St. Crispin's Appreciation Thread

[Mallaig]

My 0.02

Construction aside, the quality of calf or crust leather used by StC at their price point leaves a ton to be desired. It is personal preference maybe but I have sampled my fair share and would rather go with grained leather, suede or Shell when presented with an option.

The leather quality employed by EG or JL is superior and most retailers I know who carry all these brands unanimously agree.

I think of AM and GG as a beautiful middle ground .. with a well made shoe and not so conservative a presentation.

Have you tried anything from StC in a distressed calf ? Would love to know your thoughts on this type of leather.

 

[BColl_Has_Too_Many_Shoes]

Agree with the point on fit and the quality of construction. I also like the styling of StC which I find quite different to that of EG. In this years BLK FRI sale I went for a fur lined boot which I expect is less sensitive to fit.

My plan is to continue to add more shoes and boots with StC on a customized last. Next up is either a suede galway-esq boot, or a chukkah in distressed calf.

Well yes, there is that as well. The aesthetics. Which are something to behold in person as they are considerably different to those accustomed to British brands. A welcome change.

 

[markphilly]

I'm in the process of my first StC commission with trial shoes en route now. Going to select a derby and leaning towards the 633 in Inca dark brown grain. Does anyone happen to have photos of their 633 (classic) in a larger size? I wear an 11UK and sometimes I feel like toe/vamp details get very exaggerated and make my feet look like canoes.

 

[pablum]

Does anyone have an on foot image of model 539N (classic penny loafer with shorter tongue and elongated, Norwegian apron)?

 

[Contingency Plan]

I'm interested in the personal last, particularly for loafers. Would it be risky to commission loafers for a first pair (I've very peculiarly shaped feet)? Perhaps it'd be wiser to iron out the custom last first on something more forgiving, like a chukka boot ?

 

[sdfzs]

I'm interested in the personal last, particularly for loafers. Would it be risky to commission loafers for a first pair (I've very peculiarly shaped feet)? Perhaps it'd be wiser to iron out the custom last first on something more forgiving, like a chukka boot ?

This will be highly dependent on in what way you feet are peculiarly shaped and where you are coming from. If you have multiple standard last shoes already and want to jump to the personal last it's one thing, if it's your first pair it's totally different.

While going directly from no earlier brand experience to for example a suede chukka or chelsea's will be very forgiving both in terms of model and material it might not give sufficient feedback to understand if the same personal last would work well also for an oxford in something more sturdy like INC or similar leather. While you get a good idea of width, arch support and so you would never be able to perfect the instep height by such model. Going a soft leather would also mask issues that might be an issue for stiffer leathers in places that's not supported by stiffeners already.

Somewhat here you come to different philosophies on how to approach such challenge. One could argue that one approach is to go with models and material that is less sensitive and while having a wearable pair perfect as you go along. Another approach is to go with models such as oxfords and sturdy leather that requires perfection and really through some fitting pairs nail the last first time around. To me this is a matter of taste rather then right or wrong.

Some more insights into your feet's special features might obviously generate more input

 

[Patrick1053]

I'm interested in the personal last, particularly for loafers. Would it be risky to commission loafers for a first pair (I've very peculiarly shaped feet)? Perhaps it'd be wiser to iron out the custom last first on something more forgiving, like a chukka boot ?

I went straight for a personal last for an oxford, and after 2 trial shoes, the final pair still has some fit issues. I also, have abnormal feet.

 

[Encore]

What's the current lead time for StC? Can anyone share their recent experience?

I'm interested in the personal last, particularly for loafers. Would it be risky to commission loafers for a first pair (I've very peculiarly shaped feet)? Perhaps it'd be wiser to iron out the custom last first on something more forgiving, like a chukka boot ?

I would not recommend doing loafers for first pair (in general), especially if you are going for the online route.
However, as @sdfzs mentioned, if you already have a couple pairs of StC and only looking to make small changes, it should be fine.

 

[Contingency Plan]

Thanks for the feedback. These'll be my first St Crispin's. I plan to visit the boutique in Vienna, and get fitted in person. I've got very wide and short feet, with high instep and Morton's toe (ie. big toe shorter than index); with one foot about a size larger than the other... not great for RTW loafers!

 

[takashi78]

Well for me i see no problem is doing up a loafer for the first pair. If you decide to make more loafers in the future.
And i am sure the last for loafers and lace ups are different generally.

 

[sdfzs]

Thanks for the feedback. These'll be my first St Crispin's. I plan to visit the boutique in Vienna, and get fitted in person. I've got very wide and short feet, with high instep and Morton's toe (ie. big toe shorter than index); with one foot about a size larger than the other... not great for RTW loafers!

If you will have reoccurring fitting possibilities in person that reduces some complexity significantly. By your description it seems like a fair amount of work is needed on your lasts and something i would envision would yield at least one but potentially more pairs of fitting shoes. While it's normally good to aim at a specific model even with the fitting shoes it's not impossible to start the process aiming for an oxford and during the journey assuming your confidence grows bigger end up doing the final pair as a loafer.

As some has experienced on this thread doing a personal last only using video/virtual sessions can only get you so far. Sometimes that's far enough for a great experience and sometimes it's falling a bit short on (high) expectations.

 

[Contingency Plan]

Thanks a lot for the help; I'll speak with Mr Car, and see what he thinks about a loafer as a first pair.

 

[BColl_Has_Too_Many_Shoes]

Thanks a lot for the help; I'll speak with Mr Car, and see what he thinks about a loafer as a first pair.

Philip (Car) advised me against having my first pair be Loafers. This was at a time when I was at a Trunk Show, but had not owned any StC shoes.

Even after owning 2 pairs of Derbies, I picked up a pair of Oxfords before my first pair of Loafers. I never ended up proceeding with the personal last as the adjustments made to the shoes were excellent.

Incidentally, I inquired as to why not have the loafers be used as my first pair and they wanted to insure that the fit was spot on for them. Which indirectly indicated to me that a trial pair would still not suffice to get your sizing down.

 

[Contingency Plan]

Thanks! Seems the quest for a well-fitting loafer will be a long one!

 

[sforum1]

How does the 'cyber fitting' work? Do they ask you to take measurements of your feet and send them by email?