Questions about unlined loafers – with my B...
There have been quite a few queries about unlined shoes, particularly loafers, in recent months. Ones about longevity and fit specifically have come up multiple times. I thought it would be good therefore to do a post summarising answers to them, in...
Questions about unlined loafers – with my B...
Match in comments:
They're pretty similar. I'd go C&J probably, but I think I'm a little biased because I can go try them so easily...
Reader profile: Ian
Ian is retired, and got into luxury menswear late in life. But he always had an interest in clothes, from his early days in Ivy clothing to the forties and fifties influences that came with learning jive dancing. It could be easy to see him as bein...
Reader profile: Ian
Match in comments:
Amazing! I bet Ian must have loved that. Thanks for letting me know...
Sandals: Slides and huaraches, open-toe and closed
Espadrilles are my preferred, casual summer shoe. I’ve always liked their clean lines and simplicity, which make them more elegant than pretty much any other option. I also quite like the massage-like feeling of walking on rope. They’re ...
Sandals: Slides and huaraches, open-toe and closed
Match in comments:
Not especially - the jellies that a reader links to in the comments above are quite cool and classic, but I'm not sure they look that respectable...
If you only had five (casual) shoes
This is intended to be a partner to the ‘ If you only had five shoes ’ article in our Wardrobe Building guide, which was all smart footwear. Today’s piece is shoes that aren’t smart enough for a traditional office o...
If you only had five (casual) shoes
Match in comments:
Simon, Do you mind sharing your thoughts on a few different options from Alden’s offerings? I am looking at purchasing my second pair of loafers. The first pair I purchased was The Armoury’s Hudson Tassel Loafer in e...
Sticking with Yohei: Commissioning black oxfords
Readers will be aware that I have become a little sceptical about bespoke shoes in recent years. As I detailed in the article ‘ Are bespoke shoes worth it? ’ my experiences have been a little patchy, and looking back on 13 years of commi...
Sticking with Yohei: Commissioning black oxfords
Match in comments:
Thanks for the article Simon. I would add that for 50,000 Yen Yohei will have the sole on an MTO shoe hand sewn (which would then align the overall level of make with bespoke). Nezar...
Tokyo: A sartorial shopping guide – 2023 Up...
Tokyo is one of the most varied, creative and stimulating retail experiences in the world. Not only is the city huge, but each area has a distinct feel and atmosphere, reflected in its shopping. There are small, niche brands everywhere, as...
Tokyo: A sartorial shopping guide – 2023 Up...
Match in comments:
Thank you Laurent, that's very useful (for me and for everyone else!) Cheers...
Parker Boot Company: Roper boots review
These are my finished western boots from Parker Boot Company in Houston, Texas. I’ve had them for a while now, but various other things (mostly Japan) have got in the way of coverage. As I wrote in my first article on Zephan Parker - ‘ ...
Parker Boot Company: Roper boots review
Match in comments:
True, good points Aaron. I guess so much of it is what you're used to seeing, and most of the time the boots are covered up in any image you see of them in use (in media, film, advertising)...
The struggles with shoemaking in Japan
Five or six years ago, it was easy to find young people that wanted to be shoemakers in Japan. The wave of enthusiasm for both craft and menswear elsewhere in the world had washed up here just as strongly. Today, with Covid having only just effecti...
The struggles with shoemaking in Japan
Match in comments:
I have a different opinion on this one. The vast majority of modern man could very likely survive without a suit, jacket or trousers (don't kill me for stating this fact). If my wardrobe burns, I would get RTW jeans, MTM...
Vibram resoling: Rescuing my ‘grail’ Nike ACG hik...
By Tony Sylvester. I am sure you too have a full and eclectic ‘Saved Searches’ section on your eBay app. Mine includes everything from rare Barbour jackets to Finnish glassware; old Polo coats to Georgian jewellery. Some are comedic remi...
Vibram resoling: Rescuing my ‘grail’ Nike ACG hik...
Match in comments:
Cheers Andrew, that is helpful...
RM Williams Craftsman boots: Review
Over the past few months I’ve been trying out a pair of RM Williams boots, driven by the fact I know so many people who swear by them, and because it’s nice to celebrate a craft company in a different part of the world such as Australia....
RM Williams Craftsman boots: Review
Match in comments:
I was interested in the point you made about it being easier to do a whole cut with yearling than calf and whether having the seam there is an issue. Which got me wondering, is really just a case of economics? Not that I...
The Apres Ski boots from Ludwig Reiter: A Review
By Tony Sylvester. I used to travel to Oslo regularly for a decade or so. A beautiful city, but not one abundant with window shopping options for those interested in menswear. One of the exceptions was Cavour; slap bang in the well-heeled part of to...
The Apres Ski boots from Ludwig Reiter: A Review
Match in comments:
Wow! What a photo! Thank you for sharing!...
Moulded Shoe, New York: Home of the modified last
Moulded Shoe in New York is a charming shop. A family-run business now in its third generation, It’s narrow and tall, with shoe boxes stacked way up to a double-height ceiling. There are newspaper cuttings, customer photos and a Japanese cart...
Moulded Shoe, New York: Home of the modified last
Match in comments:
At least with the two 20 years old cordovan shell derbies I own the original double soles were rather shoddy (been after few years replaced by Rendenbach oak tanned double soles that are still going strong). And the heel...
Doek tennis shoes: How great things age
I have had these Doek canvas trainers - what could usefully be called tennis shoes - for five years. They have been worn once or twice a week, every week, during that period. So hundreds of times. With bare feet in the summer, they've occasionally ...
Doek tennis shoes: How great things age
Match in comments:
I think an oxford can look fine like that myself, as in this article, but I do know what you mean...
Wear loafers with jeans
In the hyper-casual world we’re living in, any opportunity to add a little smartness to everyday clothing should be grabbed with both hands. One of the most effective ways to do this, I’m finding, is wearing loafers with jeans. Jeans ar...
Wear loafers with jeans
Match in comments:
Yes I think so...
Seiji McCarthy bespoke shoes: East Meets East
Seiji McCarthy is someone I've wanted to cover on PS ever since we hung out in Tokyo some six years ago. But with no prospect of travelling to Japan soon, I turned to local writer and friend Christopher Berry to visit Seiji and report - on Seiji's A...
Seiji McCarthy bespoke shoes: East Meets East
Match in comments:
Yes I'm not sure about that style, Jan. It's a little unusual, I'd have to see it in person. I'd go for Seiji's or for the Alden it's inspired by - the full strap on the Aberdeen last like mine...
Bocache & Salvucci, Rome: Bespoke shoes and ...
Bocache & Salvucci was a bit of a surprise when I visited last month. I’d come across the shoemaker at Jean-Manuel Moreau, in Paris, and had assumed that in Rome I would find a small (because relatively unknown) bespoke craftsman. Wh...
Bocache & Salvucci, Rome: Bespoke shoes and ...
Match in comments:
Excellent, many thanks Peter. Wellies starting the week after that late summer I guess :)...
How Florence changed with the pandemic: Abbarchi,...
“It was really eerie, Simon, with all the tourists gone." “I know that was the same everywhere," says Simone Abbarchi (above), "but seeing the Piazza della Signoria empty made it feel like we’d gone back in time. Like the Medici co...
How Florence changed with the pandemic: Abbarchi,...
Match in comments:
Not yet, sorry Tim, but I will try and take one for the site some time...
La Manual Alpargatera: How espadrilles are handmade
By Manish Puri I’m sitting at a round wooden table in the back office of La Manual Alpargatera. The owner, Joan Carles Tasies, is holding a chilled bottle of ratafia in his thick right hand and pours a measure into a glass in front of me. &ldq...
La Manual Alpargatera: How espadrilles are handmade
Match in comments:
Hello Eric. I just bought my first pair of Black Espardenya in size EU 43 / US 9 / CM 26,7 https://diegos.com/collections/men/products/black-espardenya-for-men. My feet size is 27 CM and I had heel slippage out of the bo...
Summer Top 10: Polos, more polos, and espadrilles
I wasn’t going to do a ‘high summer’ version of our seasonal Top 10. After all, the spring edition back in April included such things as panama hats and boat shoes. But everyone’s stock has been arriving so late that the int...
Summer Top 10: Polos, more polos, and espadrilles
Match in comments:
I do really like mine, yes. I went for the same size and it was good, but they are quite relaxed. I'm happy with this size and would suggest it meets the style they're going for. Also the tees with ribbing at the bottom ...
Reader profile: Cedric
Cedric works in the art world, and as such is rarely formal. But he retains an interest in tailoring, has childhood memories of going to Huntsman, and is even talking to Fred Nieddu about his first bespoke. He also has a depth of interest in Americ...
Reader profile: Cedric
Match in comments:
Pleasure Jim, and very pleased it worked for you...
Acme split-toe shoes: Review
Everybody loves a bargain. I think one reader referred to it as the ‘siren song’ of cheaper-but-quality clothing. The reference is often apt. Enthusiasts of anything expensive are drawn to the idea - like hypnotised Greek sailors - that...
Acme split-toe shoes: Review
Match in comments:
Amazing! Thanks for letting me know John. I always wish I was there for these chance meetings......
Rain: Cap and cordovan, or felt and suede
This may be a little niche, but it’s something that often stresses me out in the morning, so hopefully it will be of some use to others. My plans for what to wear on a particular day usually don’t account for rain. I might be going int...
Rain: Cap and cordovan, or felt and suede
Match in comments:
Not breaking in, no, but it isn't the best last shape for many feet, and I have found that hard (other Alden lasts are often easier, eg Van)...
The Spring Top 10: Fun, paper and lavender
It’s that time of the year again. Brands have been receiving all the spring clothing they ordered last year, even though they weren’t quite sure whether it would arrive, or be swallowed by an unexpected lockdown. So rejoice, there are n...
The Spring Top 10: Fun, paper and lavender
Match in comments:
Thank you for pointing out carrier company. The jacket was not for me but I came across the fisherman’s jumper. A robust navy roll neck with raglan sleeves - I has been looking for one like this with raglan sleeves for...
Le Vif: A vintage shop like a regular shop
Le Vif in Paris is one of the most curated vintage stores around. What do I mean by that? Well, it has a particular view on the clothes it offers - in terms of quality, style and origin. It sells Americana, normally American-made. There’s no...
Le Vif: A vintage shop like a regular shop
Match in comments:
Thanks Alan. To be honest there are very few now, since The Vintage Showroom and Hang-Up Vintage both closed. There's Levison's, off Brick Lane, and there are lots more 'fashion' vintage places around there that are some...
The Alden modified last, and Anatomica sizing
Alden has this particular shape of shoe, on what is referred to as the ‘modified’ last. It’s unusual, almost orthopaedic in appearance, with a narrow waist that hugs the middle of the foot and rather bulging sides to fully accommo...
The Alden modified last, and Anatomica sizing
Match in comments:
Sure. I had it done by Tom at The Valet, and I'd say it's 95% the same. If you look closely it has suggestions of the tan around the edges, but it's very subtle. I can also see how it might need to be redone in a year or...
