Vintage Dress shoe appreciation, tips, maintenance and advice

[suitforcourt]

Both. Some idiot started a vintage appreciation thread on the style forum and it seems lots of additional interest is driving the price up, plus they are learning to distinguish good vintage from just old shoes.

Since I started following this thread, I have probably acquired 20 pairs of vintage shoes. Maybe another 20 were bought and flipped for fun.

The idiot has singlehandedly changed my shoe world. I now have vintage shoes from across the world, and I have developed great care techniques. Way to go!

 

[suitforcourt]

Too bad we don't all live closer to each other. We could hold an annual vintage shoes convention.

 

[2Deuce2]

Question for you Vintage professionals - Are the shoes with "Foot Balance" branded on the heels all Aldens? I picked up a pair via eBay with a private label, and they are solid shoes with the Foot Balance on the odd shaped heel. Although I live in Illinois, it's a huge inconvenience to go to Downtown Chicago, and the J Crew in Oak Brook does not stock Alden's. These fit me well, so I'm using it as a guide for my sizing too.

 

[M635Guy]

Question for you Vintage professionals - Are the shoes with "Foot Balance" branded on the heels all Aldens? I picked up a pair via eBay with a private label, and they are solid shoes with the Foot Balance on the odd shaped heel. Although I live in Illinois, it's a huge inconvenience to go to Downtown Chicago, and the J Crew in Oak Brook does not stock Alden's. These fit me well, so I'm using it as a guide for my sizing too.

Post some pix. I'm not sure the Foot Balance heel is exclusive to Alden, but they're the only bootmaker I know of that uses it in production. (i.e. I think cobblers can buy it as a stock heel to use for replacements)

 

[Dicky Dicardo]

Question for you Vintage professionals - Are the shoes with "Foot Balance" branded on the heels all Aldens? I picked up a pair via eBay with a private label, and they are solid shoes with the Foot Balance on the odd shaped heel. Although I live in Illinois, it's a huge inconvenience to go to Downtown Chicago, and the J Crew in Oak Brook does not stock Alden's. These fit me well, so I'm using it as a guide for my sizing too.

Even if they are Alden, you'd need to know which last it is to use them as a guide to sizing.

Yes, photos (including interior) will be helpful.

 

[2Deuce2]

Even if they are Alden, you'd need to know which last it is to use them as a guide to sizing.

Yes, photos (including interior) will be helpful.

Is that clear?

 

[Gosport]

Figured I would share the Nettletons I recently posted, cleaned up and in-use this time. I could have probably worked a little harder but did a couple passes with lexol cleaner, a couple rounds of lexol conditioning, lots of brushing, polishing, and more brushing and they turned out pretty good. May try some bick 4 and renovatuer for the next pair I find.

 

[Gosport]

Woah...don't know why that picture posted so many times, I only uploaded it once...sorry about that

 

[smfdoc]

Woah...don't know why that picture posted so many times, I only uploaded it once...sorry about that

Great shoes. No problem on the photos. However, if this happens you can click edit at the bottom of your post and it will list each picture. You can manually removes the extras and then save the changes.

 

[meister]

I wish this had been posted 24 hours earlier - I'm in Tokyo, and the smaller Tokyu Hands store had a bunch of old 30's-'50's ads (though the first Jarman looks early 60's to my eye, but might be late 50's) that I took pix of but didn't buy. They're about $5 each (¥500). Not sure I'll get back in that area before I leave.

and a shirt ad I thought was funny:

I probably would have bought all of the shoe bits, but didn't have a good way to carry/protect them on a long day stomping through Tokyo with spotty rain.

Those Jarman 1940s spades at $5.99 are wonderful.

 

[Dicky Dicardo]

Is that clear?

View attachment 836648

The upper and the writing on the inside is also needed; then, possibly, we can determine the manufacturer

 

[Dicky Dicardo]

Those Jarman 1940s spades at $5.99 are wonderful.

Those were the days

 

[suitforcourt]

View attachment 836658 View attachment 836658 View attachment 836658 View attachment 836658 Figured I would share the Nettletons I recently posted, cleaned up and in-use this time. I could have probably worked a little harder but did a couple passes with lexol cleaner, a couple rounds of lexol conditioning, lots of brushing, polishing, and more brushing and they turned out pretty good. May try some bick 4 and renovatuer for the next pair I find.

View attachment 836659

The current Nettletons are made in Belgium. I doubt the quality.

I have a similar pair of Nettletons except my toe box is more square. Great shoes. They should last forever.

 

[2Deuce2]

The upper and the writing on the inside is also needed; then, possibly, we can determine the manufacturer

Ok I'll send hem later today

 

[JohnAAG]

Question for the experts. I picked up some vintage MiUSA Red Wing boots. The leather and soles are in good condition, but the previous owner caked on the waterproofing cream. To strip them down, do you recommend shampoing them first and then using Renomat? Or just the Renomat? Thanks!