It may be only July, but the itinerant bespoke makers are thinking about their second half tours already. George Glasgow Jr. of shoemakers George Cleverley wrote to say his firm would be featuring the Astaire model in the photo on their mid-September trip to Tokyo, Singapore and, apparently for the first time ever, Hong Kong. The two tie blucher was made by the late George Cleverley for, no surprise, Astaire himself.
As it happens the two tie blucher in black is also my favorite summer dress shoe. Mine of course are humble calf, unlike the exotic skinned version in the photo, but the design makes up into a lightweight, rather small shoe whose proportions seem just right under the lighter weight trousers of the season.
Photo: G & J Cleverley & Co.
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5 comments:
The shoe pictured has a thin out sole and is cut very close to the upper. Is it a hand welted construction?
Yes, it is.
Your favorite summer dress shoes are black? How does this square with your frequent admonition that well-dressed men wear brown shoes during the day?
Also, isn't there a tension between the dressiness of black and the relative informality of open lacing?
I have written dozens of times that I like black shoes with gray suits. That hardly contradicts my general reference for brown. And let us not mix shape and color - I like the shape of these shoes very much for summer, completely independent of their color.
Nor do I think there is a tension that is any greater than that between black and brogueing or chestnut and cap toes.
I used to love the look of exotic leathers. Now, I think they're best on a watch strap. Funny how tastes change.
The shoe has a wonderful design; of course, the fact that it was originally made for Fred Astaire sells it for me. Now if I could only afford bespoke shoes! Well, I can look for something vaguely similar... any suggestions, anyone?
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