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#1 2009-04-20 01:18:32
- Just Jim
- Member
- Posts: 1159
Shoe Neglect?
A bit like the crumpled look there are degrees of shoe neglect which you can play with I think. I quite like polished, but dusty - An agreeably oxymoronic finish.
'The Boston Cracked Shoe' look also has great charm - Decrepit, yet well looked after shoes worn long beyond their sell by date
Scuffing I can't stand unless it's on Bucks or Boatshoes when it has great charm and adds to the look of the shoes no end. On Loafers it just looks sloppy to me.
Other thoughts?
#2 2009-04-20 01:29:04
- chetmiles
- Member
- Posts: 1099
Re: Shoe Neglect?
Clarks' desert boots will stand a certain amount of scuffing; others oddly not. Loafers should have a slight sheen to them; ditto with wingtips. Over-buffing makes everything look a tad too regimental for my liking. I like a well-pressed suit, a rumpled collar, crisp-looking rep, a sheen on the shoes: throws people and makes them think: hence Anglo subversive, something our trad friends might anguish over.
#3 2009-04-20 03:43:15
- Tom Rath
- Member
- Posts: 172
Re: Shoe Neglect?
Not a fan of dusty shoes, but do enjoy letting my shoes go. I dont bother much at all with the edges, which over time gives the shoes a nice and beat up look. I also only use black shoe polish, regardless of the color of my shoes. Filling in scuffs with the black polish imparts some additional character on the shoes. I like the look of beat up shoes that are well polished.
#4 2009-04-20 06:48:27
- H. Logg
- Member
- Posts: 133
Re: Shoe Neglect?
I have no philosophy for shoe care... but when they're dirty and start to lose their shine, I polish them but not to a parade shine. I hate dusty shoes though, it can't be good for the leather either.
#7 2009-04-21 07:53:01
- H. Logg
- Member
- Posts: 133
Re: Shoe Neglect?
Okay I'm with you... So after I've used a lint remover on a cashmere sweater I'll now sprinkle the contents on my Yumas. 
#8 2009-04-21 08:30:53
- chetmiles
- Member
- Posts: 1099
Re: Shoe Neglect?
I have to confess, if I was buying, say, Alden, I might be a little less cavalier in my approach. I also have to confess that, when out earlier, I spied dust on my Weejuns and gave each a quick rub with a clean white linen handkerchief.
#9 2009-04-21 08:40:16
- Get Smart
- Member
- Posts: 1106
Re: Shoe Neglect?
if I see a spec of dust on my shoe I have to brush it off immediately
I def polish my shoes more than necessary (not cordovan tho)
#10 2009-04-21 09:05:29
- Hard Bop Hank
- Ivy Soul Brother
- From: land of a 1000 dances
- Posts: 4923
Re: Shoe Neglect?
I'm a lazy bastard... just polish them, if there's an "important" meeting, or some sort of dressed up evening thing, say a nice clubnight or an all-niter.
my loafers and dessies are always dusty or fucked up....
this ad that says, that's how your Desert Boots can look after two years, well, I can get'em like that in two weeks...
some of my loafers are beyond dusty, they're greasy!
and some of my boots are pretty scuffed!
I wasn't always like that! My old DMs were always polished... Cherry Reds with black polish! Makes'em look a little bit oxbloodish, not like shell cordovans, different, but I guess, that's where it comes from...
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#11 2009-04-21 09:17:59
- Patrick
- Member
- Posts: 2653
Re: Shoe Neglect?
I don't go much past occasional Tx with leather conditioner and a swipe with a cloth.
If I get a big old ding in a shoe I will attend to it.
I like my loafers in particular to look beat-up
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#12 2021-12-23 05:55:51
- A Fine Sadness
- Member
- Posts: 3009
Re: Shoe Neglect?
We used to get eccentric little threads like this in the old days. The 'Boston cracked shoe' reminded me - and a memory of that photograph of Adlai Stevenson with a hole in his shoe. Shamrockmonkey did an enjoyable hatchet job on Stevenson. I plodded around with a hole in my left wingtip for as long as it took me to get a damp sock. Then I lashed out £85 to have them repaired and now they're in tip-top condition. Only thing is, as with my Florsheim PTBs, I'm not sure I want to keep on wearing them.
I wiped my Converse with a damp rag before going out this morning.