Year Of The Shoe (for me)

[AimlessWanderer]

While I've pretty much revamped the entire wardrobe this year (life changes, and waistline changes), footwear seems to have captured my imagination and interest the most. Some of you will most likely have already noticed, as I keep gibbering about it in various threads

I thought I'd try and consolidate my thoughts and explorations in this thread, instead of just having them randomly sprawled everywhere. What I started with, incentive for change, all this year's purchases, and what I thought of what I bought.

Please do feel free to chime in with your thoughts, whether you agree with me or not. I'm hoping this thread will be a discussion, rather than just one bloke's inane ramblings. However, be aware there may be a bit of an undercurrent of reverse snobbery in some of what I type here... or at least it might seem that way... as not a single pair that I'll be mentioning (old purchases or new) cost more than £40. On the whole, I'm unually quite satisfied with what I get for such a humble outlay... but not always.

 

[Doc4]

Made me think of Chinese restaurant placemats. Pass the chow mein!

 

[global_dev]

Are these under 40£, preowned or retail or both or only new?

interesting i just read or watched a spot on purchasing wirh regards to quality, lifespan, and fashion. They literally break down the shoe in half and tell you what you are/arent getting for your purchase and if its a value based on what you want out it.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Of the ten pairs of shoes that were already here at the start of the year, two had never been worn, other than to check the fit. Of the other eight, three were black leather "event" shoes.

There's no strict adherence to style rules for me, so no patent leather slippers for black tie, or black oxfords for wedding and funerals. Black Derbies were as formal as it got for me. The only other dressy pair, were square toed boots I wore (was issued to wear) when I was Best Man at a friend's wedding. That was at least 15 years ago, and I'm pretty sure I've had the Derbies at least that long.

You may be able to tell from the soles, one of the pairs of Derbies has been worn a lot more than the other. Won't be much longer before that sole is spent, and the shoe cast out. Still wearable as a general shoe though.

All three of these could be dressed up or down, from suit to chinos, or even jeans, and I have done so several times. They were also the only pairs I could ever do that with, and I wanted to expand on that tier, but with something less "safe" than black leather. Essentially, "make an effort" shoes, which can be dressed down to get a decent frequency of use out of them.

 

[Doc4]

not a single pair that I'll be mentioning (old purchases or new) cost more than £40. On the whole, I'm unually quite satisfied with what I get for such a humble outlay... but not always.

Cheap shoes aren't always a bad idea.

They are a depreciating asset. Spending more than you ought on depreciating assets is a bad idea ... but there are also benefits from spending "enough" to buy "quality". A shoe that falls apart at the seams after a few miles isn't worth the cheap price ... one that lasts until the sole wears through and then you toss it, is worth it.

Motor vehicles are a useful analogy. A cheap second-hand Toyota and a new Mercedes Benz will both get you from A to B in roughly the same time ... unless they break down en route or are in the shop yet again for more repairs. (And it's probably the Benz that breaks down!) But ... those of us old enough to remember the Soviet-Bloc cars (Lada, Skoda, Yugo ...) will know that cheaper can be a bad thing too!

But is there a benefit to buying a new Lexus sedan when you can get a new Camry for half the price? In terms of A-to-B reliability, probably not. The Lexus is probably a bit more comfortable, but the Camry is more than "comfortable enough".

And anyone who walks a lot in his shoes, or makes long drives in his car, understands that comfort is an actual important factor! Don't believe me, try walking a block in shoes that don't fit you well. Now keep going for half a mile ... and at the end of that ask yourself if you could do a few more miles, or if you need to sit down and take these monstrosities off.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Made me think of Chinese restaurant placemats. Pass the chow mein!

Apt! I'm as indecisive when looking at shoes, as I am when reading a Chinese restaurant menu.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Are these under 40£, preowned or retail or both or only new?

interesting i just read or watched a spot on purchasing wirh regards to quality, lifespan, and fashion. They literally break down the shoe in half and tell you what you are/arent getting for your purchase and if its a value based on what you want out it.

Under £40 new. Technically, the wedding boots were free, because the Groom paid for them I forget how much they cost, to be fair. The two pairs of Derby's were probably around £25 each, but that could be up to twenty years ago. So long ago, I can't even remember why I ended up getting a second pair...

... but there they are, still doing the job. Far from a "one event and chuck them" shoe. They've not just been lurking in the wardrobe all that time though, and have seen a reasonable amount of use over the years.

In fairness, if I haven't worn shoes pretty much continually (i.e. whenever I wasn't working) till they disitegrate, I've had some damn good mileage out of mass produced High Street shoes over the years. Very rarely have I been disappointed in the longevity, and then I got a brand new shiny pair, for less than the cost of a repair/resole.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Spending more than you ought on depreciating assets is a bad idea ... but there are also benefits from spending "enough" to buy "quality".

Very true. In the past, I've always been quite good at walking out of the shop with the high value shoe. High mileage for low cost. Since shopping online has crept in more, luck plays a more significant part in getting a shoe you're happy with.

I'll cover that more, when I post the "upgrades" to the "make an effort" shoe tier. Some were a bigger win than others.

A shoe that falls apart at the seams after a few miles isn't worth the cheap price ... one that lasts until the sole wears through and then you toss it, is worth it.

Absolutely! They're the <£40 shoes I've been living in for the last three decades of buying my own footwear. There's not many shoes that have suffered splits, catastrophic failures, or have worn through disappointingly quick. Most (80%+) have gone the distance... literally.

And anyone who walks a lot in his shoes, or makes long drives in his car, understands that comfort is an actual important factor! Don't believe me, try walking a block in shoes that don't fit you well. Now keep going for half a mile ... and at the end of that ask yourself if you could do a few more miles, or if you need to sit down and take these monstrosities off.

This is a HUGE part of my shoe selection process, and I'll definitely be dwelling on it later. My doctor is a mile away, or a two mile round trip. I walk. Hospital appointments are a three mile round trip. Unless health or weather are utterly atrocious, I walk. Shopping is a mile out, and a taxi back. Family visits are a train journey, with a mile to walk at either end, so four miles to clock up per visit. Comfort matters, and so do durability of soles.

 

[global_dev]

i notice a lot of guys wearing shoes (regardless of price) that have worn out the heel on one side. I always wondered if they felt that and i guess i just answered that question, since i see it all the time.

I’m intrigued by this thread. I have kind of hard to fit feet. I wonder if the US based retail inexpensive shoes are much different than where you are at. my experience abroad 20 years ago (now) showed a very different footwear experience than i was used to in the US.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

i notice a lot of guys wearing shoes (regardless of price) that have worn out the heel on one side. I always wondered if they felt that and i guess i just answered that question, since i see it all the time.

I’m intrigued by this thread. I have kind of hard to fit feet. I wonder if the US based retail inexpensive shoes are much different than where you are at. my experience abroad 20 years ago (now) showed a very different footwear experience than i was used to in the US.

Good point! Regional differences will certainly affect people's opinions. Most High Street shoes (here) these days, will be made in the Far East somewhere, I'd imagine. In decades past, I think shoes were more prone to failure. Here in the UK, Commonwealth countries might have played a bigger role in the supply chain back then, but the producers would have been running factories which had far less investment than today's producers have.

Even for the peanuts that this tight arse is prepared to pay, expectations are high, and I'm not alone. Some of what I've bought this year has been around £10. Seriously. And I still expect to get a few hundred days use out of them. There's still some horrendous shoe shaped objects that seem to biodegrade on your feet, while you're still trying to get your money's worth from them, but next to them on the rack, there can be some real workhorses.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

On the topic of expanding the "make an effort" shoes, so far, all the pennies have been thrown at two tone brogues. Three out of the four seem to be absolute bargains. One pair, I am FAR less confident about.

I'm not going to pretend that these shoes are on a par with the well known brands that the real aficionados will name in this forum. They're not. However, they were between £27 and £32 each, and built like tanks! I'm not even halfway to having any of these broken in yet. After a couple of hours around the house, the feet want out! Good fit, but really solid.

These were obscene bargains, and I certainly have WAY more than my money's worth. The tweed is from a UK mill not much more than an hour's drive away, for heavens sake. British tweed ain't cheap. There's a very good chance that all three of these pairs will be resoled as and when needed. Although, that will most likely be the stick on soles from a local cobbler, and not the full welted sole replacement, which would likely cost 3x the initial purchase price.

At just under £40, these were the most expensive shoes in this group. They are also the most cheaply built. They don't have anywhere near the same solidity as the others, and although the tread depth in pretty much nominal on these, I'll do well if the uppers outlive the sole. It's highly doubtful I'll stick another sole on these shoes.

That said, I have been proved wrong before, and will still wear them in and amongst all the others, while ever they have miles or days to give. Hopefully, when the day comes that they are no longer functional, I'll feel like I got my money's worth. With the first three, that's pretty much guaranteed, but this last pair feel much more of a gamble. Even though Goodyear welted, these are certainly being considered as disposable shoes.

Initial impression:
Won on 3, Lost (maybe) on 1

So that takes me up to seven pairs of reasonably presentable shoes, which will pretty much handle any social event I'm ever likely to attend. However, as per an earlier post in this thread, these aren't the kind of shoes to be clocking up miles with. They'll be great if going to the venue/theatre/restaurant by taxi, or getting a lift, but no good for making my own way there on foot.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

For clocking up the miles, and most times I go beyond the end of the street, I have at least a mile to walk, it's hard to beat hiking boots and trainers. That's their job!

I have a pair of hiking boots that I really ought to throw out. They've done me proud, and owe me nothing, but now take on water. However, being a tight arse, I'm still milking the last few miles out of them, by wearing them on fair weather days. I actually bought the replacement pair for them last year, but didn't wear them till just a few months ago, and have only maybe worn them two or three times so far, I think. Here's the replacement pair. I don't have pics of the old pair, but they were a different (but similar) pair of Karrimors.

I did take my last pair of trainers past the point of failure though, and am currently down to one cheap synthetic pair of Kappas. I paid little for them, and expect little back. So far, they are doing the job though.

When those trainers expire (which won't be an eternity considering the minimal tread), they'll likely be the last "athletic" shoe. They don't particularly gel with the fat disabled bloke vibe I have going. It's like putting spoilers on a wheelchair, or racing trim on a walking frame Trainers that look more casual than sporty, are a different matter though. I'll get to those later.

So, these were the only two pairs I had for clocking up the miles. Great for shopping, medical trips, casual family visits, or simply just getting out of the house for a while. Not so great for going somewhere I actually want to look presentable. As such, I needed a non-athletic mile clocker to supercede the Kappa trainers, and some kind of "make an effort" mile clockers, which make me look like I actually intended to attend a social event, and am not just stopping off on the way to the moors.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Picking something for when the trainers go kaput was easy. Walking shoes, hiking shoes, hiking trainers... or whatever you want to call them. Karrimor again. A brand which keeps delivering performance for me at low cost. I bought these recently enough to know these are their Surge Low WTX.

They are not just great for clocking up miles when boots aren't needed, but the also look decent enough with chinos, and chino shorts, as well as jeans. I went for the neutral colour to give me maximum scope for matching up that way.

Still not a dressy "make an effort" shoe though.

These Padders Lunar shoes arrived today, which are kind of a halfway step in that direction. Presentable enough to be worn with trousers, but still cushioned enough for an hour's worth of heavy heel strikes, and soft enough to not strip the skin off everywhere else..

I have started another thread with more thoughts on them, if anyone's interested. They seem a reasonable disposable (non-repairable) "sensible" shoe, that should hold together till the soles are worn through.

The other options that I've bought are boots. Good enough for a few miles of trudging, but smart enough to not look like a scruff. First up are a pair of Cumbria Boots from the same place as the three "good" pairs of two-tone brogues. Needless to say, these are built like tanks at a bargain price too, and again, will take time to break in fully. They're not ready for clocking up the miles yet.

This is what they looked like when they were reveived, however, being nubuck, I decided to give them a couple of coats of conditioner before exposing them to the big wide world. That changed their appearance quite a bit.

The conditioned surface does "scuff" quite easily though. Not damage, but revealing the original colour below. That, along with their styling, still looks a little more "country" than "city boot", and so I went for one more.

These also turned up today. A spectator brogue boot from Base London. As with all the other shoes, they're in the same price bracket, and with discount codes on top of the existing sale price, I got them for under £32.

I'm hoping a couple of layers of natural polish, will help the nevy and brown leathers "pop" a little more. They kind of look a little dusty in that image, but they're not really, it's just the light.

Aside from looking a little more event like than the Cumbria boot, they should handle all weather conditions better than the Padders, and still let me get there under my own steam, or via a combination of legwork and public transport.

I expect all four of these shoes/boots, to outlive their soles. I might even consider getting the Cumbria boots resoled when the time comes.

 

[blantyre]

It is year of the ox so buying leather goods seems like a good idea to me.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Although there's still a group of shoes to go through yet, now might be as good a time as any to go through what I've NOT bought... yet.

Monk shoes:
I don't know what it is about these, but they fascinate me, even though a lot of them look ugly to me. Well, they can look OK from the side, the side the online sellers show the picture of, but from the top, they look all wrong. They can also look a little... special... as in this guy's got a buckle because he can't do laces. I still keep looking at them though, half hoping to find a (cheap - obviously) pair that don't look ugly.

Then again, even if I got a pair, would I wear them? They'd be competing for wear time with my two tone brogues. I don't think (but could well be wrong) that I'd be likely to choose the monks over the spectators/co-respondents. No doubt I'll keep looking though.

Loafers:
Not just slip ons, I do have a pair of those, and have owned others. I mean the penny loafer style, or the ones with a horizontal strap or bar. Or tassles. I have never aspired to a shoe with tassles. Twin gusset slip ons, I'm OK with. Be that cotton espadrilles or leather. Just so long as the top is plain, or there's no horizontal stuff going on. Just a quirk of mine. No moccasin tops either. I don't mind a modest "pie crust" on a deck shoe, but if it looks like a rain catcher, forget it. I'm not walking round in a pair of bird baths.

Chelsea boots:
When I was in my youth, I used to hate the look of these, but as the years have passed, I've come to like them. But again, when would I wear them? Instead of the brogues? Unlikely. Clocking up the miles? I doubt they'd compete with laced boots for mile+ comfort. I like the idea, but am not sure they're... me. No matter what my little quirks on aesthetics might be, function has to come first, and I'm not sure what their role would be if I got some.

Desert boots:
Suede. I'm in the UK. The sky leaks a lot. I have owned (and wrecked) suede in the past, and it just struggles a bit on versatility to my mind. I do have a pair of the brogues with suede, and one with tweed, but also made sure to get two all leather pairs, for the usual "three seasons in one day" weather (in Scotland, it's four seasons).

Chukkas then? Well there's the wedding boots as I call them, which I posted earlier. I do like them. I could maybe do another pair, but they would have to compete with the other dressier shoes.

Woven leather:
I must admit, this is very tempting for the warmer days. Close woven though. Something to wear with socks. Woven brogues or derbies. Open weaves, vented shoes, and things like fisherman sandals, always make me cringe with the thought of snagged toenails on every step. Whether that's a realistic annoyance or not, the thought of it gives me the heebie jeebies.

Oxfords:
On trying on the suede two tone brogues, which are my first ever pair of closed lace shoes, I thought "phew, I got away with that". The lacing gap up nearly closed, but not quite. I much prefer open lacing, as there's more width adjustment. I can see the leather maybe stretching over time, and me running out of adjustment on a closed lace shoe. I'll stick to derbies, as I know I can snug them up more if I need to.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

It is year of the ox so buying leather goods seems like a good idea to me.

So it is! I was born in year of the ox, and it's the fourth time around that calendar for me this year.

I don't think I'd be able to afford dragon skin shoes anyway.

 

[MrSpeedy]

Love the two-tone brogues (the "good" ones), love the first pair of boots!

 

[AimlessWanderer]

i notice a lot of guys wearing shoes (regardless of price) that have worn out the heel on one side. I always wondered if they felt that and i guess i just answered that question, since i see it all the time.

Just revisiting this post to address the heel thing. Sorry, I kind of skipped over that before.

I have rounded off the outside of the heel a bit on some shoes, but the main wear is usually under the ball of the foot for me. The only time heel wear was an issue, was on a pair of heeled boots (whatever the ankle height rocker/cowboy boots are called). They were the last pair of shoes I owned that I bothered having sole patches put on. The last time I had it done, the numpty didn't bother flatting off the heel and sole first, and just slapped more rubber on. It threw the whole shoe out of balance, and I was kind or rocking backwards on the heel all the time. I threw them out, because I actually found them dangerous.

That was the last time I bothered with cobbler repairs, and just moved to soles with a good depth of tread, that would last an age before they wore out.

As an aside, the quickest wearing soles I ever had were a pair of Doc Martins. I think I knocked the tread of those in 6 months as a kid. Come the first winter, I could barely stand up in them. Never bought a pair since.

Those two incidents were the main drivers for moving me to "disposable" shoes. Even when I was working, and had a very comfortable amount of disposable income. I saw repairable shoes as poor economy in terms of cost per mile over other shoes. I know, this is where the reverse snobbery thing comes in. But it's not sour grapes because I can't afford it now, I was driven to disposables by the cost and hassle, not to mention frequency, of getting repairs done. I'm only revisiting (cheaply) the idea again now, because I have a far less active lifestyle.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Love the two-tone brogues (the "good" ones), love the first pair of boots!

Thanks Stephen. Which ones? The dress boots, or country boots?

 

[MrSpeedy]

Thanks Stephen. Which ones? The dress boots, or country boots?

The country boots are my favorite (of the boots).