Paolo Scafora RTW

[dovsr18]

I've read superlative reports about the quality of Scafora's bespoke, but have seen little about his RTW shoes. Shop the Finest has a number of lines. The classic line appears to be Goodyear welted. There is also a "blake and rapid" line. Has anyone had any experience with either or both of these RTWs?

 

[Loudly]

Bought 2 pair recently, both Norvegese, both from STF. Excellent stuff. Hard to avoid the temptation of buying more, though the $600+ price tag does provide a natural limit. At $400, there would be gluttony.

 

[dovsr18]

Interesting....I've never been clear on the meaning of Norvegese, and it's not easy to tell what's what from Ian's descriptions anyway. The blake and rapid are under 300.

Do you find that they fit to size?

 

[Loudly]

The ones that looked really tempting were around 600. To be fair, there are a couple of ankle boots on there for 500-something which look great.

I should say they fit true to size. I'm generally a 8 UK, *sometimes* 9 1/2 US depending on the maker (all of my 9 1/2s are bought in the US), and I bought size 9 US. It's snug, but I think will stretch out a little where it counts. It's nice that STF has this fairly popular size.

 

[dovsr18]

Looks like a solid option for an Italian RTW, especially now that Tramezzas have jumped to 900+ retail and 500 is the best sale price you can get on them most of the time. In addition, Santoni has a lot of nice models.

I've had my eye for some time on a gorgeous Santoni black captoe balmoral on STF, chiseled toe but not extremely so, but I'm concerned about sizing. I wear 11.5 in AE and 11 in Ferragamo. These are 11.5 and I fear they run large. And he has a no-refund policy, unfortunately.

 

[meister]

I have a pair of Paolo Scafora for Gianfranco Ferre, Beautiful antiquing and solid shoe. The antiquing IMO has stiffened the leather in the production but the more they are worn the softer they get.

 

[havingaraveup]

Interesting....I've never been clear on the meaning of Norvegese, and it's not easy to tell what's what from Ian's descriptions anyway. The blake and rapid are under 300.

Do you find that they fit to size?

I can't find them for under 300. Where did you see this?

 

[dovsr18]

http://www.shopthefinest.com/p-64347-paolo-scafora-brown-shoes-size-115-us-105-uk.aspx
http://www.shopthefinest.com/p-64466-paolo-scafora-black-shoes-size-7-us-6-uk.aspx

 

[ShayaEXQT]

I saw them in January at Pitti, if you like sharp lasts with a wicked patina they don't get much better, the shoes are absolutely stunning in person (and he's a nice guy as well.) I'll try to take a few photos at Pitti in June if I remember.

 

[dovsr18]

Nice. Thanks.

I recall someone comparing his bespoke shoes very favorably with Lattanzi's at a fraction of the cost. Hopefully his "diffusion" lines will maintain high quality at their price points.

 

[meister]



Nice.  Thanks. 

I recall someone comparing his bespoke shoes very favorably with Lattanzi's at a fraction of the cost.  Hopefully his "diffusion" lines will maintain high quality at their price points.

 

Scafora makes superb MTO/Bespoke. There is thread buried somewhere with examples.

 

[gambit50]

I don't know the Scafora RTW quality but if it is anywhere near what one should expect that price strikes me as excellent value.
Hopefully, someone can chime in with experience or take the plunge. I'm not in the market but I think this would be very valuable info for members.

 

[meister]

Here is my pair of OTR for Ferre

 

[dovsr18]

Very nice. I'm considering a pair of black semi-brogues. Will post pics if I take the plunge.

The lasts on his shoes strike me as quite conservative.

 

[meister]



Very nice. I'm considering a pair of black semi-brogues. Will post pics if I take the plunge.

The lasts on his shoes strike me as quite conservative.

A store in Sydney that has a main store in Naples had some of his shoes including a pointy triple monk!