Stacy Adams Madisons- will they bend straight?

[BigBrother]

I just picked up a number of Madison captoes for vintage "combat"- daily wear, dancing, etc. I've had SAs before and they're more or less what you pay for: hardly amazing but usually sufficient. I got a number in different sizes and colors to see, but I noticed they all have this extremely obnoxious upturn toward the front. Basically, they look like boots- they bend upward about 1/2" at the front.

Is this the sort of thing that will smooth out/bend down with wear, or am I essentially looking at dapper cowboy boots from here on out?

(They're leather uppers and soles, for what it's worth.)

Thanks all!!

 

[jdbenson]

My experience is no, they will not flatten out with wear, but will probably get more upturned.

If you want to combat this, there's a few things you can do:

Clean the leather. Some people reccomend using saddle soap, but unless the leather is really filthy, I find a wipe with a damp cloth is sufficient. An old toothbursh is good for brushing the dust and dirt out of the stitching and the area around the welt. Let shoes dry completely before doing anything else.

Then, purchase some leather conditioner and condition the leather uppers and even the edge of the soles. There's endless debate about what conditioner is best, but I like Bickmore Bick-4 Leather Conditioner. Conditioner will replenish the oils in the shoes which will somewhat soften the leather and make it more pliable, but will also lengthen it's life. You should do this every 3-6 months, depending on how often you wear the shoes. Let shoes dry completely before doing anthying else. Once dry you can give your shoes good polish.

Most important, invest in some cedar shoe trees; preferably the kind with the expandable toe. If the shoes aren't on your feet, the shoe trees are in the shoes. That will help keep the shoes in a flatter shape, and will straighten out some of the creasing on the top of the shoe where it bends.

I hope this helps!

 

[Edward]

No experience of the SA brand, but that said it's a rare shoe in my experience that *doesn't* have a small upturn at the toe once broken in. I wouldn't worry about it; I doubt anyone else will ever notice it when you wear them.

 

[BigBrother]

Thanks all! I actually decided to return all of them as they really don’t look that good. If you saw them in person, you would know what I mean. You know, bottom of the barrel prices just don’t get you what they used to anymore .