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

[tjyoung]



So I came home today to see a brown AE shipping box on my front porch. You can imagine my excitement since Allison told me my new Burgundy Shell Franciscans were shipping yesterday. Happy to see they made it in 1 day. Here is a quick pic right out of the box. I will clean them up and take some more later.

What color edge dressing did you go with? Looks great.

 

[GOP Shoe Guy]

What color edge dressing did you go with? Looks great.

Light brown transparent edge dressing. I took the photo with a flash to try and show the depth of the shell, but the color of the edge dressing is true.

 

[mdavis534]

Well just went to the AE store to get measured for the eagle county last, turns out I have to go up a width as the 222 last is narrow. Glad I checked, for those who don't own a shoe on that last it would be good to get measured.

 

[DHD28]

Great stuff GOP. Wheeled edges and dressing color really make it pop~

 

[tampatravel]

Well my Polo Shell Cordovan Saddle Oxfords arrived today and they look awesome. They do fit a little tighter but they will loosen up I know. It almost seems odd though because the sole is more sleek than the sole that was originally on the shoe...or I might be crazy. AE did a first class thing and included a $35 gift card on a new pair of shoes! Nice Touch AE.

Double JR Soles

Nice Touch with the $35 gift card!

AE always gets ripped on for using soooooooo much polish on their shoes they recraft...well they didn't use that much on mine and kept that sweet patina I was working on.

 

[tampatravel]



So I came home today to see a brown AE shipping box on my front porch. You can imagine my excitement since Allison told me my new Burgundy Shell Franciscans were shipping yesterday. Happy to see they made it in 1 day. Here is a quick pic right out of the box. I will clean them up and take some more later.

Those are sooooo sweet GOP! Those look every bit the part of thousand dollar shoes. AE MTO orders are very impressive and getting more so with each order I see put on here.

 

[hoit1981]

Think I've worked out my size in the Dundee. Now have questions on AE shell which I've heard dubious things about. In particular I'm looking at the dark brown and wanted to get an idea of how people rated AE shell compared to Alden and C&J? Cheers in advance.

 

[tampatravel]



Think I've worked out my size in the Dundee. Now have questions on AE shell which I've heard dubious things about. In particular I'm looking at the dark brown and wanted to get an idea of how people rated AE shell compared to Alden and C&J? Cheers in advance.

I have a pair of AE Townleys in Brown shell. I also have cigar LHS from Alden. I can't peak for C&J.

I will say the AE shell tends to have more of a matte finish while the Alden is quite shinny. I like both, so I have both. You can see also the pair I just had recrafted is quite shiny.

The fact that you can get almost anything you want via a MTO with AE is something else!

 

[LeviMay]

F-ing lace on my Bayfield broke. Anger. Replaced them with a generic round (black!) hiking boot lace until proper replacements can be secured.

#AEproblems

 

[coolarrow]

Well my Polo Shell Cordovan Saddle Oxfords arrived today and they look awesome. They do fit a little tighter but they will loosen up I know. It almost seems odd though because the sole is more sleek than the sole that was originally on the shoe...or I might be crazy. AE did a first class thing and included a $35 gift card on a new pair of shoes! Nice Touch AE.



Double JR Soles


Nice Touch with the $35 gift card!


AE always gets ripped on for using soooooooo much polish on their shoes they recraft...well they didn't use that much on mine and kept that sweet patina I was working on.

 

[kentyman]

It's maybe a slight improvement, but the gap at the top is right at 1", which I feel is too much. Probably just wishful thinking on the sizing up thing. I may just have to do like tifosi and go with bluchers. A shame, since I really like this shoe.

It looks like that length accomodates the ball of your fooy correctly. I wouldn't go any longer- Maybe try a width up. A 1" spread is at the edge of acceptable spacing, but it will close some over time. The spread doesn't look so wide that it's pushing the topline back and out, so I don't know that I would bee too concerned.

I don't think that looks too wide of a gap at all. If the shoe feels comfortable, then you should be good to go.

I agree with these guys. I really think you should judge the fit with your eyes closed. That said, even with eyes open this is not unacceptable. Continue to wear them and they'll close a tad more.

I think that's too much. An oxford shouldn't close fully when brand new, but splayed open an inch is not ideal, IMO.

Maybe not ideal, but better then going up in width and having a heel that slips. Up a width may work better for him, but without knowing for sure, I think this is fine.

 

[NWTeal]

Almost all of my Balmoral looked like that at first and closed up a bit, still not fully. It depends on the last and your foot. I have a high instep and the narrowness of the 5 last makes it hard for the gap to close. Everything else fits fine in the shoe.

 

[mimo]

As above ^^

The printable sizing guide was very accurate for me, but I also find that the top of the instep is a little lower on the 1 and 5 lasts in particular, than my English shoes. It doesn't matter too much that the lacing doesn't close: the fit around the forefoot, and the bottom of the instep, is a lot more important.

 

[RogerP]

Quote:
I can't say what would or would not be better than the present case. It could be that this last simply does not work for his foot shape. This is the reason there are so many different lasts in the first place - they are designed to fit very different feet. Some will work better than others, and some not at all for any particular customer. But to my eye, those shoes simply do not fit. Fit is only functionally accomodated here by the w-i-d-e spread of the laces. That is simply not how an oxford fits, any more than a monk strap closed only by strained buckling at the very last hole in the strap could be said to fit. They may indeed feel like they fit with your eyes closed, but opening your eyes will tell you in an instant that something is substantially off. I am not an expert in fit - not by any stretch. But I have been fitted by experts - Dean Girling of G&G and Philip Carr of St. Crispin's. If I tried on one of their oxfords and had the laces splayed as far open as that, there is simply no way they would pronounce it to be good enough. In fact, at a recent fitting of a pair St. Crispin's, less of an opening than that was deeemed a poor fit requiring a combination of increased width / higher instep allowance / lower internal arch support. To my mind, proper fit is not the sole province of high end RTW, much less bespoke. It should be the most important purchase criterion at any price point. Others, of course, are free to take a different view.

 

[New Shoes1]

I think part of the reason for so much debate on whether the poster's lacing gap is acceptable is that he is right on that borderline between acceptable and unacceptable and the fact the gap will diminish somewhat with wear. I've posted pictures above of my Strands at about 4 months' old and at 2 years old. You can see the gap diminished somewhat with wear and the right shoe is almost closed now. I need to take a more recent picture (don't have them on today) because I remember thinking during the last wearing that I may need to eventually put a tongue pad in the right shoe due to how much they've stretched in this regard.