Matt Deckard
Man of Action
- Messages
- 10,045
last: A last is a form either plastic or wooden which is used to create the shape of the shoe. Like a block for a hat though for a shoe.
I’m all about the leather sole. Rubber just doesn’t absorb. It’s not breathing a shoe does, it’s absorb and leather absorbs the sweat and conforms to your foot.
When it comes to dress shoes, and I mean shoes a man wears with a jacket and tie, you know, the kind you can shine. When it comes to dress shoes I want to wear mine like an athlete wears sneakers. I want the look the comfort and the mobility. Most shoe companies can get one of the three though I haven’t worn a pair that gets all of the three.
My Alden’s for example: they have a fantastic last shape that is just right for my foot. They are not very mobile when it comes to things like dancing because … well they move like a walking shoe. It’s hard to describe what I mean by moving like a walking shoe. They are a good fit. They are the shape of my foot though in them I am not fast moving. They stunt my speed a bit with their large soles and the heel which (since it is an outflairlast shoe) has more rubber on the inner part of the foot than the outer to keep the foot leaning out. For me they are a 12 hour shoe before they become uncomfortable. Soft uppers and flexible sole. A formed fit after some years of wearing, though still a pain after too many hours on my feet. Beautiful shoes… the best looking I have.
Allen Edmonds. More maneuverable than the Aldens though I have yet to find a last from that company which fits my foot as precisely as the Aldens. The upper leather is very nice and soft. The souls are flexible. Very good for maneuvering on a dance floor… in fact the best when it comes to moving running or jumping. They feel as though they are made for action. Balance comes to mind because my feet don't get wobbly in the Allen Edmonds.
That’s something I want to bring up in shoes and I doubt it is often addressed with current shoe manufacturers. Balance is a big factor when it comes to me and shoes. Some shoes I can walk stand and run in and feel secure that I won’t lose a footing or stumble while doing a spin in a dance. Allen Edmonds are good for that stability. The Alden is a 15-hour shoe with lots of stability.
Now I’ve worn Florsheim shoes and thought I knew why dress shoes went out of favor (I thought it was because comfort and leather shoes did not go hand in glove). I wore a pair of Florsheim wingtips for a few years and never got past the need to sit down at every chance. It was dancing that made me buy the shoes and I thought Florsheim was the name when it came to well made dress shoes. I read the old ads in my 1930’s Esquire mags and felt the nostalgia of just owning a pair. I also felt like I was walking on pavement without shoes wherever I went. It was the way it was done I thought. If I were going to wear a dress shoe it was supposed to hurt my feet. That was what was in my mind and I was the High Schooler with the suffering feet at the time. I learned the hard way that good looking shoes and comfort were two things that were not supposed to g o together. All my hero’s wore dress shoes and I was determined to break in my feet. I later learned I was wrong. The 2-hour shoe, the Florsheims were replaced with Allen Edmonds and my world changed a bit. I cast off the idea of buying what I though were the lower class brands like Florsheim and Bostonian and Clarks and a phalanx of others and decided that Allen Edmonds was it. Then I got my Alden pair and thought these were the beat all end all in dress shoes. Sure they were not comfortable 12 to 15 hours or less of wearing and it’s true that no dress shoe with a leather sole will replace the foam rubber athletic shoes of today, though I was sold on the idea that AE and Alden were the best I could get from a US company when it came to a great dress shoe that looked classy.
I have recently reassessed my idea on this issue. I was on eBay looking for a pair of shoes that would pass for Officer style Army shoes from the 1940’s Plain toe in a russet or close enough color. I found a pair of Bostonians. Same type mentioned in the WWII thread about officer dress shoes. I bought the pair and when they arrived my knee-jerk reaction was to see them as cheap junk when compared to the Allen’s or Alden’s. Looking inside them I saw they had the same arch support cushions as my vintage which are very comfortable. The leather upper looked a bit plasticine and the soles looked a little too much like pressed particle leather when compared to the other two, though they looked like the officer shoes. I hadn’t tried them on and was considering putting them on Ebay when I thought 'why not just wear them as the Officer shoes' and get the rest of the gear. So I tried them on and went for a walk. Then I went dancing. Then I went dancing again. Their uppers are very squeaky and the soles make it feel a bit chunky though light but, these are my most comfortable dress shoes. They are the 24 hour shoes. I can take them all day and so far no problems. Will they wear out faster than Allen’s or Alden’s? perhaps though they are comfortable. They aren’t as stable or balanced on the dance floor as the AE shoes though they are good for shag and Balboa. He plasticine leather uppers aren’t as soft as the other two brands and I doubt they will patina like them though they take a great shine. The heels are not rubbery they are stiff like plastic, though altogether the Bostonians are a very comfortable shoe for a low cost and when it comes to dress shoes like I said before I want comfort looks and balance. These have the comfort and they look okay. Now I need the looks of the Alden with the Balance of the Allen Edmonds and the comfort of the Bostonians.
They are not as much fun for dancing because they put me off balance. It could be because the shoe waist is soo big on the sole, though I can live in them and wear them like Sport shoes.
Those Bostonians.
I just wish they would stay laced
I’m all about the leather sole. Rubber just doesn’t absorb. It’s not breathing a shoe does, it’s absorb and leather absorbs the sweat and conforms to your foot.
When it comes to dress shoes, and I mean shoes a man wears with a jacket and tie, you know, the kind you can shine. When it comes to dress shoes I want to wear mine like an athlete wears sneakers. I want the look the comfort and the mobility. Most shoe companies can get one of the three though I haven’t worn a pair that gets all of the three.
My Alden’s for example: they have a fantastic last shape that is just right for my foot. They are not very mobile when it comes to things like dancing because … well they move like a walking shoe. It’s hard to describe what I mean by moving like a walking shoe. They are a good fit. They are the shape of my foot though in them I am not fast moving. They stunt my speed a bit with their large soles and the heel which (since it is an outflairlast shoe) has more rubber on the inner part of the foot than the outer to keep the foot leaning out. For me they are a 12 hour shoe before they become uncomfortable. Soft uppers and flexible sole. A formed fit after some years of wearing, though still a pain after too many hours on my feet. Beautiful shoes… the best looking I have.
Allen Edmonds. More maneuverable than the Aldens though I have yet to find a last from that company which fits my foot as precisely as the Aldens. The upper leather is very nice and soft. The souls are flexible. Very good for maneuvering on a dance floor… in fact the best when it comes to moving running or jumping. They feel as though they are made for action. Balance comes to mind because my feet don't get wobbly in the Allen Edmonds.
That’s something I want to bring up in shoes and I doubt it is often addressed with current shoe manufacturers. Balance is a big factor when it comes to me and shoes. Some shoes I can walk stand and run in and feel secure that I won’t lose a footing or stumble while doing a spin in a dance. Allen Edmonds are good for that stability. The Alden is a 15-hour shoe with lots of stability.
Now I’ve worn Florsheim shoes and thought I knew why dress shoes went out of favor (I thought it was because comfort and leather shoes did not go hand in glove). I wore a pair of Florsheim wingtips for a few years and never got past the need to sit down at every chance. It was dancing that made me buy the shoes and I thought Florsheim was the name when it came to well made dress shoes. I read the old ads in my 1930’s Esquire mags and felt the nostalgia of just owning a pair. I also felt like I was walking on pavement without shoes wherever I went. It was the way it was done I thought. If I were going to wear a dress shoe it was supposed to hurt my feet. That was what was in my mind and I was the High Schooler with the suffering feet at the time. I learned the hard way that good looking shoes and comfort were two things that were not supposed to g o together. All my hero’s wore dress shoes and I was determined to break in my feet. I later learned I was wrong. The 2-hour shoe, the Florsheims were replaced with Allen Edmonds and my world changed a bit. I cast off the idea of buying what I though were the lower class brands like Florsheim and Bostonian and Clarks and a phalanx of others and decided that Allen Edmonds was it. Then I got my Alden pair and thought these were the beat all end all in dress shoes. Sure they were not comfortable 12 to 15 hours or less of wearing and it’s true that no dress shoe with a leather sole will replace the foam rubber athletic shoes of today, though I was sold on the idea that AE and Alden were the best I could get from a US company when it came to a great dress shoe that looked classy.
I have recently reassessed my idea on this issue. I was on eBay looking for a pair of shoes that would pass for Officer style Army shoes from the 1940’s Plain toe in a russet or close enough color. I found a pair of Bostonians. Same type mentioned in the WWII thread about officer dress shoes. I bought the pair and when they arrived my knee-jerk reaction was to see them as cheap junk when compared to the Allen’s or Alden’s. Looking inside them I saw they had the same arch support cushions as my vintage which are very comfortable. The leather upper looked a bit plasticine and the soles looked a little too much like pressed particle leather when compared to the other two, though they looked like the officer shoes. I hadn’t tried them on and was considering putting them on Ebay when I thought 'why not just wear them as the Officer shoes' and get the rest of the gear. So I tried them on and went for a walk. Then I went dancing. Then I went dancing again. Their uppers are very squeaky and the soles make it feel a bit chunky though light but, these are my most comfortable dress shoes. They are the 24 hour shoes. I can take them all day and so far no problems. Will they wear out faster than Allen’s or Alden’s? perhaps though they are comfortable. They aren’t as stable or balanced on the dance floor as the AE shoes though they are good for shag and Balboa. He plasticine leather uppers aren’t as soft as the other two brands and I doubt they will patina like them though they take a great shine. The heels are not rubbery they are stiff like plastic, though altogether the Bostonians are a very comfortable shoe for a low cost and when it comes to dress shoes like I said before I want comfort looks and balance. These have the comfort and they look okay. Now I need the looks of the Alden with the Balance of the Allen Edmonds and the comfort of the Bostonians.
They are not as much fun for dancing because they put me off balance. It could be because the shoe waist is soo big on the sole, though I can live in them and wear them like Sport shoes.
Those Bostonians.
I just wish they would stay laced
)
