The tasseled loafer

[Jesus]

The tasseled loafer

I said tesseled. Not loafers in general.
So, chill.

[Guy Profumo]

The tasseled loafer

WOM wrote: Wingtips over brogues for me. But tasseled loafers...blech. Shoes that don't tie-on aren't to be trusted.

Wing tips & brogues?

OK. I'll give you that, that's style.

But brogues on their own?

No way.

[Fussbudget]

The tasseled loafer

Wrong. Big sturdy country brogues are class. Stuff like this :

EIM wrote: Get someone else to do them for you.

Har har har. I did look into making my own leather shoes but it looks a bit of a chew to be honest. I might take that up as a hobby the day when I'm sitting on a big pile of money with infinite free time ahead of me.

[WOM]

The tasseled loafer

Fussbudget wrote: Wrong. Big sturdy country brogues are class. Stuff like this :

That's a wingtip. But yes, that's the type. Chunky, like that one.

[Jesus]

The tasseled loafer

Fussbudget wrote: Wrong. Big sturdy country brogues are class. Stuff like this :

Did I not say this before?
Loafers in themself are not wrong. Loafers with tassel are.

Those shoes look rather great.

[Toby Gymshorts]

The tasseled loafer

Fussbudget wrote: Wrong. Big sturdy country brogues are class. Stuff like this :

Fucking hell.

[WOM]

The tasseled loafer

You were mistaken. Loafers are wrong. Loafers with tassels are more wrong.

[Jesus]

The tasseled loafer

Calvert wrote: Many juvenile delinquents wore them voluntarily in the late '70's/early '80's ska and Mod revivals.

What crime did you have to serve?

[Fussbudget]

The tasseled loafer

WOM wrote: That's a wingtip. But yes, that's the type. Chunky, like that one.

Are wingtips not a subsection of brogues?

Loafers are also better when chunky, though I have to say I'm not so sure about loafers on men in general.

[Bored Of Education]

The tasseled loafer

There are some nots being taken here and lines being drawn from the future.

This is the most beautiful shoe ever.



The George Cox 4065. Luckily, he did a version for Vegetarian Shoes which I just managed to get a pair of in my size before they sold out. Saved me paying £175 for the leather versions.

[WOM]

The tasseled loafer

Fussbudget wrote:

That's a wingtip. But yes, that's the type. Chunky, like that one.

Are wingtips not a subsection of brogues?

Loafers are also better when chunky, though I have to say I'm not so sure about loafers on men in general.

They are, indeed. But there are rubes about and I didn't want to confuse them. I'm with you on the loafers/men question.

[Vulgarian Visigoth]

The tasseled loafer

MsD wrote: They need metal studs on the bottom - forgotten what they're called.

VIvienne made a plastic version a few years back, and I think still does the slippers.

How about this for a drinking game? Let's have a drink every time 'Vivienne' is mentioned.

[Calvert]

The tasseled loafer

Jesus wrote:

Many juvenile delinquents wore them voluntarily in the late '70's/early '80's ska and Mod revivals.

What crime did you have to serve?

Do you mean ' commit'?

Owning a Merton Parkas album, I believe.
Proper order too.

I like Bored's shoes. They're good. I know he didn't buy them either, but £175 for a pair of shoes?
I'm not from London.

I might pay that not to wear those ugly brogue efforts, though.

[Vulgarian Visigoth]

The tasseled loafer

Luke R wrote:

Well, that's right.
Just make sure you accessorise with off-white bally cotton socks and slightly too short trouser leg for the complete twat look.

The kids at our school who dressed like that were the nastiest bastards around (possibly because, deep down, they knew they looked like twats). I got a kicking on more than one occasion from several pairs of tasselled loafers on the end of too-short-betrousered legs.

This. Must be a Bristol thing.

Worn by those who hold your gaze for an uncomfortably long time. Psychos. Proper ones like.

Well, they're Tory shoes, so it all makes sense.

[MsD]

The tasseled loafer

Vulgarian Visigoth wrote:

They need metal studs on the bottom - forgotten what they're called.

VIvienne made a plastic version a few years back, and I think still does the slippers.

How about this for a drinking game? Let's have a drink every time 'Vivienne' is mentioned.

Not much of a game, given that I've used the word 24 times in 7 years.

You might as well just neck a bottle of brandy.

[MsD]

The tasseled loafer

Anyway, I thought this thread was going to be a parable about a really lazy stripper.

[Bored Of Education]

The tasseled loafer

Calvert wrote: I like Bored's shoes. They're good. I know he didn't buy them either, but £175 for a pair of shoes?
I'm not from London.

Yes, if there were the cheaper vegetarian versions at £75 or whatever they were, I would always buy them (I am trying not to buy any leather anymore anyway) but if they were knackered, I would have to think seriously about it. Both types are made in Britain as well unlike DMs.

[Jesus]

The tasseled loafer

Tony C wrote: That two tone version you chose to show us a bit gaudy, but the loafer - tasseled or otherwise - is a design classic and ought to be a staple item in the wardrobe of any gentleman with sartorial awareness. They can be worn formally, with a well cut suit, for business wear or with jeans/cotton trousers and a Brooks Brothers flannel shirt for weekends.

Honestly, it's like Gentleman's Quarterly never existed with you people.

We need to put you down like a cow in pain.

[Jesus]

The tasseled loafer

Bored of Education wrote: There are some nots being taken here and lines being drawn from the future.

This is the most beautiful shoe ever.



The George Cox 4065. Luckily, he did a version for Vegetarian Shoes which I just managed to get a pair of in my size before they sold out. Saved me paying £175 for the leather versions.

They are not as rock'n'roll as you imagine them to be.

Edit: Hell, they are really cool now that I ventured twice.

[Haddock]

The tasseled loafer

In an effort to bring some sides of the debate together, can I recommend the Dr Martens Adrian?
[IMG][/img]
I haven't had a pair since 1988 or so but this thread brought up memories of them. They don't seem to do the brown waxed leather version any more but the oxbloods look nice enough. My wife thinks I already have too many pairs of shoes so I'd have to get rid of an old pair of Wallabees if I bought them. What to do?

[Jesus]

The tasseled loafer

MsD wrote: Anyway, I thought this thread was going to be a parable about a really lazy stripper.

It can be. It's all up to you now.

[linus]

The tasseled loafer

Tony C wrote: That two tone version you chose to show us a bit gaudy, but the loafer - tasseled or otherwise - is a design classic and ought to be a staple item in the wardrobe of any gentleman with sartorial awareness. They can be worn formally, with a well cut suit, for business wear or with jeans/cotton trousers and a Brooks Brothers flannel shirt for weekends.

Honestly, it's like Gentleman's Quarterly never existed with you people.

Damn right, Tony! And kudos to Fussbudget, loafers are great unisex apparel on women, like a nice fitted button down oxford shirt. Some of the high heel loafers with the long square heels are fabulous.

Loafers are the greatest men's shoes, and oxfords/brogues/captoes are right up there (not the ridiculously trendy pointy or stretch versions though). Italian shoes are overrated, classic American styling is where it is, quality timeless design that can dress up or stay as casual as an afternoon walk across the quad.



Classic tassled loafers like those above look fantastic with a classic-cut tan or olive gabardine or poplin suit (pants with wide enough legs, and a 1 and 3/4 inch cuff, not those hipster short slimfits). They are pretty hard to pull off with jeans though, unless they're suede, like these:





or less formal takes like this grograin and rubber//crepe sole number:



Yes the first wave of tasseled loafers unfurled from across the channel, indispensable apparel on two-tone soles. One of the best musical genres to ever emerge from England was clad with one of the best American fashion crafts, 2nd wave ska was a rare confluence of style and substance in the popular music realm.

Bass Weejuns was it:





It's a shame they don't do them any more.

Incidentally, I'm wearing my Alden shell cordovan loafers right now, under cuffed jeans, white oxford shirt and tan corduroy sports coat. I bought these loafers about 20 yrs ago and had them resoled once (they're due for a second one soon). My first pair lasted about 15 years but that included many active long nights on the dance floor and riding/kickstarting dual purpose motorcycles. The leather is extremely durable, as are the soles, which are butressed with a steel plate from the heel to the middle of the sole, sandwiched with leather soles.

Alden shell cordovans really are the kings of loafers, unique in quality and American craftsmanship. Shell cordovan is not leather. There is one last remaining tannery in Chicago where they painstakingly hammer out and soften horse tendon into a leather-like material that is more supple and comfortable than leather yet very tough, with a deep sheen and patina that changes color with age, almost like a Bordeaux (burgundy or more precisely ox blood being the best color on loafers). They make shell cordovan wingtips too:



They are expensive shoes, nowadays around $700, but they are several times more durable than the average shoe, and they are put together by union workers in New England (hence the cost). You mail them back to Alden and they will refurbish the uppers on new soles for a fraction of the original cost.





http://unionmadegoods.com/product/alden-cordovan-leisure-handsewn-moccasin-986-2/

[MsD]

The tasseled loafer

Lord J: I will get back to you. It might involve a heroic cat.

[Jesus]

The tasseled loafer

Jesus Christ!

[Jesus]

The tasseled loafer

...