Paul Parkman has recently introduced a hand-welted construction into their repertoire of offerings. They do not heavily advertise nor promote this fact though, which I think is a shame. As we move to a world whereby many individuals seek a hand welted construction as a point of prestige, I felt it obligatory to share this feature with all of you so you can understand what your options are when ordering at Paul Parkman. So, here is my Paul Parkman Review on their hand welted offering.
Construction/Finishing
As I have mentioned in the past when reviewing other Paul Parkman shoes and/or talking about them in the various videos I have done on them, the fact of the matter is that Paul Parkman is not a brand that is attempting to make you the most refined dress shoe. It has always been obvious that their focus is on color and style. They want to offer you the most amount of designs in the most amount of colorways possible. They do this by hand-painting the shoes as they have done on this pair and have quite a collection of colors on offer.
The one thing they have always had going for them is that the shoes are solid. You feel the durability in them. Yet they are not stiff. They have managed to make that Goodyear flex style of shoe and in this case, a hand welted flex style as these shoes are very flexible right off the bat.
The construction is pretty basic in terms of refinement. They are hand welted but only from joint to joint. They are then cemented at the waist (at least from what I see). One thing that I have never liked but I know many guys do is the higher heel they use. I do not like my heels higher than 1 inch ⅛ or a maximum of 1.25 inches. But their heels are often closer to 1.5-1.75 inches, which for me is overkill. But I do know a lot of guys like this.
The pattern is good and the last by itself is good, but my biggest gripe is the balance between a high heel, a short waist, and a long front. I think that if they shortened the heel a tiny bit, elongated the waist, and thus shortened the forefoot, they would have a real winner here. I also wish they did tighter stitches to the inch on the welt/sole stitch. Normally I don’t care about this so much but when they are so large I feel that it cheapens their look.
The Fit
If you have read my previous comments about sizing on Paul Parkman, well that has not changed. I take a whole size different from what I take usually. I am normally a EU40.5 and in their shoes take a EU39.5 for some reason. I did like the fit better on these than the rest as the last, being not as elongated fit better in the toe region. But all in all, it is a generous fit. My slim, dainty feet always feel a bit loosey-goosey in their shoes. So, if you have a more prominent foot, I imagine you will fit them well. They also tend to have generous insteps, as you can tell by looking at them.
Overall the fit is not great for skinny feet. But it is good for those with prominent feet.
The Style
I love a good adelaide and this one ticks all of the boxes. I particularly like the facing piece. It’s odd that I have always appreciated this design piece as it is more aggressively shaped than what I normally find appealing. The only thing I don’t really like is the peak on the wing cap, which I find quite long, and goes up the vamp more than I would like. The patina is nicely done. Sometimes their patinas can be a bit heavy but I like how they have accentuated the pieces of the design with this one. They also have a grey version of this same model that is really nice too. I would love to see a blue version.
Conclusion
I have said it before and will say it again. If you are a shoe snob looking for refinement and flawlessness, I don’t recommend Paul Parkman. For me, it is simply not what they are looking to achieve with their shoes, and therefore do not focus on it. What I like is their ability to give a wide variety of styles, offer them in nearly any construction and color combination you can think of, and do so in a 2-3 week turnaround. It may not be easily noticeable but all of their shoes are just templates. You can customize them to your liking in terms of the aforementioned. The price may not be the same when changing construction but your ability to order what you want is always there and that is what makes them great.
I hope that you have enjoyed this Paul Parkman review. If you like this pair or any other and wish to get a pair of Paul Parkman shoes, Shoe Snob readers get an exclusive 10% discount with the code: THESHOESNOB10
Learn more about Paul Parkman: https://online.paulparkman.com/
Watch the unboxing video of this pair: https://theshoesnobblog.com/unboxing-series-paul-parkman-handwelted-shoes/
Your review of the Paul Parkman shoe was as Fair and balanced as they come. I have never worn a Parkman but I have had my eye on them for awhile. Knowing what you want in a shoe and what you will accept makes the purchase of shoes online more of of a satisficing experience. Great Review.
Thank you Kerry, glad that you enjoyed it.