Real Dress Shoes - Europe Edition

>c&j is not that great, pretty good entry level for their benchmade shoes. their handmade are nice, but there are better options imo

wrong wrong wrong wrong WRONG

can you stop spewing SHIT out of your mouth 24/7? can you STOP pretending you know what you are talking about?

you are the cancer that is plaguging Veeky Forums

I'll grant you that c&j are one of the premier english shoemakers still, (although g&g are clearly nicer—and more expensive), but don't forget about the continent.

crockett & jones' bench grade line use open channel sole stitching which is distinctly subpar to closed, something you will see on their handgrade line, and most shoes from the more expensive shoemakers. additionally, most of their designs are conservative in the extreme and just not that attractive.

compare pic related from antonio meccariello to the chelseas offered by c&j... the difference is significant (although so is the price—you get what you pay for)

look at the patina on these shoes, not something you will get with cheaper offerings such as crockett & jones. not that there's anything wrong with such brands, but their cheaper price is reflective of the level of quality

Can I come in here and ask what I need to properly care for my allen edmonds? I have park avenues in black and a similar shoe in a brown color from AE (name is slipping me)

Do I need a leather conditioner? On their website they just seem to recommend a polish.

in addition to the matching AE polish for each, it's a good idea to use a conditioner such as saphir renovateur

first shoes? -> go for Loake

why are you reccing brands you'll never own?

Why are you even asking about Carmina? they're very good.

>I want to buy my first "real" dress shoes
>what is the European equivalent of Allen Edmonds?

So, you don't have Allen Edmonds, but you want something like them?
Anyway, in Europe there are shitloads of good brands.
Meermin is not european, they are made in China.
Yanko, Magnanni and Carmina are made in Spain and they are quite good. Though, I don't like the Magananni lasts.
Loake is a good british brand. Sanders is quite good, even though their I'm not completely fond of their colours.
C&J are very good, but it really depends where are you buying them, they have different collections for every country.
Cheaney are really good for brogues.
Alfred Sargent has some mayor kick ass lasts, very elegant.
Trickers have top notch materials, but their lasts are very bulky.
Wildsmith are very nice, I like them as much as Alfred Sargent.
The other brands british brands mentioned here (G&G and E. Green) are too expensive. Way too expensive.

you mean you cannot mirror shine cheaper shoes?

holy shit, common sense around here.

Thoughts on these?
They're from giorgio1958

I want to invest in a good pair of dress shoes. But I read that your feet size can increase when you start bulking and working out more. And also when you get older. Should I just wait till a year or so later before buying?

how old are you?

25 but just recently paid more attention to fitness

your feet are not going to grow. And they get bigger when you are older, like 70, so you can buy whatever you want.

>real dress shoes
>brogues
lmao

I checked out Ferragamos, they looked great but holy shit they were expensive

I can't afford a 900 Euro pair of shoes

I was hoping I wouldn't have to go over 350

What about cap-toe oxfords where the cap is brogued like pic related?

Or should I go for the plain cap toe ones?

those carmina are fucking beautiful.
Don't listen to cucks, if you like brogues, go for them.

I'm a little worried about the toe, it semi-squares kinda and square toes are verbotten

stop reading male fashion blogs. If you want to see ugly square toes look for Eccos.
Check the Alfred Sargent last 724 and tell me if that "square" (like the carmina) is ugly.

Crockett & Jones

Are Meermin's leather belts worth it?

I know they're made in China but they get their leathers from France, and I doubt belt-making is some complicated process that requires European crafting.

Maybe it could be an affordable way to get a high quality leather belt, is what I'm thinking.

I think pic related is fine, much more tasteful. Full brogue looks way too flashy

up, so everyone can see this retard.

>comfy
>lightly insulated
>waterproof
>thin, flexible sole

does it exist?

...

>tfw don't know what those are or w2c

they are around 550 euros, just in case.

Carlyles or Strands? Opposite ends of the spectrum. Strands seem more versatile and impressive but the simplicity of the Carlyles might be impressive in their own way. I'm a teacher so I wear chinos or jeans everyday.

Pic is carlyle

Meermin or Loakes?
Want a sexy black oxford.

Strand, of course. In burgundy.

I saw these the other day and they looked absolutely yellow in real life.

Maybe the guy was just not taking good care of them.

loake strand --> tan
allen edmonds strand --> walnut
They don't use the same colors. Anyway, you can always change the color a little bit with shoe wax.