The Ultimate "HARDCORE" Shoe Appreciation Thread (Bespoke only)

[Louis XIV]

One each of 1,2 and 4

 

[bboysdontcryy]



Thinking of bespeaking a pair of shoes.

I have a few styles (toe-box will be chiseled) I'm keen on. Will toss them up here for some feedback. If anybody has any preference, I'm open to suggestions.

Style 1

Style 2

Style 3

Style 4

One each of 1,2 and 4

Ha! What about narrowing the choice to just one for present.

 

[Louis XIV]

Depends on what you already have in your shoe closet.

 

[VRaivio]

bboysdontcryy, they will be your shoes. Never mind what we write on SF, the end result is yours alone.

 

[chogall]

This pair here is as good as it gets from Australia...made from the best cordwainer in the state and one of the best in the country, and you will never see shoes made to this standard again in Australia. The shoes are hand welted with hand stitched soles. This was John's first pair he has handstitched in over 55 years, but it took me many months to convince him to do it. l searched all over the state for someone who could make the shoe but no-one had any interest in making it, but l got lucky and found an old business card l had in my draw for 10 years and decided to make one last call, it was John. He hand stitched between 2,000 - 3,000 pairs when he was young.

I feel very priviledged to have John make this pair because he is retired. His only clients are his family, myself and some occasional specialist handstitched apron work he does.

The pair isn't as good as the regular suspects here, but they in many ways they are so much greater because of the story and face behind them. No cold and clinical outsourcing to faceless men here, it was all carefully orchestrated step by step with 2 years of planning by myself. It took me years to find a last maker, it took me one year to find a pattern maker, and it took me one year to find a good shoemaker who worked secretly from home who no-one knows about these days.

I tried to get John to do a close cut waist, but he had never seen nor heard of such a thing on a shoe. He was a shoemaker in an old ltalian village where everyone was poor. Shoe have inbuild arch supports. Check it out!






I get another pair by John in two weeks time. The same design, but in brown buffalo leather. Not the best choice of leather for an adelaide, but beggers can't be choosers...pattern makers don't grow on trees over here. This is the last handmade shoe John will ever make me, it's too strenuous and almost killed John last time he made it. Took him a week of flat out work.

This shoe is a true masterpiece. There has been nothing like it in this country for the last 30 years. The last person to make shoes of this standard was the late Bulgarian master shoemaker called George Keoff. If l could access my photobucket l could have posted other views of the inside of the shoe.

One of the big differences with this shoe compared to other bespokes here is that the uppers are made in the simple Vass method. No bringing inner layers past the outside seam points, and only two layers of leather instead of three in places.

l still need bespoke shoe trees made.

Very interesting shoes shooman. Love the teardrop shape of the adelaide. The last shape looks good too.

The right shoe has somewhat excess sock lining? And you are right, they would look much better with blind welt stitched waist but not every maker can execute that.

 

[poorsod]

This

Style 2

 

[bboysdontcryy]



bboysdontcryy, they will be your shoes. Never mind what we write on SF, the end result is yours alone.

Yes. I like all of them quite a bit and was hard pressed to choose one for my first pair. Hence, was seeking opinions that would break the tie.

This

This is an elegant pair indeed.

 

[Louis XIV]

I agree, go with the Cleverley, imo they are even a bit nicer than #1 and #4.

 

[jerrybrowne]

I would pick 2 or 4, but obviously what you pick depends on your needs and personal taste. If you do go with a bespoke verson of #3, the Anthony Cleverlys, just know that shoes with these side gussets can be more difficult to fit and therefore are probably not a good choice for your first pair of bespoke shoes. In my experience it takes 2-3 pair to get your last right.

 

[poorsod]

Side gussets were my second pair of bespoke and I had to bring them back for adjustment.

 

[bboysdontcryy]



I would pick 2 or 4, but obviously what you pick depends on your needs and personal taste. If you do go with a bespoke verson of #3, the Anthony Cleverlys, just know that shoes with these side gussets can be more difficult to fit and therefore are probably not a good choice for your first pair of bespoke shoes. In my experience it takes 2-3 pair to get your last right.

Side gussets were my second pair of bespoke and I had to bring them back for adjustment.

I find this very interesting. I'm quite surprised that even with a last built to one's foot, the fit might be off, and that it might take a few pairs to get right. When you gentlemen say that the shoes don't fit as well as they should, I'm guessing that you mean this relative to RTW shoes, right?

How hard is it to go back to RTW shoes once one has adjusted to bespoke shoes?

 

[jerrybrowne]



I find this very interesting. I'm quite surprised that even with a last built to one's foot, the fit might be off, and that it might take a few pairs to get right. When you gentlemen say that the shoes don't fit as well as they should, I'm guessing that you mean this relative to RTW shoes, right?

How hard is it to go back to RTW shoes once one has adjusted to bespoke shoes?

My first pair of bespoke (from a top-notch maker) fit much much worse than my best fitting RTW shoe. So ill-fitting that they caused pain when walked in for longer than 10 minutes. They had to be completely remade. Once remade, the shoes still needed some adjustment, as did the next pair. My last itself required 1 remake, and 2-3 adjustments. I sort of expected this having had some experience with bespoke suits/coats, and I do believe this is the norm. The fit is now spot-on more or less and I am very happy with each pair.

Basicallly, it is possible to get the last VERY wrong, and manufacturers that make RTW shoes spend lots of time making sure their shoes fit a variety of foot shapes. Your last is made by a person after all, and it is possible to make mistakes. Further, most bespoke makers fit their skins very close to the last, so there is very little room for error.

I still purchase RTW shoes, but mainly on a last that the maker has modified, or in the case of EG, on the 202 which fits me pretty well.

 

[chogall]

JB, I take it's not from makers with trial fitting shoes?

 

[jerrybrowne]



JB, I take it's not from makers with trial fitting shoes?

I should preface this by saying that I am very happy with my primary maker. They have been great and do excellent work.

They always have trial fittings. These fittings help alot once the last is dialed in (indeed I've never had a first fitting where something was not changed) but are less useful when you are adjusting your last or making your first shoe. This is because while the first fitting has a welt and a temporary heel and brace, there is no outsole attached. Things can tighten up quite alot when the uppers are sewn onto the outsoles. This can affect the width of the shoes at the heel or forefoot, and the ankle opening, among other things. Also, things like forefoot flexibility are very difficult to discern when there is no outsole.

I'm currently having a pair made by a different maker that does absolutely no fittings. Depending on who you speak to, this works for them because 1) they do not build as close to the last, or 2) (according to them) they have the best last makers in the world. We'll see.

 

[poorsod]



I find this very interesting. I'm quite surprised that even with a last built to one's foot, the fit might be off, and that it might take a few pairs to get right. When you gentlemen say that the shoes don't fit as well as they should, I'm guessing that you mean this relative to RTW shoes, right?

How hard is it to go back to RTW shoes once one has adjusted to bespoke shoes?

The side gusset design is not as secure as laces. In my case, the combination of side gussets, a soft skinned leather and stiff sole contributed to too much slippage. I sent them back so they could be tightened up. Tony Gaziano thinks that the oxford design is most optimal for fit.

I avoid buying expensive RTW these days because the fit is not as good as bespoke. I have asymmetric feet, narrow heel and wide forefoot, the combination of which is difficult for RTW to fit.