Proper leather shoes

Check where they are made.

Thanks,That is what I figured but can't find anything online for less than £100

Thought they where all made in the UK but again,thanks I'll check.

I'm shaking my head down here...

Euph?

I picked up a pair of these https://www.harrysoflondon.com/basel-4-kudu-suede-grey

for fifteen quid on ebay. Surprisingly good condition but could probably do with a bit of a perk up. Any tips for suede?

From the shoesnob product page for a sude brush (out of stock sadly):

"Suede can be a tricky material to maintain and there are not a lot of products that can be used to do so. The key is to minimise the amount of dust/dirt that will embed itself into the hairs of the suede which will eventually matte it down and fade its colour. Sometimes you will not notice it happening until it is too late. The suede bristle brush will help to prevent this and keep the nap of the suede clean and healthy looking. Simply steam (with your iron or kettle – 6 inches away) and brush it down every other time you wear your suede shoes to ensure a long lasting life."

https://www.theshoesnob.com/collections/shoe-brushes/products/suede-brush

That said, i wonder if brass bristles are a little harsh - I use a crepe brush on my suede shoes

Brass bristles like a wire brush is too harsh, it will rip the flesh right off. Crepe is great to get the nap back up, with the lightest and cleanest of brushing technique. Ideally you are breaking away any matting on the surface but not damaging it.

@umop3pisdn https://www.sanders-uk.com/shop/category/outlet might give you an idea of what you can get at Sander's.

You must create an account but there's also: https://www.trickersoutlet.com/

Cheers but I got some Barkers from @pdlouche

Cheers, I'll have to see what brushes I have at home. I hadn't heard of the steam trick before.

I assume this type of thing is the crepe brush https://www.amazon.co.uk/Saphir-9552620009-Beechwood-Crepe-Brush/dp/B0051DWMUC

Rode to Northampton from East London on Saturday and popped into a few of the shops.

Came out with a lovely pair of Church's. Strangely, went down to a size 8 from usually a 9.5. Might have been a bit risky testing them with cycling socks, but I think it's a strong look...

2 Attachments

I expect, nay, demand that this becomes a forum ‘thing’. Jarring socks gotta be a thing.

Glad it worked out well.

Who was it that recently bought some playboy chukkas and where from?

Thanks for the tips! Definitely would love to go back sometime during the week and have a poke around as most are closed on weekends.

Recommendations please!
I want to try on a few pairs of decent brown leather shoes, somewhere in London.
I have very narrow feet, size 12. Where can I find a good selection?
Budget: £80-150

Also I'm traveling to Turkey next week. Anyone know if it's worth hunting for good quality (or even custom made) leather shoes in Istanbul?

Anyone know of a good website for laces?

Always use http://www.biglaces.com but unfortunately they are either closed or redoing their site (really hoping they haven't closed).

After some Timberland work boot laces, unsure of colour yet so something with a good range would be idea.

Also what would be a good adhesive to reglue a sole to a shoe?

Realise this is a week late.
Mrs m is Turkish, and in previous days, over 20 years ago,
I found that 'High Street' quality shoe shops offered remarkable quality leather shoes
off the shelf. I still have a couple of pairs which have had 3 or 4 replacement stick on rubber soles to protect the original leather sole.
Do not be surprised to see something burnt/etched into the sole claiming
'Italian' quality, 'Vero Cuoio', even if the the shoe is entirely Turkish leather and craftmanship,
as it was/is a standard claim to snobbery.

Absolutely piles of Trickers in the Kensington High Street TKMaxx last week.

Depends on what you’re looking for, but the quality of the waxed flat laces I got from redmonkey_08 on eBay have held up pretty well.

Ask a good cobbler to do it for you probably best? Otherwise, I have had good results with Boot Fix Glue on some everyday boots that eventually wore out and have a pair of old walking boots held together with Evo-Stik Impact Adhesive (not necessarily recommended, but was an emergency fix) that surprisingly have survived a couple of trips over the last year and are still going.

@hugo7 There are multiple types of contact adhesives, some are merely contact activated and some are heat activated.

Off the peg stuff like Evo-stik will work incredibly well if the surfaces are roughed up.

Depending on the location, most Timpsons won’t even charge you to glue down a loose sole, as it’s a job that can’t be guaranteed.

Cheers all!

Was in the Carmina store in Madrid yesterday - some really beaut shoes.

I'll be picking up some of their unlined loafers when I'm over in Palma later in the summer, didn't have any space in luggage this time :'(

Picked up a pair of these today at the Cheaney sample sale, at some point I need to stop buying loafers. That point isn’t yet though 😬