Ready to Wear Shoes

Ready to Wear Shoes & Boots


When it comes to choosing a ready to wear shoe or boot there is a lot to consider, style, colours, fit, shape and of course price. Trying to find something that fits all of these categories can sometimes feel like you are on an endless quest for something that may take years of searching or that you may never find! When it came for me to introduce a ready to wear range, there are certain options, do I introduce a range made up from my designs, do I use a range already designed and put my name in or go with a range that is already there that offers excellent quality, style, fit & at a price that suits most people? The answer is I am working with Trickers and currently able to offer their complete in stock and their m.t.o. range. Their designs for the city are timeless and their country shoes and boots are by far strong enough and well suited to anything you may want to put them through. With single leather soles for the city and double leather soles for the country there are so many different styles, leather and colour options available. With prices starting at around $450.00 (£255.00) including shipping there is definitely a shoe or boot for you. To order or request style information please email enquiries@thelondonshoemaker.co.uk or call (001) 540-222-6267.

Shoe Styles-Adelaide Shoe with Imitation Back Counter

Whatever shoe you decide to choose, you have generally thought about what you would like to use that particular style of shoe for. Whether it be a Black Calf Oxford with a stitched cap for a wedding or a Brown Grain Calf Full Brogue for the country or weekends, you have thought about what you want to wear to compliment the clothing you will be wearing with them.

An Adelaide Oxford in Dark Burgundy Calf opposite can be worn with many colours from navy, brown, grey or tweeds and from casual to semi formal. It is a very good style of shoe that can be used for many occassions. This particular style has been made with an imitation back counter of 2 & 1 punching, so that the shoe is virtually one piece except for the toe cap. It is a very smart shoe and carries its own style and is just that little bit different from a regular adelaide style.

The Prices of Bespoke/Custom shoes/suits $$$$!!!!!!

I am in New York City at the moment with Tailor Steven Hitchcock, we went for a walk on the Monday along Madison Avenue, lots of very nice stores with plenty of beautiful things in them. The few we did go in to, to take a look around, we found the prices of 'ready to wear' shoes and suits are the same if not MORE than it costs to have something made for you by hand. I saw alligator shoes at nearly $11000.00 (Eleven Thousand!!!!! - ready to wear!!!). You could come in and see us while we are in New York and order a pair of bespoke alligator shoes and a suit for the same price!!!!! You could choose the colours, choose the fabric, enjoy choosing the style, the cut, the service............... You would experience something that you DO NOT get ready to wear!

Purple Buck Skin!

Here is a recent pair i have made in Purple Buck Skin. It is an interesting design with it being a whole cut elastic sided shoe with an arrow design in punching. This style of shoe is avery good fitting shoe as the elastic gives it very good support. The shoe trees fitted to all of my shoes are all individually made for each and every pair and are modelled fom the last the shoe is made on. Note: the interesting design across the toe cap.

Links

I have the following links of people that i work with that will look after your needs in the custom/bespoke world.

London/New York - Steven Hitchcock Tailor www.thesavilerowtailor.com

Washington DC - Field English Custom Tailors - 1742 Wisconsin Avenue NW

Scottsdale AZ - Saverio Custom Clothiers www.saveriocustomclothiers.com

Middleburg VA - Highcliffe Clothiers www.highcliffeclothiers.com

CTDA Show in Washington DC

I was recently asked to talk about bespoke handmade to measure shoes at The Custom Tailors & Designers Association. It was held at the newly opened Gaylord National Hotel in MD and i found it very interesting. Aswell as talking about bespoke shoes i was able to meet a lot of people and make some good connections with companies across the States. I will hopefully be extending my trunk show to include Scottsdale Arizona and working with Saverio Custom Clothiers. After the talk they had other people talking and workshops available, it was a very interesting chance to meet a lot of new friends.

A 'Classic' Shoe

What is it that makes a shoe a 'classic'?
Is it the fact it is a certain colour, leather, style, with or without laces, what is it?

It is all of these things that in ones own mind that makes a shoe a classic. The full brogue, the semi-brogue, the oxford (with and without punched cap), the monk shoe, the penny loafer, the tassle loafer, infact the list can go on and on. I like to think that every shoe that is handmade becomes a classic, in the way that it is made individually for each person, everyone is different and so the full brogue for one person is going to look slightly different from one to another, whether due to the shape, the punching, the choice of colours used on the uppers and linings, the different choices of perforations on the toe, vamps, and quarters etc, this is what makes each one a classic in its own right. This is what is so special about being able to choose the shoe that you want the shoemaker to make for you. I love making shoes, and being able to help in the way of designing something for someone that is a little different. I think we are all aware that there is nothing new but to explore and stretch the possibilities of styles a little more creates our own 'classics'. A bit like the elastic sided shoe i have shown that has an alligator top with a black calf bottom, and the way the shoe is cut to make it look longer and slimmer, detailing that is important enough to make a shoe noticeable but not rediculous, smart and not too crazy and at the same time elegant enough for people to notice that it is something that cannot be bought off the shelf. The person wearing that shoe feels special as they also know that very few will have the shoe they have. This is what i believe creates a classic shoe, something a little out of the ordinary that looks good, and will be noticed by people that know what they are looking at.