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Opinions on Allen Edmonds Belts?

I've gone a bit crazy with Allen Edmonds shoes in the past few months. I've got Delrays in black, Fifth Avenues in dark brown, and Park Avenues in both Merlot and Walnut.

Until now, I've only worn black shoes so have only owned black belts. Now I feel the need to get some belts that match my shoes. Allen Edmonds sells belts that are supposed to be exact color matches, including the walnut.

However, some of the belts get mixed reviews on the website. There are comments about the quality of manufacture, as well as the color match.

Anyone have opinions to share on Allen Edmonds belts? Are they a good color match? Are they worth the money? Do you prefer any particular styles?

Nick
 
Color match- pretty much perfect.... But bought mine all at the same time as shoes so not sure if different lots would have diff results.
construction- sturdy. I beat up. On some but they've lasted better than any other belts I've had, except one old one that was passed down to me.

To me they're definitely worth it, particularly in off black colors such as chestnut, merlot, etc. Wear them minimum 5 days per week. Will buy again.
 
They are okay. The main benefit is that the colors will match perfectly.

However, you can get a far better belt (and selection) for a similar price from Torino Belts.
 
I haven't had any issues with my dark brown belt that matches my shoes. I think if you gain and stretch the last hole it could be tougher on the belt.
 
They are okay. The main benefit is that the colors will match perfectly.

However, you can get a far better belt (and selection) for a similar price from Torino Belts.

I don't know anything about Torino Belts. How is the quality? The pricing and style options look pretty good:

http://www.torinoleather.com/category4.asp?id=1

I stopped at the Allen Edmonds in downtown Chicago after work today. Some of their belts seemed well-made, and others seemed somewhat thin and not worth the premium price just for the exact color match. I'm still not sure if I'd be paying more for the Allen Edmonds name than the belts are actually worth.


Nick
 
I don't know anything about Torino Belts. How is the quality? The pricing and style options look pretty good:

http://www.torinoleather.com/category4.asp?id=1

I stopped at the Allen Edmonds in downtown Chicago after work today. Some of their belts seemed well-made, and others seemed somewhat thin and not worth the premium price just for the exact color match. I'm still not sure if I'd be paying more for the Allen Edmonds name than the belts are actually worth.


Nick

Torino's quality is top notch. And their story is a good one. After hurricane Katrina destroyed the factory in New Orleans, the original owner decided he would rather retire than rebuild. So several of the employee's purchased the business from him and rebuilt it. If you look carefully, you may notice that their belts are sold by some very high end shops. Also, I've called a few times and spoken to them - a nicer group of people is hard to find.
 
Your location says that you are in Chicago, so you can just pop in the store with your shoes to ensure the color matching! Quality wise better items are available, but with the drawback of not an exact color match. Their quality is quite good though, not bottom of the barrel by any means.
 
Your location says that you are in Chicago, so you can just pop in the store with your shoes to ensure the color matching!

And so I did! The color match of the walnut belt to my Park Avenues with the walnut cloud finish was outstanding. Still, just from the couple of belts I checked, I did get the feeling I could get better-made belts elsewhere. I'm very curious about some of the Torino belts I saw online. I may end up getting just the walnut from Allen Edmonds, and then getting a dark brown from Torino.

Nick
 
Has any one considerd using shoe polish to turn a belt to a matching color?

You can't really turn something a different color with shoe polish. Instead you end up with a burnished look. Also, its typically a bad idea to use shoe polish on stuff like belts as the pigment can rub off on your clothing.

Regardless, having a 100% matching belt color (with the exception of black) is too "matchy matchy", in my opinion.
 
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