What I Am Wearing

The Astaire by Gaziano & Girling is hands-down my all-time favorite spectator (co-respondent). Every different part of it was designed perfectly, particularly the facing, with all of it's beautiful curves. When I decided that I was going to get it, I was almost a bit nervous in deciding what colorway that I wanted it in. Not that it was frightening or anything, but as I love the shoe so much, I wanted to enhance it as best as I could with my color options. At first I thought a bit crazily, and wanted to do some strong contrasting, but in the end, I decided that having the two different leathers was all the contrast I needed. Therefore, why not pick my favorite color in two different shades? And I am sure glad that I did, because the end result has turned out to be better than I would have imagined and has created a shoe that I absolutely love! And if you are like me, as in you love a beautiful spectator, but have never found one that really did it for you, then look no further than the Astaire. After all, it is named after my all-time favorite style icon, Mr. Fred!

Shoes: Gaziano & Girling
Zip Sweater: Intimissimi
Trousers: H&M
Undershirt: Primark
Tie: Drakes

Today's Favorites - Septieme Largeur

I figured that while I have been pitching wholecuts quite tough for the last few weeks or so, I might as well keep on! I mean, how could I not after seeing these bad boys by Septieme Largeur? It just makes sense, doesn't it? I think so.....Nevertheless, the beauty about having a custom patina done on your shoes is the fact that you can have any shade of color that you would like, and even multiple shades of many colors if you fancy that. You see, for me, this blue is perfect. It's not too light, but it's not too dark either. It's just right and shows you that it is a blue. There would be not question about it, like navy can sometimes come across as black. This is blue, period. But you would have a hard time finding this exact color at a leather tannery or supplier. There might be something close, but not exact, and more likely than not, once lasted it would not look the same. It's amazing how far along shoes have come since their conception. I remember once going to some museum and seeing replicas of some of the first shoes made, and to think that since then we can now do what we do, having customized fit, color, shape, detail etc....it's quite amazing.....yet I feel that we are at the peak in terms of customization (not craftsmanship), because what more could we truly do to make a shoe unique? Add hovering capabilities? :-)

Today's Favorites - Carreducker

I just realized that a plain toed shoe, whether it be a wholecut, a saddle shoe, or a model like this with just a facing, is by far my favorite type of shoe, so long that it has a nice shape. Something about the plain canvas of the vamp and toe area, just draws me in and screams elegance. So when I first saw this new bespoke model, a collaboration between Gieves & Hawkes and Carreducker, I was absolutely stunned! Being made of my favorite color, blue, and having the lizard skin facing (a skin that I am normally not fond of), it was pairing that went well together and gave me a new appreciation of the mixture of blue and black. Normally I stay away from pairing these two colors too much, as I believe that a dark blue can be too close to black and therefore offers no contrast, but the blue in this shoe was just light enough, to allow that facing to truly stand out. And because of that, I am in absolute envy of these shoes, and am trying to figure out how I am going to get a pair without having to spend thousands of pounds.....what a dilemma! 

Today's Favorites - Crockett & Jones

When I first saw all of these pictures, I could not believe my eyes! Not because Crockett & Jones does not make nice shoes, but they are usually on the relatively conservative side. If you walk by their shop in the Burlington Arcade in London, you will see a bombardment of black, brown and tan, with a small hint of burgundy somewhere in the trenches, but NEVER have I seen green chelsea boots and blue saddle shoes. It makes me wonder if these, like some of G&G's factory shoes, are for another market, such as Japan and the Far East?  Nevertheless, I was very impressed when I saw them, and I think that I gave C&J a couple of extra points in my book of cool shoe brands. The shame is that I will probably never see these in the flesh, as I truly believe that they will not hit the UK (nor US for that matter) market. And because of that, I still think that when I go to Japan for the first time, it's going to be like a kid going to Disneyland, with shoes everywhere in blue's, green's, red's etc.

Shoes Of The Week

While I can't say that I am the biggest fan of the toe shape on some of these, I can say that this loafer, by Riccardo Bestetti, is one of the coolest loafers (style-wise) I have seen to-date!! As I have always been a big oxford shoe type of guy, I have recently been shifting my passions towards loafers, because considering that I don't wear suits, loafers certainly look better for more casual outfits. And the idea of having the boat shoe type of thick leather lace, to tie as an aesthetic, is what gives me that perfect balance of feeling like an oxford but actually being a slip-on, thus giving me the best of both worlds and creating the perfect loafer. (That was a long sentence!) As I learned how to give that mirror-like shine in Italy myself, you can see that Bestetti is also no stranger to it and has applied it beautifully to these loafers. And having that shine, makes that purple model scream out at me!!

For those that don't know, Bestetti is a bespoke shoemaker out of Pavia, Italy (north) who also makes a decent amount of RTW shoes, distributed here and there, around the world. To see a little bit more about him I have attached a LINK HERE, that gives a nice 4-minute video of him making shoes as well shows a few of his RTW models that are available from the website, such as these lovely riding boots.

My Shoes #19 - Septieme Largeur

I just received my very first pair of Septieme Largeur shoes and I could not be more pleased. The funny thing was, even though my favorite color is blue, I did not own one pair of blue dress shoes. I used to in the past, but have since got rid of them and was seriously lacking in that color department. So when I first saw these I was instantly hooked and knew that I had to get a pair. For 295 Euros (245 + 50 for blue patina), I have to say that these shoes are well worth their price and even more.


With my sick love for shoes, I unfortunately fall in to the category of suffering through pain in order to wear the shoes that I want. Now, that is not to say that I will buy uncomfortable shoes, but it's just that I have such jacked up feet that most shoes really don't feel good at the end of the day, with the exception of a few. But I can truly say (or I would not be typing it) that these shoes did not kill my feet. That feat is no easy come by. I will say, that when I got home I was eager to put my slippers on but I managed to make it through a full day (on the first day of wearing them) without any pain, plasters (band-aids) or regrets!

As I was so eager to wear them, and had the perfect tie for them, I decided to give them my Michael Douglas (Wall Street) look, which is a favorite of mine right now due to the pleasant accessibility of braces (suspenders) in England, specifically on Savile Row. And while wearing them it occurred to me that no one particularly said 'oh, you are wearing blue shoes,' which made wonder why more people don't wear navy shoes in the work space. I mean, seriously, outside of my lavender laces, a navy pair of shoes is not ostentatious, on the other hand, it is quite conservative. It is a dark color and would go great with gray, brown and even khaki suits. Yet so many people are afraid to wear them..... Anyway, I normally don't say "buy this brand or that", but at 245 Euros, for great styles and relative comfort, Septieme Largeur is a no-brainer for shoe lovers!  

Today's Favorites - Saion

When it comes to stealing my heart (and design ideas in my head), Saion does a great job at it!! The shoes in the second and third pictures from the top, are precisely the type of shoes that I would think to create. They define my motto of 'classic with a modern twist' and completely exemplify what is lacking on the shelves of shoe stores across the western world. Obviously, they are not lacking in Japan, because it seems as if they are the few who actually appreciate this type of stylization. That being said, I absolute dread the day that I go to Tokyo, for fear of wanting to buy every single thing that I see and not being able to afford most of it!

Another detail to point out is the amazing toe medallion on the red pair of shoes. It is quite large in comparison to many, but provides a nice, bold detail that helps to separate that semi-brogue from any other. Also added was a set of complimentary and subtle laces that provide a touch of something different in respect to your average black or brown laces. The little things, for me, just set these type of shoe companies so far above the rest, it is not even funny. If only more makers took the time to provide these little things......

Today's Favorites - Scarpe Di Bianco Loafers

While I own a bunch of loafers already, I recently am quite obsessed with the idea of more traditional looking loafers, and owning them. Not that these models are necessarily traditional, but they offer that 'classic with a modern look' feel, as well as offering nice shapes, colors and designs. Having never seen Scarpe Di Bianco in person, due to their newness in the industry, I am quite curious of them. From looking at them, they seem to be your run-of-the-mill high-end Italian makers, offering a black-stitched or goodyear welted sole, with some good quality upper leather. This makes me quite curious of the price though, which I assume will probably be in the $600-$800's. Don't quote me on that, but hearing that they are ex-Sutor Mantellassi gents who started it, I would imagine that they came into the industry at a lower price (to maybe low-ball Sutor which will set you back $900+). Regardless, their look is very Italian, which on some shoes is great, but others is not. For these loafers, I quite like the 'Italianess' of them though, as I believe that Italian gentleman have mastered the art of the loafer.