectly, not so my right one. My right foot is slimmer than the right one so that bump doesn't acommodate the way it should. Nothing serious though

Same issue here except my left foot is about .5 size larger. I have two pair of McAllister which were purchased about a month apart. I noticed the bump in both. It has seemed to go down in the older pair that I've worn about a dozen times. The new pair I wore for the first time today and noticed the bump in my left shoe..