Rome wasn't built in a day. This saying also applies to one's wardrobe. You have to build it up over the years - like the shoes that are shown above. It took me over a decade to get where I am today. There is this balance between want and need as well as affordability at a certain point in time.
If it were buying clothing, you start off with off the rack, building a sizeable wardrobe before maybe moving to made to measure or made to order before suddenly deciding that you need to whole bespoke experience. This takes years sometimes. You start off as a lowly paid employee before you end up rising through the ranks. Your salary and your capability to purchase commensurates with this too. So from BATA (Buy and throw away) shoes you end up buying Clarks and then you go for Loakes and so on. But such progression is what usually happens to everyone. It is usually the norm. Unless you suddenly happen to be super wealthy and suddenly realise that you need to stop dressing like Mark Zuckerberg and want to look more like the Duke of Windsor overnight. That can be achieved with money.
So take your time. Your wardrobe does not become something all rounded within a few weeks. It takes years. Decades.
4 comments:
Hi Rigval. A very blessed Hari Raya. Love your blog! Any thoughts about recrafting/ refurbishing/ resoles of Goodyear welted shoes in KL? I have a pair of Cheaneys needing one really soon. Thx a bunch!
Hello JF,
GYW shoes recrafting in Malaysia. As I have mentioned elsewhere in the blog I am afraid there are none who have such skill or the machinery. Most here have machines to repair blake stitched shoes but none that I am aware who can actually resole GYW. The closest you can find is Singapore - Edetal in singapore offers recrafting services for all makes. I would suggest you put a topy/vibram rubber half sole in the meantime when you do a re-heel of the shoe if you are unable to head over there or send it over.
You could also get it sent over to Cheaney at a price of course. Or you could send it to a local cobbler, but it may not have a cork filled insole or a proper welt job. Which is why I consider myself lucky to be a fan of italian shoes when I first started buying better shoes.
Regards,
Thanks Rigval! Now that you have educated me, I just realised that my "recrafted" toe cap Timberland oxfords are actually made good Blakes rather than GYW. I am enlightened but at the same time more cognizant with the wear and tear of my Cheaneys. I just also recently got a pair of Church's... A decade after my first decent pair of shoes. As you have said: Rome was not built in a day eh. :)
Left to ponder on the logistics surrounding caring for these shoes. It looks like I have to make a trip to SG then. It would be horrific if I Blake up the Cheaneys and subsequently the Church's right? Haha. Why did I not look at Italian made shoes first!? Guess it is too late now!
You're welcome. It's never too late actually. What you need to do is make sure the shoes are in some sort of rotation. Try having 5 pairs for work/formal occasions and they should last awhile.
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