The day has finally come to try a pair of bespoke shoes that come from the shoemakers that for me epitomize shoemaking at it’s finest…..and boy am I excited! For me, the toughest thing about going bespoke is the decision of what to create. Having all of the “essentials” already taken care of, it only really makes sense for me to create something that is insanely unique that I know that no one else in the world would even think about have anything close to, not only in style, but more so in color/material usage. That being, I decided to use a design that I have created that I have not seen before (I could be wrong, but at least I don’t think so…): A saddle darby brogue boot (what a mouthful!). I love the idea of a heavy, yet at the same time elegant boot for winter but they are not too easy to find. Usually they are either too clunky or rather too elegant to be worn in a hard manner, but getting one in the middle is near impossible (EG Galway being the only exception). That being I have decided to go for a bi-tone, double sole, storm welted brogue boot. Now the kicker will be that it will have a fabric to it, but I will leave this secret for later as to what the fabric and color of leather will be….If you know me, you might be able to guess the base color….
G&G’s showroom is just down the street from where I am based on Savile Row. To be specific, they are set up in the shop of legendary bespoke cutters, Chittleborough & Morgan where you can find a lovely selection of their shoes created by a mixture between, RTW, Deco and Bespoke models all shined up and beautifully presented. So that being, it was nice and convenient to go and see Tony for the fitting. Having arrived ready to go head deep and thinking that it would be a process that would involve a bit of time, I soon realized that if you know what you want, one could theoretically be out of there in 10-15 minutes. Tony seems to be so used to doing it that in total, it takes less than 5 minutes for the measuring, and the rest of it is simply filling out the paperwork for the details of the style. This was great for me, as these days, I find myself lacking a lot of spare time. We chatted for a bit afterwards and the process was literally that simple. Now it’s just a waiting game, one that leaves me twiddling my thumbs in excitement!
Even though the process took a short while, it all seemed to be quite complex, taking measurements and imprints of my foot that I had not seen done before, not even with Bemer. I am curious to see (or feel rather) the difference that these measurements will make. I do believe that one of them (where you see the paper being folded up my leg) had to do with the fact that I am ordering boots as opposed to shoes. And clearly the imprint of my feet shows that while it would appear from the black bit that I have a nice curvature in my foot, in reality by looking at the outline, one can see that I have quite� flat, nasty feet. Thankfully beautiful shoes can mask nasty feet! 😉 While I won’t be able to photograph the entire process myself, I have asked Tony to help me out a bit by taking some photos of the process along the way so that I can give you all a bit of update here and there and hopefully a sneak peak into the world of shoemaking and how it all gets done at G&G when ordering a bespoke shoe…..I too look forward to seeing all of the pics when they arrive!
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| The gentlemen that make it happen on the bespoke side, Tony G. & Daniel W…… Mr. Dean G, in case you are wondering, is a bit more involved with the RTW side but of course plays a vital role altogether |
Congrats for your bespoke order !!!!
Is it because you order boots that you cannot use your own last and need new measurements ?
Congrats!
This way of taking measurment is very similar to what I have been doing in France (bespoke shoes maker, pedo-ortist)
If the insole is well done you should really feel a difference and certainly feel better in your shoes!
Just wanted to share my experience… Just by looking at your print you are far to have “flat feet”, (probably an “varus attitude” by how close your print is from the outside edge, and maybe hyper pressure on M1 and M5, located by the two darker black spot on the metatarsial. (wich in french would translate as an “Avant pied creux”)… in my opinion nothing to be worried about).
Thank you for keeping your blog so alive, and full of interesting post!
Best regards from France.
Congrats!
I’m pretty sure there’s going to be red. Looking forward to the pictures!
Fascinating article. It will be interesting to see the pictures of the process and how they turn a set of measurements into a pair of boots.
i will guess blue base colour, with brown curved parts
Beautiful wing/saddle/adelaide or does the derby keep it from being an adelaide? Great getting the same angle of the curves on the wing and saddle. I would have gone for the Shannon instead of the Galway but in your knowledge and wisdom I am sure their are aesthetic reasons the derby is superior.
Don’t know if you remember but I wrote a short time ago hoping you would do your Phinney in a two color spectator/saddle?
I so want this to be the Deco last.
And applause on the durability, I have also written in the distant past that being urban and outdoors much of the time that eliminates me from the septieme largeurs type offerings. I need durability and based on my cowboy/riding boots I want close to twenty years or more.
Now the materials guess. Being Anglophile and outdoor sportsman = I am a Barbour wax cotton man. The wing and saddle a blue leather, the rest black watch waxed cotton. If not that a rough Harris Tweed in black watch.
Taking side profile is not for boots only. Dean took my feet side profiles when I am only ordering a pair of shoes.