I paid a visit to shoemaker W.S. Foster & Sons the other day in search of a mid-brown leather for a pair of oxfords, and departed unfulfilled but happy.
I had been corresponding with Foster's Miss Emma Lakin about a particular tone that I had seen on some shoes made for Charlie Watts but it was not available at this time. While we talked, I perused actor George Hamilton's last. 
The wear on the bottom is from the nails used to hold the upper on to the last as each pair of shoes is made. The Hamilton last has seen quite a bit of use.
Bespoke customers generally have two lasts, or at least the customers that get both slip-ons and laced shoes from their makers do as each of these styles requires its own for a proper fit.
I will be a two last customer at Foster's after deciding that the rare piece of dark brown Freudenberg leather that Ms. Lakin was so enthusiastic about would be a more useful part of my wardrobe as a slip-on shoe. And so we agreed on a model I had admired in the past: a cap toe with two curved lines of brogueing that is formal enough to wear with suits. 
Since it requires a new last, the slip-on, which is the shoe in the lower left of the photo, will also require a fitting. That means I shall see my shoes some time in 2010.
Perhaps Mr. Hamilton will find further use for his last while I wait.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
In George Hamilton's Footsteps
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
4 comments:
Emma is great. I had the please of meeting her when she was in Chicago this season. Hope your shoes turn out as expected!
The Hamilton reference is very timely! His memoirs came out quite recently, and George really is a throwback to old Hollywood -- he acknowledges that he is something of an anachronism. One of the best dressed men out there, and a fellow who can laugh at himself, as shown in the underappreciated 1973 classic "Zorro the Gay Blade"! A must!
By the way, great choice of shoe design. I wonder if it is an old Peal design -- it has their telltale emphasis on punching in a slip-on. Edward Green made a RTW model of that for Paul Stuart back in the day, and I believe Grenson did so recently as well. In dark brown it should be perfect.
Some of the black shoes on top of the table seem to have been naturally sun-bleached. Great book that one on display, by Nicholas Storey. It contains, by the way, some interesting piece of information on how Foster & Son developed - or discovered - the sun bleaching process.
Post a Comment