Creeping our way into the spring (the season for weddings, pastel polos and v-neck tees) we all find it necessary to stock up on new shoes. Of course we need new sneakers and loafers, but it’s time to throw away those salty hard bottoms that got you through the winter and get some new ones. My mother always taught me that shoes are the most important piece in a mans’ outfit. LA times gives us some wise insight in this recently published article (http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jan/24/image/la-ig-shoes24-2010jan24?pg=3). I have dissected the most important parts, giving you some tools to forever live by.
Step 1: Test-drive several models
In a typical day of walking, human hooves endure several hundred tons of force, doctors say. And ill-fitting shoes are the villain behind 1 out of 6 Americans’ suffering corns, calluses and other ailments.
Dr. Dennis Frisch, a spokesman for the American Podiatric Medical Assn., recommends starting with a few basics. Get measured, shop in the afternoon (feet swell during the day), try on both shoes and buy the size that fits your larger foot. Also, make sure you can wiggle your toes and have three-eighths to half an inch between the longest toe and the end of each shoe.
Avoid shoes that feel like they need “breaking in,” Frisch cautions. Although fine leather requires several wearings to soften and mold to the foot, a shoe that’s painful in the store is probably bad news.
“Try different styles and sizes,” he advises. “To find the right fit, you have to invest time.”
Step 2: Avoid sports cars
Meghan Cleary, a footwear author who bills herself as America’s shoe expert, says black and brown control the color spectrum, and lace-ups trump slip-ons “if you want to be taken seriously” in the business world. She encourages men to experiment with colors, but in understated ways, such as black wingtips tinged with deep auburn or deep green hues, or hand-burnished for a different texture.
Cleary rates cap-toe, wingtip and split-toe designs as a virtual photo finish. All are fashionable, she says.
Step 3: Check the tires
“If you mostly sit at a desk, thin soles are fine,” says Frisch, the podiatrist. “But if you get off the subway and walk 10 blocks every day, the shoe is going to hurt and wear out sooner.”
Step 4: Examine the upholstery
“My shoes are cow leather, not calfskin, pigskin or deerskin,” says Kenneth van Dissel, who sold footwear in college and now works as director of engineering at South Coast Plaza. “The other skins don’t fare well in an industrial environment, where my job takes me. My shoes go from plant floor to board room. My highest regard is for cordovan [horsehide] shoes. They last decades.”
Step 5: Look under the hood
Beyond quality leather, craftsmanship is the surest sign of luxury footwear. Eye the stitching on the sole and upper for precision. Be sure the insole is all leather, which wicks away perspiration, lets the shoe breathe and molds to the foot. The inside back of the shoe should be a rougher material, such as suede, to grip your heel as you walk.
Step 6: Cost and maintenance
All our experts agree that you truly get what you pay for with footwear — up to a point. The summit of shoedom — custom shoes such as John Lobb’s $6,200-plus designs — are “great for people with a difficult fit, but the average person doesn’t need them,” Frisch says.
So, what is a reasonable price for top-notch dress shoes? Frisch says $75 minimum, but Daniels suggests at least $200 for high-quality calf leather. And Cleary goes higher, estimating $400 to $500 for corporate-caliber footwear.
Cleary’s dream brand is Dries Van Noten, a Belgian designer. Other panelists place Bontoni, Ferragamo, Cole Haan, Artioli and Prada in the shoe stratosphere. But most rate John Lobb — the footwear worn by James Bond in 2006’s “Casino Royale” — as No. 1. Entry-level prices for these brands range from about $150 for low-end Cole Haans to $1,120 for John Lobb’s cheapest off-the-shelf model.
Duffy says he used to blanch at such prices, until he did the math: “You can buy a cheap pair that needs replacing every year, or one good pair that’s going to last.” Cedar shoe trees, leather creams and resoling can extend the life span of pricey foot duds to a decade or more, experts say. But there is a catch. You need to buy at least one other pair and rotate wearing them, according to the podiatrists’ group. Leather needs to breathe, and using the same pair every day will wreck them.
