Made in Spain Footwear, including TLB Mallorca, Cobbler Union, Yanko, Norman Vilalta, etc

[gld edmond]

Received my special adelaide in burgundy museum with JR soles little over a month ago, haven't had the time to bring them on their maiden voyage due to WFH.

All in all, super pleased with TLB and Toni's service! Biggest regret is forgetting to checkout the lasted shoe trees as well View attachment 1462988 View attachment 1462989 View attachment 1462990

I am thinking of getting these. Have you compared these to the regular burgundy, and if so what are your thoughts. From what I can see they seem to be a little more on the purple side, at least in photos

 

[dsk321]

I am thinking of getting these. Have you compared these to the regular burgundy, and if so what are your thoughts. From what I can see they seem to be a little more on the purple side, at least in photos

Museum is a little too funky for my wardrobe. Vegano burgundy is a little too flat, would need some black/navy/mahogany burnishing. Old English seems like a decent middle ground but I only see it for the chukka.

 

[te0o]

Yesterday I received my first Artista 109 balmoral on Picasso, E-width.

I'm very pleasantly surprised, the shoe seems very well made and punches way above its weight. The only challenge was sizing but I got lucky and thanks to Toni's accurate advice and really good customer service, it fits quite well.

I customised this pair with a JR sole and a tapered heel, which looks really sleek in my opinion. Some photos below + a comparison between the Artista and my Edward Green Chelsea in 915 last (which is very similar to the Picasso, apart from the toe shape).

And below a shot alongside the Chelsea with the Artista on the right.

Despite how good the Artsita is, the EG remains a very finely made shoe - the leather is of visibly higher quality (can be seen on the vamp - the EG is spotless while the Artista has a couple of blemishes), the stitching is tighter and the heel is more closely cut, despite being more blocky. Also, the heel on the EG cups my foot a bit better given it's a bit taller.

Of course, this is expected at the EG's price point, but for half the price the Artista is amazing. The waist is super tight (certainly tighter than the Chelsea), good clean fudging and oh my, oh my, how beautifully the heel pitches in. It's a big testament to the quality of the Artista that it fares so well in such a comparison with a much higher-end shoe.

Overall very happy, now the only thing left is to get some metal toe plates installed on the Artista - which is probably my only criticism - the factory really should be able to install those on custom shoes.

 

[John8867]

Great review, thanks. You cant go wrong with the Artista range at that price!

 

[Encore]

Yesterday I received my first Artista 109 balmoral on Picasso, E-width.

I'm very pleasantly surprised, the shoe seems very well made and punches way above its weight. The only challenge was sizing but I got lucky and thanks to Toni's accurate advice and really good customer service, it fits quite well.

I customised this pair with a JR sole and a tapered heel, which looks really sleek in my opinion. Some photos below + a comparison between the Artista and my Edward Green Chelsea in 915 last (which is very similar to the Picasso, apart from the toe shape).


View attachment 1491703
View attachment 1491704
View attachment 1491705
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And below a shot alongside the Chelsea with the Artista on the right.
View attachment 1491708
View attachment 1491709

View attachment 1491710

Despite how good the Artsita is, the EG remains a very finely made shoe - the leather is of visibly higher quality (can be seen on the vamp - the EG is spotless while the Artista has a couple of blemishes), the stitching is tighter and the heel is more closely cut, despite being more blocky. Also, the heel on the EG cups my foot a bit better given it's a bit taller.

Of course, this is expected at the EG's price point, but for half the price the Artista is amazing. The waist is super tight (certainly tighter than the Chelsea), good clean fudging and oh my, oh my, how beautifully the heel pitches in. It's a big testament to the quality of the Artista that it fares so well in such a comparison with a much higher-end shoe.

Overall very happy, now the only thing left is to get some metal toe plates installed on the Artista - which is probably my only criticism - the factory really should be able to install those on custom shoes.

Great Review, thank you.

Do you take the same size? Do you find them have similar insteps or quite different?

 

[te0o]

Great Review, thank you.

Do you take the same size? Do you find them have similar insteps or quite different?

I took half a size down in the Artista compared to the EG (6 UK on the Artista vs 6.5 UK on the EG). However, the EG is in the standard E width whereas the Artista here is on the narrow E width (F being standard with TLB).

At the moment, judging by the V-gap on the lacing, I think the Picasso in this width has a very slightly lower instep compared to the EG 915 but certainly nothing significant. I think any difference will go away as the Artista gets a proper break-in.

One thing I forgot to mention is that the TLB is certainly the softer shoe between the two, the EG is quite a bit stiffer/has more support throughout, which can be both a good and a bad thing I guess.

 

[LThomsen]

Yesterday I received my first Artista 109 balmoral on Picasso, E-width.

I'm very pleasantly surprised, the shoe seems very well made and punches way above its weight. The only challenge was sizing but I got lucky and thanks to Toni's accurate advice and really good customer service, it fits quite well.

I customised this pair with a JR sole and a tapered heel, which looks really sleek in my opinion. Some photos below + a comparison between the Artista and my Edward Green Chelsea in 915 last (which is very similar to the Picasso, apart from the toe shape).


View attachment 1491703
View attachment 1491704
View attachment 1491705
View attachment 1491707

And below a shot alongside the Chelsea with the Artista on the right.
View attachment 1491708
View attachment 1491709

View attachment 1491710

Despite how good the Artsita is, the EG remains a very finely made shoe - the leather is of visibly higher quality (can be seen on the vamp - the EG is spotless while the Artista has a couple of blemishes), the stitching is tighter and the heel is more closely cut, despite being more blocky. Also, the heel on the EG cups my foot a bit better given it's a bit taller.

Of course, this is expected at the EG's price point, but for half the price the Artista is amazing. The waist is super tight (certainly tighter than the Chelsea), good clean fudging and oh my, oh my, how beautifully the heel pitches in. It's a big testament to the quality of the Artista that it fares so well in such a comparison with a much higher-end shoe.

Overall very happy, now the only thing left is to get some metal toe plates installed on the Artista - which is probably my only criticism - the factory really should be able to install those on custom shoes.

Great review. Are both shoes black or dark brown?
Is the TLB made of box calf or vegano?

 

[te0o]

Great review. Are both shoes black or dark brown?
Is the TLB made of box calf or vegano?

Thank you. Both are black in box calf leather.

 

[LThomsen]

Thank you. Both are black in box calf leather.

Was there an additional fee for the tappered heel?

 

[te0o]

Was there an additional fee for the tappered heel?

No, I didn't pay anything extra. I guess it's captured in the MTO surcharge.

 

[Burzan]

My word these are fantastic, just arrived the other day. I can't get over how great the last is, such a versatile shape and a spot on fit.

 

[dsk321]

Got my first tlb's, artista chukka from patine. The waist on these is so beautiful. Uppers are a bit stiff (not meermin level) at the collar and right above my big toe knuckle(?), but seems to be breaking in reasonably quickly.

Sizing was 10 after a simple email exchange with tlb, and I think the length is spot on. So far all my European lasts are a 10:

Carmina robert/forest/boot forest
Meermin elton
Tlb artista Goya

Its a touch tall at the instep (insoles crushed that big knuckle, ill have to wait till its broken in for a snug fit) but everything else feels great.

I really want bfcm deal to go live cause I want monkstraps bad. I also wish they'd make a slightly lower instep last.

Do the oliver/alan lasts fit the same as artistas or are they slightly different around the waist/instep?

 

[j ingevaldsson]

Got my first tlb's, artista chukka from patine. The waist on these is so beautiful. Uppers are a bit stiff (not meermin level) at the collar and right above my big toe knuckle(?), but seems to be breaking in reasonably quickly.

Sizing was 10 after a simple email exchange with tlb, and I think the length is spot on. So far all my European lasts are a 10:

Carmina robert/forest/boot forest
Meermin elton
Tlb artista Goya

Its a touch tall at the instep (insoles crushed that big knuckle, ill have to wait till its broken in for a snug fit) but everything else feels great.

View attachment 1492677 View attachment 1492678

I really want bfcm deal to go live cause I want monkstraps bad. I also wish they'd make a slightly lower instep last.

Do the oliver/alan lasts fit the same as artistas or are they slightly different around the waist/instep?

Good looking!

Oliver, Alan and the other main line lasts fit similar over the instep (and overall). There's self-adhesive leather tongue pads that easily solves loose instep though, if you need that.

 

[dsk321]

Good looking!

Oliver, Alan and the other main line lasts fit similar over the instep (and overall). There's self-adhesive leather tongue pads that easily solves loose instep though, if you need that.

Specifically comparing artista to main, will they fit the same, just maybe feel slightly different due to the waist?

 

[Patrick1053]

Specifically comparing artista to main, will they fit the same, just maybe feel slightly different due to the waist?

Maybe a little different, but nowhere close to anything that would require a size change.