WANTED: Devastatingly Dark Brown Shoes

[ZTG]

Hello! I'm new to SF with a specific question: Where can I find—or how can I create—the ABSOLUTE DARKEST possible pair of brown leather dress shoes? Brogueing or other shoe details don't matter to me; I'm just looking for a brown that's verging on black, without any hint of redness remaining.

If I'm purchasing new shoes, my budget maxes out around $700 USD, but I'd prefer to pay half that. I'm also a relative novice with polishes, and don't know what techniques are available to darken a brown shoe that may be close, but not quite there.

• The now-discontinued Allen Edmonds "Brown" wasn't dark enough.
• Meermin "Dark Brown" may have been dark enough in the past (see photo below), but I just spoke with a rep at the NYC store that stated newer batches of their dark brown look much closer to their "Expresso."
• I haven't seen Carmina "Brown" yet.

Any real-life photos you could share with your suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Anachronist]

Super dark brown shoes bordering on black are extremely rare, so I'm afraid you'll need to go the way of polishing.

My advice: decide on the cut or type of the shoe first. I'm sure you have a look or certain garments in mind you want to pair this shoe with, so the type of shoe does make difference. Check out the shoe brands that fall in your budget (Crockett & Jones, Carmina, Barker, Loake, JFitzpatrick will all fit the bill, just to name a few) and try to find the type of shoe you are looking for in a dark brown.

For the polishing, buy yourself a very dark brown (e.g. Saphir shoe cream in the color sanglier = means wild boar is a black/brown) as well as a black shoe cream and possibly a black shoe wax. Evenly spread the dark brown shoe cream over the shoes and let it dry over night. Polish it out the next day and repeat with the black shoe cream. Finish with a polish of black shoe wax for lustre and protection. You may need to repeat the procedure with the cream a couple of times till the shoe reaches the desired darkness. If you want to spice it up and create a kind of "museum calf" look, apply the shoe creme in dabs instead of evenly.

The more radical alternative is using leather color, however I would go to a good cobbler to have this done, as they will have more experience and chances are higher that the result turns out better than if you do this yourself.

 

[ZTG]

Thank you for such a thorough response! Yes, I'll undoubtedly have more qualifications for the shoe's style once I'm preparing to purchase, but I just wanted to take a general polling to see what's out there. I have no one in my social circle that I could turn to to learn the polishing procedure you described, so I'm very grateful for your outline. I'd also never noticed the Boar Brown Saphir before; that could be a great help. Thanks again.

 

[stylish_raven]

definitely cover the darkening process via polishing/creams. more often than not shoes get darker over time wether you like them to or not. on purpose it should be a tad easy. best regards and best of luck!

 

[Miles R.]

I have no information to contribute; just want to say that you have my sympathies! I love dark-dark brown, but it is hard to find in shoes---and even harder to find in belts!

 

[ZTG]

I have no information to contribute; just want to say that you have my sympathies! I love dark-dark brown, but it is hard to find in shoes---and even harder to find in belts!

Thank you, haha! I'll do my best

 

[Miles R.]

I found these on the Herring Web site: oxfords in "burnished mocca."

https://www.herringshoes.co.uk/product-info.php?shoeid=10857&brandid=6

 

[clarksdb]

Why not just buy black?

 

[Miles R.]

Why not just buy black?

*Sigh*. There are people who "get" dark brown, and there are people who don't.

 

[bc78]

Lof and Tung looks dark https://www.skoaktiebolaget.com/col...ducts/lof-tung-bingham-dark-brown-museum-calf

John Lobb's dark brown, or whatever they call it, is pretty dark. I know that isn't within your budget, however, you can often find new or pre-owned Lobbs on ebay or here on SF.

 

[ZTG]

All great suggestions, thank you!

 

[bc78]

Vass is also dark https://www.vass-shoes.com/en/node/274

 

[ZTG]

This single-monk from Fratelli Rossetti also caught my eye; it fits the hue I'm looking for. 40% off today

 

[Arkitekten]

The black collection from Norman Vilalta might be an alternative. Black shoes with undertones of different colors. Haven’t seen them in person though.

https://shop.normanvilalta.com/products/mens-leather-cap-toe-oxford-shoe-black-made-in-spain