Hi all,
Now, don't get mad at me, but I like formal-style shoes with a bit of pattern or an unusual sort of colour to them. If it helps to see the picture, I'm an academic, so my "smart" dress can be a lot more loose in terms of colour, pattern, etc than say buisness-wear, and I enjoy that freedom.
I would very much welcome recommendations for good shoemakers or brands that make shoes that match this description. The thing I've been finding is that the makers who go for such shoes tend to be relatively poor quality, and the good quality makers tend to go for fairly conservative styles and tastes. Ready availability in Europe would be a very agreeable bonus. Anything over €300 new will, sadly, be too much for me (unless I get very lucky at Cheltenham this week).
Here are some illustrations to help with what I mean:
These shoes from Rehab are very much the kind of design or colour I am taking about, and indeed I bought a pair. They fell apart after less than a year, and the cobbler (who did an excellent job of fixing them) was very rude about the construction. So I want shoes a little like this, but better made.
I like these from Barker—pattern and colour are different but not too loud or crazy, and the brand is (so far as I understand) reputable. Unfortunately they are out of my size, but this is probably in the sweet spot.
As an illustration of what I find too much:
www.mascolori.com
Quite apart from questions of shape and construction (I don't know enough about them to judge), most of these patterns would be excessive for my taste (I could probably get away with a couple of them).
Any recommendations or thoughts would be most welcome. Thanks!
Now, don't get mad at me, but I like formal-style shoes with a bit of pattern or an unusual sort of colour to them. If it helps to see the picture, I'm an academic, so my "smart" dress can be a lot more loose in terms of colour, pattern, etc than say buisness-wear, and I enjoy that freedom.
I would very much welcome recommendations for good shoemakers or brands that make shoes that match this description. The thing I've been finding is that the makers who go for such shoes tend to be relatively poor quality, and the good quality makers tend to go for fairly conservative styles and tastes. Ready availability in Europe would be a very agreeable bonus. Anything over €300 new will, sadly, be too much for me (unless I get very lucky at Cheltenham this week).
Here are some illustrations to help with what I mean:
These shoes from Rehab are very much the kind of design or colour I am taking about, and indeed I bought a pair. They fell apart after less than a year, and the cobbler (who did an excellent job of fixing them) was very rude about the construction. So I want shoes a little like this, but better made.
I like these from Barker—pattern and colour are different but not too loud or crazy, and the brand is (so far as I understand) reputable. Unfortunately they are out of my size, but this is probably in the sweet spot.
As an illustration of what I find too much:
Shoes
Mascolori shoes for men: colorful and eccentric. These men’s shoes are also available in lacquer, cork, leather, suede floral prints and animal prints.
www.mascolori.com
Quite apart from questions of shape and construction (I don't know enough about them to judge), most of these patterns would be excessive for my taste (I could probably get away with a couple of them).
Any recommendations or thoughts would be most welcome. Thanks!
