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Crockett & Jones – MOD or just very nice shoes ?

Posted on June 24, 2013 by andytesting

Crockett & Jones – MOD or just very nice shoes ?

Why am i doing a blog on these shoes ?

Well i look at alot of shoes, some we hope to sell on the site and some because i just like the craftsmanship that’s gone into them. Peterborough where i live is not far away from Northampton and alot of the Old School shoe makers are from that area. Many have gone because of recession or not moved with the time etc. But some are still around and Crockett & Jones make some lovely shoes.

Now i dont want some big debate whether they are MOD are not. Certainly there are many in their range which are not, but there are some little jems in there to. Below i have gathered just a few examples i like.

The following is borrowed from their site but i think it sums up a traditional English company.

“Although the production process has evolved since the early days of shoe-making, with the introduction of better machinery and ‘health & safety’, much of the factory looks as it did when it was first built. The manufacture of high quality shoes remains very labour-intensive, requiring a highly skilled workforce to carry out more than 200 separate operations during an 8 week period. Goodyear-Welted construction gives the shoes an exceptional degree of strength, durability and comfort in wear. This method originated by hand-makers centuries ago.

As a 5th generation family managed business, Crockett & Jones is committed to maintaining the highest standards of traditional craftsmanship, quality and service which have been appreciated by their customers for more than 130 years.”

“The Crockett & Jones Men’s range consists of 3 handmade collections; the Hand Grade Collection (our finest calf shoes), the Main Collection (a selection of styles in a variety of different materials and sole types) and the Shell Cordovan Collection (a range of styles made from Genuine Shell Cordovan leather). “

Now in English that means they don’t come cheap, what that means is you are going to get some very well made shoes which look really good and going to last a long time if looked after well.

Enjoy the pictures.

Woven Chukka Boot

Cranford 3 Charcoal Suede & Wine Elastic
Cranford, a chelsea boot with plain front made from the finest calf leather or suede and lightweight rubber soles with contrasting coloured ‘V’ shaped elastics. From the Men’s Main Collection.

Granada Tan Golf Grain
Granada, a stylish unlined loafer with a hand pulled-up apron. Made from a comfortable, fine grain leather with single leather soles for the Main Collection.

Poole Dark Brown Calf Suede
Poole, a round toe penny loafer with raised apron front. Made from soft suede and single rubber soles for the Men’s Main Collection.

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Happy Customers at Back With Mods 2013

Posted on June 17, 2013 by andytesting

Back With Mods went very well. The event was very well organised with plenty to do over the weekend. Santa Pod has been holding events to my knowledge since the 1970’s, certainly my step dad went up in his allegro years ago.

Anyways we decided to do a stall there and take the shoes to the people as they say. We met lots of people with loads of questions. It was good to meet people that had been on the website and get feedback “face to face”. We had nice comments like “nice to see all the shoes in the flesh” and “how much are the loake royals?”

I will mention one thing, some people have said about the name of the event and whether it was Mod or just a cash in? Me i thought it was very well organised and there was plenty to do. For people with Kids it allowed them to have a weekend away without babysitters etc. They put on several top names and had many tents with different types of music. They obviously put in a lot of work to make it a good event. For a weekend pass of £35 you would have to be very mean spirited to think other wise.

Anyways cheerful stuff

We ran a giveaway over the weekend. The winner “Steve” from tamworth got a text from me today, within the space of a minute he was on the phone with his address and was a very happy Bunny. His Ikon Desert Boots will be with him tomorrow.

The event itself had lots of bands, The Selecter, Neville Staples and one of my favs The Chords UK. One thing i liked is they gave the main stage to little know young bands during the day.

The Ham Yardies tent was popular over the weekend and i liked the fact they stuck to the Real Mod 60’s sounds. Showing that people actually like a variety of sounds to choose from.

Here a few of pictures from the event.

One of our happy customers in her new Tassel Loafers

This guy ( i think gary or chris ! ) came to the stall and said, “i need some better shoes for dancing in.”

i asked “you in the Ham Yardies tent last night then?”

He replied “yep and tonight i need some better shoes to dance in”.

The Main Stage back with mods — Copyright of this pic Back With Mods

See you next year.

Chelsea Boots, Classics

Video Review of the The Universal Brown Suede Chelsea Boot

Posted on June 10, 2013 by andytesting

Video Review of the The Universal Brown Suede Chelsea Boot from Delicious Junction

The Chelsea boot, is an absolute classic, every shoe maker has one in their range. There are even specialist companies like David Preston , which specialize Chelsea Boots. The one above has the classic look and MOD attention to detail.

DJ do 2 variations of the Chelsea Boot, one in Black Leather and this one in Brown Suede. Like a lot of the DJ range these are going out boots. The are look great with a suit, and have that air of dandiness about them. I know people wear them with jeans, this look can work, they are 100’s if not 1000’s of pictures of 60’s groups in them. I recall the animals looking good in some.

My thoughts are if you wear chelsea boots now, you are making a definite statement hence why so many bands wear them. Neol Fielding and bands like Kasbian seem to live the boots.

Now these boots come with the great sole that DJ use, meaning they are a cut above the normal high street sole. The suede is very nice to touch and the stitching is a purple colour and goes well with the brown. In the video we mention the cusset being a slightly different colour i.e a light purple. We like this as it stops it being just another pair of boots.

In terms of the fit, they hug well and would suit a slimmer foot. But being suede they are going to stretch after a few hours and align themselves nicely with your foot shape. The Heel is not cuban, so doesnt make you look loads taller.

Anyways i welcome any thoughts and reviews on the boots.

Brogues, Classics, wide foot shoes

Whats Better ? Loake Oxblood Royals Brogues or DJ Upsetters

Posted on June 4, 2013 by andytesting

whats-better-loake-royals-or-dj-upsetters

What’s better? Loake Royals or DJ Upsetters

I found myself asking that question 2 years. It wasn’t so much what was better, more why was one so much more money. Could it really be worth twice the price of the other.

On the net the photos were ok, but neither pair of the oxblood brogues had anything more than the technical data, i.e made of leather. There was no background, no reviews and certainly no comparisons. Hence why I started the website, but that’s another story.

What’s better ? Well in the video you can see there are differences, the Loake Royal is a more wide fitting shoe, and certainly the widest shoe we do. The DJ is narrow, and very snug on my wide feet.

The DJ is much almost chisel toed, and certainly has more of a skin, 70’s look about it. The DJ is advertised with yellow laces and again I feel this has a terrace skin feel.

mod-shoes-oxblood-brogues-loake-and-dj

The Loake Oxblood Brogue in comparison is a much more conservative shoe, and I would say better for more occasions. I have mentioned before that it works well with jeans and a suit. I have seen a guy dressed up very smart for Remembrance Day here in the UK with a pair.

The sole on the DJ upsetter was only leather till recently, DJ have now upgraded to Goodyear welted sole and changed the name slightly to the Royale. Both shoes have a very sturdy pair of soles. The Loake are worn by a business colleague and show very little form of wear, despite being worn every day.

The Loake has a slightly better looking leather and I would concede more consistent shoe, meaning the stiching and cut of the shoe is better. BUT is it £75 more better !

Well that’s for you to judge, I personally have a pair of Loakes, but would happily wear the DJ’s.

What I would suggest is how often you going to wear them? What you going to wear them with. What’s your budget. Once you have worked that out then choose a pair.

If you are young or cash is tight, then buy the DJs. They are half the price, which means you could then buy a pair of loafers another day. Meaning you get 2 pairs of decent shoes, for the same price as the Loakes.

On the other hand!

Buy the Loakes once, look after them and you are going to have a really decent pair of shoes for literally years, long after the thrill of a bargain has faded.

I hope that’s helped a bit.
Andy