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Your favourite shoe

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On Today this morning, there was a bizarre interview about shoes & high heels which lost me completely. Coincidentally was in shoe shop yesterday looking for something comfortable/affordable and with laces that don’t fall apart with the first tug, and did learn yesterday that proper mocassins can only come with leather, not plastic or rubber soles; something about the way proper mocassins are made apparently.Not an entirely wasted trip then. Today I’m wearing an old pair which will have to do for a bit longer given the crazy prices.

I am now at the stage where a shoe has become the most important piece of clothing, and rather than fussing about the state of the world or what I’m going to have for dinner tonight, wondered what others feel about shoes and your favourite shoes. Mine are a pair of Church’s brogues which I give an airing to infrequently but they fit so perfectly they are a joy to wear. I was given a very gentle AW kicking for declaring my love for these brogues a while back, but what the hell.

Here’s what Nancy has to say…

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Comments

  1. I heard that interview too and it seemed to me that the interviewees hadn’t been briefed on why they had been invited.
    The topic seemed to be about women being required to wear high heels is some workplaces
    I think the Today editors wanted to have an argument between the two parties and got a podiatrist and shoemaker in. The problem was that they were in agreement about the need for good fitting shoes and that wearing heels for any length of time was uncomfortable.
    It meandered along to no good purpose.
    One of the least riveting items I’ve ever heard.

      • Agreed. I am a regular Today listener, couldn’t really do without it but wish they could get over their desire to provoke mindless arguments and stick to keeping us informed. Less Sarah Montague/Justin Webb, more Mishal Hussain.

        • But being made to wear unsuitable footwear at work is a big deal.
          (Gentlemen look smart in a tie, but you don’t ask them to wear ties around moving machinery, for example).
          I’m surprised this can’t be been binned via independent health and safety inspection, a discrimination case or a few expensive claims for back injuries etc.

          • I thought that the point of the item was that the firm sending the woman home without pay for refusing to wear the shoes they demanded is actually illegal, and despite this, no action was taken against the firm in question. The guests were simply explaining why the footwear in question is not suitable for many people.

      • The other “Eh?” moment for me was when the shoemaker said she was going to the factory where they make lasts after the interview and then explained what lasts are. Possibly she thought she was talking to Schools’ Radio (although I doubt that still exists).

  2. My desire for comfortable but stylish shoes is severely limited by the size of my…feet. As they continued to grow to size 12 in the 1980s, I basically had to grab the handful of choices on offer at any given time. Luckily there was one old-school traditional shop in Hull that sold top-quality, timelessly fashionable footwear in my size, so I had a couple of pairs of brogues and formal shoes and looked after them well so they lasted well over a decade. Since the advent of the internet, the search for shoes has been hitherto considerably easier, although my feet have continued to grow, long after they were meant to stop – I’m now on size 16 – so I’m once more reaching a tipping point.

  3. I’m big too (ooh er), and tend to lean towards functional rather than elegance. A (male) friend of mine has a cupboard full of only shoes, he must have 30-40 pairs. I get by with about 5, and this time of year it’s mainly clunky boots with good treads to get through snow and ice.

  4. Love a shoe. Could spend quite a bit of money but don’t because I don’t have any. My favourite is a clumpy pair of timberland Chelsea boots that I’ll wear til they fall off my feet, one time I did spend serious money and dropped like £375 on a pair of Cheaney brogue boots which I love. They’re bloody heavy though. I tend to wait for decent shoes to go on the sale rack so I’ve got Barkers and Loakes for work. But mostly it’s the Timbs when possible, they’re outrageously comfy. Oh and a couple pairs of Chucks for the times when only a Chuck will do. All of the above are years old except the Cheaneys which are relatively new but will probably outlive me.

    I’m an 11.5 which is biggish but not too big: ideal for sale racks. They stock them but often don’t succeed in selling them at full price.

  5. For many years and until very recently I have sworn by Red Wing boots – the original American shit-kickers. The ‘look’ says you’ve just finished a six week stint on the rigs, where in reality you’ve just left your desk in a Soho design boutique. They had to go – just too bloody heavy.

    I have therefore rapidly established a collection similar in design but in the Pikolinos brand – very light and very comfortable.

    Other than than that Loakes to go with the suits.

  7. I have a pair of Ecco boots which I really like. They’re rather like Converse but in black leather and they are soooo light and comfortable. I’ve had them for years and they’re wearing brilliantly. Big fan of Ecco.

    Back in the day I loved Kickers – I had white and red ones.

  11. I don’t often post…but I do come here every day, and posts like this one are a big part of the reason.

    I like films, books and music, but I also wear shoes and am in the market for a new pair of boots. As such, I am about to Google “Red Wing boots”

    Thank you to the Afterword, and *everyone* who contributes. You make the internet worthwhile

    [slips back into shadows…]

        • Fantastic shoes and boots! I have a pair from 1992 and – slightly bizarrely – the lining has given way more than the uppers. Polished up they are still quite presentable and supremely comfortable. Stuarts in Shepherd’s Bush stocks them.

          Another brand I like – more elegant than Paraboots – are Fratelli Rossetti, who seem to have just closed their sole London shop. More discrete than Gucci (no horsey attachments or logos). If money were no object, I’d be well looked-after by Berluti. I still have quite a few Stephane Kelian shoes and boots. Sadly, the quality dropped off in latter years and they then stopped making men’s shoes. They had the best pointed toes I’ve ever come across – a few notches down from a winkle picker and great leather.

      • Nice. I’ve got a pair of Paraboot Avignons, which also have a split toe, and a knackered but much-loved old pair of Michaels, which desperately need resoling. That chunky rubber sole is great when it’s new but you might as well be wearing roller skates when the floor is wet and there’s a bit of wear on your shoes.

    • Oscar, as it’s my thread I should like to both thank and welcome you here and I’m oddly touched that such an unhinged thread has drawn you out. I intend this to be the start of something big and I am presently composing a prose poem to a much missed item of clothing, the string vest.

      • Oh god yes. Comfort, utility and redolent of raw masculinity.

        You wear one for thirty years and then use it for straining your sprouts.

        Do you know that their design is based on chain-mail?

        No you don’t, because I just made that up.

      • May I wish you luck with your literary efforts.

        In the highly unlikely event your poem fails to attract the audience it clearly deserves, may I suggest you consider a ‘pop-up’ publishing venture.

        First in it’s stable ‘You and your String Vest’. Now all you need is a suitable strap line.

  14. Loakes are good. I have some brown brogues and a pointy(ish) pair of black semi brogues. I also quite like Rockport shoes and I have a pair of brown boots that are quite smart but also very light and comfy. I also have some Columbia walking shoes which are waterproof.

    And I splashed out on a pair of Aigle wellies for winter dog walks. For wellies, they are amazingly comfortable.

  15. I found some lovely Cheaney sheepskin-lined suede chukka boots earlier today in town. They were awesome. But I suspect I might hear about it if dropped 375 sheets on shoes at this point before the January payday. Not least from the bank in the form of a “payment declined” message on the machine.

  16. Echo the love for Red wings especially their desert boots. Also a fan of Clark’s and Delicious Junctions desert boots and had a pair of corduroy monkey boots in their sale designed by Acid Jazz label Eddie Pillar.

    Got 8 pairs of tassled loafers in various colours including an oxblood pair I had handmade in Spain.

    Still love a Chelsea boot and have suede and leather versions and again with brogues including a blue pair I had for Christmas.

    Trainers are old school adidas samba, gazelle or London.

    I don’t own any slippers.

  17. Having given this some thought, my favourite shoe is my current pair of black nike astro turf trainers.

    I bought them about 18 months ago, after a decade or so of wearing boots of many different hues. There was something nice about going back to an all black boot – they’re surprisingly difficult to find these days.

    For the first 3 or 4 months, my shooting was off. The laces weren’t in quite the same place as my previous pair of boots, the weight was different and it took some adjustment. Eventually I got my eye back in, and I’ve since put a lot of goals through those shoes.

    I love them because they’re my boot right now – if I were to play in anything else, it would feel super wrong. I love them because whenever I put them on, I know I’m about to play football. I love them because when I look at them I’m reminded of things I’ve done wearing them. But most of all I love them because Boobie Miles taught me to always knock ’em out with black Nikes on my feet….

    • Hope you haven’t been neglecting your work…

      Interesting you mention they’re black because after watching PL players prance around in multi-coloured boots more befitting a panto, I find it really visually jarring to see the odd re-emergence of the black boot. It seems as if they’re playing in miner’s boots.

      Strange days.

  18. Dr Marten boots and brogues were my choice in the days when I went to an office every day. Comfortable and long lasting. With infrequent office visits these days Birkenstock boots do the trick, with a pair of their clogs for wear around the house. My arches as so grateful.

    • People often say that Docs are tough but I don’t think I ever had a pair that lasted more than six months before I had gone worn out the heel, split the sole, or both. Solid-soled boots for me from now on, and I’m wearing a pair at the moment. They’re from the Clarks sale, not quite the thing for the office but when it’s frosty out I need a decent grip for the walk to work.

      I’m tough on shoes, not least because I do love a walk, and I’m fortunate enough to be a pleasant two mile stroll each way from work so even smart office shoes have to cope with 5 miles a day including pottering around the office and lunchtime shopping.

  20. We have quite a few Australians on this board, so let’s mention that classic Australian boot, namely the R.M. Williams.

    I have a pair of R. M. Williams Classic Craftsman boots in black. Needed them in the narrow F fitting, as my feet are pencil-thin, despite being size 11/45. So had to wait until I was in London to get them at the R.M. Williams shop there.

    They’re ideal for the spring and autumn, and I find they’re quite versatile for both casual and semi-formal use.

    https://www.rmwilliams.com.au/classic-craftsman/Classic_Craftsman.html?dwvar_Classic__Craftsman_color=02&lang=en_AU#lang=en_AU&start=1

    Do any Australian Afterworders romp around the sheep station, or the streets of Sydney, in a pair of Williams?

  21. Docs are the ones for me. I haven’t actually ever had the big fuck off lace-ups, but have been wearing the chelsea boots for months, once my quasi-desert boot ones wore out, with a back up of simple old brown shoe design. I like the curve of the toe and the width of the tread, super comfortable and a dude end to my leg for anyone noting. Or that is my opinion.
    I absolutely loathe these long upward pointing shiny black have yer eye out shoes that seem so de rigeur amongst middle management types. Clowns shoes, I call ’em. With shiny suits and pastel socks.
    Tossers.

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