Vintage Spectator Shoes

[DJH]

...I got to fight to keep her from sitting on my lap!

Exactly what kind of place is this, Daniel?

 

[randooch]

Interesting musings, Daniel, and no doubt correct on each and every count.

I have a pair of Naot slip-ons that are not only comfortable, but also lend solid support for my loyal feet. they're great for now, but how long will they last? And when the soles cry uncle, will they be worth resoling? I kind of doubt it.

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Exactly what kind of place is this, Daniel?

It is the "new" Casino, the FireKeepers.....( some of the gals working there want to keep your "fire" well kept..) lol!

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Interesting musings, Daniel, and no doubt correct on each and every count.

I have a pair of Naot slip-ons that are not only comfortable, but also lend solid support for my loyal feet. they're great for now, but how long will they last? And when the soles cry uncle, will they be worth resoling? I kind of doubt it.

If they are well made and you can have them rebuilt, maybe, Randall. I do find for what it is worth, most loafers "break down" in more than just one way over time. The sides get fairly "stretched out" and spread apart....making them slip and slide around after a few years worth of wearing....(I say this out of owning shoes...loafers that I have owned since Moses parted the Red Sea)..and now those loafers are so big on me...you could park a VW in them...they have spread open so much they would not stay on my feet if I walk in them.....KLUNK...off they come...they will allow your foot to literally "walk" right out of them. You may experience this yourself, perhaps?

 

[ernesto]

Here vintage spectators seen at an exhibition about antik clothes in Paris, France.

 

[elawarno]

Hi,everyone!
This Is My First Post

1940s or 1950s Florsheim

 

[Isshinryu101]

Hi,everyone!
This Is My First Post

1940s or 1950s Florsheim

Welcome and than ks for sharing. Please check your link, your pic isn't showing. THANKS!

Nevermind, here's that great pic.

I have this EXACT same pair. GREAT summer shoes.

 

[Isshinryu101]

Hi,everyone!
This Is My First Post

1940s or 1950s Florsheim

Hello again! I checked your facebook pics, pretty cool stuff there. In fact, those cap toe Thom McAn perforated specs came from my ebay store!

 

[elawarno]

Hi,Isshinryu101

I really love them.
Thanks for your kindness!

My Specs Collection.
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.119408904885260.23579.100004484534558&type=3

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Really nice pair of vintage shoes......weeeee haaaaw!!!!

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Here vintage spectators seen at an exhibition about antik clothes in Paris, France.

Thanks for sharing the pictures!!!!!

 

[elawarno]

Thanks for looking,LoveMyHats2

 

[Isshinryu101]

Hi,Isshinryu101

I really love them.
Thanks for your kindness!

My Specs Collection.
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.119408904885260.23579.100004484534558&type=3

Thank YOU for the kind words. Here's my "brother" pair of those awesome Florsheim Perforated Specs you have...

 

[Tomasso]

Boy that leather looks supple;probably took a nice long dip in some conditioner.

 

[Isshinryu101]

Boy that leather looks supple;probably took a nice long dip in some conditioner.

Actually, these were surprising soft and supple when I got them last year. Most 1930's shoes I find are badly cracked or very dry, but this pair must have been in a near-perfect environment. PLUS, they were worn a bit (not much, though). This is GOOD for vintage shoes, as wearing allows natural oils to penetrate the leather and help keep it soft. NOS is often a disaster when very old.

 

[elawarno]

Thank YOU for the kind words. Here's my "brother" pair of those awesome Florsheim Perforated Specs you have...

Pretty cool!!!
Thank you for shearing.

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Thank YOU for the kind words. Here's my "brother" pair of those awesome Florsheim Perforated Specs you have...

Those are really nice, at first glance, I would have guessed they had not been worn, and as it is, what wearing they have had must be very light. No visible small "nicks" to the leather and the heels and the toe of the soles do not show the "bending" of the very edges, which normally happens right at the point of "edge wear".

Now there is nothing wrong with having shoes that do get edge wear, but I have some very weird reaction to edge wear....maybe a phobia, I try to literally walk very carefully and softly in any of my dress shoes to hope that I will not put any edge wear on the heels or soles....(gently walking, geez call me the "pink panther" on this now) hahahahah he heh heheheh, but when a pair of shoes starts to shoe edge wear, I am seeing my cobbler and making sure he has the materials on hand to "re do" the heels or soles and to do so in what I would approve as being a vintage look with vintage materials. Uppers on a shoe are not hard to keep looking good, leather conditioner, avoiding small children, (they are like a magnet to stepping on the toe area of dress shoes, you have to avoid small children at any cost while wearing any nice vintage dress shoes)...keeping shoe trees in them, and then clean and polished.....really I think a person could own just four pairs of dress shoes and if well cared for, those four pairs could with ease, last an entire life time as long as the foot size stayed the same. I pick this solution if you want to call it that with a vast amount of personal review of what has lasted and how it was taken care of. I currently have two pair of shoes, both were a bit large for me when I first purchased those shoes. Both purchase while I was in the US Navy at age 20. My time clock hits 60 currently. 40 years of wearing and ownership, one pair has had the soles replaced, the other does not yet need the soles to be replaced. One pair is of being made in the USA, the other made in Italy. The USA pair of shoes brand is Dexter Wingtips, the other is De la Rentis. The Dexter is not a hand made shoe, it is factory. The Del la Rentis is hand made all the way. The Dexter has original soles and only heel plates replaced one time, the Del la Rentis have had "half soles" and heel plates. The biggest factors I can relate to about why these shoes have lasted so long is being kept clean, shoe trees, careful wearing, conditioner and cream polish ever so often and not just a wax polish, and using saddle soap. Inside cleaning with slight amounts of saddle soap on a wash clothe, the same as on the outside, letting them dry, and then using conditioner on the inside as well as the outside. I have used many different brands of conditioner over the years. I stick to just two now. The Cadillac shoe and boot leather care, for keeping leather "lubricated, soft and supple, anti ripping and tearing" you just can't beat it. Then the original smiling mink oil. Taking your time, allowing these products to work for you, and then when the shoe or boot is ready, cream polish and then wax polish.

I can do many things in life well. One I am very sure of, is shoe care. And if you ever obtain a pair of dress shoes from me and want them to be "polished", when you pull them from the box and see them, you can tell I have a knack for shoe or boot care. "Bling"....the polish job.....

 

[LoveMyHats2]

I have a new pair of vintage spectators (Italian made) on the way.....pictures due when they arrive....weeee haaaw! lol!

 

[Short Balding Guy]

I have been following this thread with interest the past 2 years. I see the shoes and enjoy how they create a visual interest. Unique colors, styles and quite different than the shoes I see on the streets. The below pic is not so vintage, but wanted to share my 1st pair of spectators. They are made by Edward Meier. The shoes are in blue and cream. I have not had spectators before and am going to use these to see if I need to expand my shoe closet.

Apologies for these not being vintage, but I am checking the style out before investing in a high quality vintage pair. Thanks again for posting folks, the shoes showcased on this thread have been very styling.

Best, Eric -

 

[Isshinryu101]

THANKS for sharing, my friend! I really enjoy Eduard Meier shoes. Between them, Dinkelacker & Ludweig Reiter, Germany has some pretty nice makers.