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

[Winston S.]



Any advice on what action to take on my new fifth streets? First time outing with them, I noticed a split on the heel. Sorry for the bad pictures, I'm at work, and only have a phone camera at the moment.

Spoiler

Another picture for first time outing

Spoiler

You can send them back to AE, but it would be quicker to just take them to a shoe repair store and they can probably fix you up with no fuss.

 

[ReppTiePrepster]

Quote:

Sounds more like something Charlie Brown would discover about himself!

 

[ESElrond]



I think just the conditioner/cleaner is fine for these. I just don't really have a need to wear grey shoes at this point. Every time I wear them, my daughter makes fun of me. LOL I was thinking of experimenting with a heavy dose of black polish on them to see what happens. Do you think I can make a pair of black shoes from them or would I just destroy them?

If black is what you want, send them to B Nelson and have then dye them for you. Polish will work for a while but will be inconsistent.

I personally think it would destroy them. I'm not really sure that they can take polish like a normal calf shoe

edit:I agree with jermyn on dying them, it would probably look a lot better than polishing

I think you'd kill them.

I wear mine regularly with jeans and street wear. In fact, it's my go-to with-denim shoe when I'm at divier music clubs.

I own a pair of Aberdeen longwings and a pair of Pierpont saddle shoes that both use the same smokey grey leather. They take polish just fine -- I've used neutral on both pairs -- so it's not necessary to avoid polish entirely. Applying a darker polish certainly shouldn't "destroy" them, at least in terms of compromising the leather itself.

Having a cobbler dye them would probably be your safest bet, but if you're going to try to darken them yourself you should initially focus on using cream rather than paste, due to the dye concentration. If you use multiple thin layers of cream and let it sink fully into the leather between applications, you'll probably get the most significant effect. You might end up with a deep charcoal rather than black, though, and there's no easy way to tell how much the shade might vary over the shoes.


Personally, I am quite happy with the appearance of both of my pairs. When I applied an initial coat of conditioner, the color variations already present upon arrival were amplified, resulting in a burnished appearance with a darker toe-box, etc. Applying neutral polish over top of that seems to have "locked in" their appearance fairly well, which hasn't changed too much since.

 

[David Copeland]

When tying my shoes, the loops of the laces always seem to line up vertically along the shoe instead of a more pleasant looking horizontal bow. Does anyone else have this problem? What am I doing wrong?

 

[ZACKMORRIS]

Here are a few pictures of what I consider to be defects in my new AE's. I could see them going as seconds.. but not as perfectly new firsts.

 

[md2010]



I own a pair of Aberdeen longwings and a pair of Pierpont saddle shoes that both use the same smokey grey leather. They take polish just fine -- I've used neutral on both pairs -- so it's not necessary to avoid polish entirely. Applying a darker polish certainly shouldn't "destroy" them, at least in terms of compromising the leather itself.

Having a cobbler dye them would probably be your safest bet, but if you're going to try to darken them yourself you should initially focus on using cream rather than paste, due to the dye concentration. If you use multiple thin layers of cream and let it sink fully into the leather between applications, you'll probably get the most significant effect. You might end up with a deep charcoal rather than black, though, and there's no easy way to tell how much the shade might vary over the shoes.


Personally, I am quite happy with the appearance of both of my pairs. When I applied an initial coat of conditioner, the color variations already present upon arrival were amplified, resulting in a burnished appearance with a darker toe-box, etc. Applying neutral polish over top of that seems to have "locked in" their appearance fairly well, which hasn't changed too much since.

I have purchased grey cloud Park ave from 2 for $250 sale. I haven't received my pair. Do you think I will be bale to polish it navy ?

 

[David Copeland]

Just received my order from Amazon for Walnut McAllisters.. and it looks like they're going back.

Not sure if anyone else has run into these issues before, at least when ordering them from a retailer other than AE. I'd expect things wrong with them if they were Seconds.. but they're not.

Most often Amazon will not pay for the return postage of AE Shoes. That is why I either try to buy from www.6pm.com or www.zappos.com or AE or call a manager at a Nordstroms Store - all of which will pay for return postage!

David

"Working from home today on my laptop"

 

[md2010]



Spoiler: Defects in McAllister

Here are a few pictures of what I consider to be defects in my new AE's. I could see them going as seconds.. but not as perfectly new firsts.

these are fine.

 

[David Copeland]

What would happen if I tried to polish these black?

That is a beautiful color. I would try and preserve that look by exploring all of the options from professionals.

 

[David Copeland]

I just got my Manistee Belt in walnut but it is in no way close in color to my shoes. It is marked walnut but looks more like bourbon or a generic dark brown. (The tips of the shoe just seem darker due to the shadow from the window frame.)

Is this a common issue? Should I reach out to AE and see what can be done?

Fine leathers in our dress are very much like fine woods in our home. Like leather, the look of wood does not need to be an exact match in order for it to present an overwhelming feel of quality workmanship.

 

[wurger]

Because they don't have the size in stock and I don't feel like doing that to a different store.

Amazon sent me defective shoes as well, and would only give me a refund, no replacement, no exchange for a different size or color, nothing. I'm rather annoyed with them.

Why not buy the same pair, switch them with the original pair, and return those as being the second pair.

This way you hopefully get a better pair and you don't pay the full price.

They can't provide you a replacement due to it's been sold out during a sale, and they won't exchange with a different colour and style because it's not a like for like exchange and won't work on the stock system, so they will give you a full refund and you can buy another from anywhere including amazon again.

Why are you annoyed at amazon and what are you expecting?

 

[wurger]

Spoiler: Defects in McAllister

Here are a few pictures of what I consider to be defects in my new AE's. I could see them going as seconds.. but not as perfectly new firsts.

these are fine.

Yes, then you probably never find a pair of AE that you would classify as perfectly new firsts.

 

[ZACKMORRIS]

Yes, then you probably never find a pair of AE that you would classify as perfectly new firsts.

I highly doubt that's true. Honestly, my biggest issue is with the stitching in the toe area. It looks sloppy.

 

[jasonmx3]

I think they're fine too.

I've noticed a lot of people are trying to look for perfection in their AE shoes. If that's the case, it might be time to move up (or even down) in the shoe price range.

I understand returning a pair for obvious defects, but not for tiny inconsistencies that no one else would ever see or notice.

I dunno, maybe I'm just not that attentive to my shoes. . . And I'm the happier for it.

 

[deburn]

I purchased my first shell shoes today - I got a bit carried away and ordered 3 pairs, all seconds!! A black PA, brown Dundees and burgundy Leeds! I wear an 8.5D in my AE Weymouth and Dryden as well as C&J, so that's the size I ordered. Hopefully they'll all fit well, but if they don't that's fine too.

Couple of questions specific to shell cordovan:

- is there a recommended procedure prior to wearing new shell shoes, like there is with calf?

- how does the PA look in black shell cordovan compared to a black PA in calf? Is it going to look less dressy because it's made of shell?

BTW, the J'ville store was offering shell for 20% off their regular price of $449.00 ie $359.00. This is something they offered themselves, without me asking for it, so I'm guessing it's not related to the Tanger coupon mentioned earlier.