Leather Shoes - Leather Ok?

SaberX on 14/08/2018 - 01:41

Hi all,

Bought my first Florsheim shoes the other month. Bought 2 laced and a slip on. Laces seem fine, apart from having to go down a full size or so than my typical shoe size (snug fit for moulding to feet supposedly).

However, the slip ons have been causing me grief.After changing it a half size down I noticed upon wearing it that the crease along front foot line was quite prominent. As in the discolouration from the creasing opening up was very noticeable, very scaly/cracky looking. Took it back and when polishing it with their Florsheim shoe cream it wouldn't stick so the end result was i was told it was a manufacturing issue -not sealed properly hence their shoe creme wasn't holding to the crease and just rubbed right off and the discolouration prevailed. Didn't look great.

Switched me over and was on my way with beautiful shoes. But unfortunately I got back to work and noticed I had the same problem at the back of the shoe (heel part). It looked almost like a scuff a 10c size on the back (hard part) of heel. Mid way up, so quite noticeable. Again these and other marks/scuffs on the back won't take to their shoe creme so offered to come back and refund it. I wanted to try a 3rd time going to another store to 'try again' my luck on getting an ok pair, as the first store only wanted to outright refund me after the 2nd one was faulty (was told this model line and in the boots seem to have this problem manufacturing wise… all theri other shoes supposedly are ok. And hence they didn't want to order another one and have the risk of me being unhappy again/returning it. I call bs and they just cbb doing a 3rd switch).

Anyway, got my third pair from the second store and the colour is fine… the odd little marking but nothing really big/noticeable for a brand new shoe to upset. But the leather has this real old person sort of dry skin look throughout when pressure is applied to it i.e. when you step through balls of toe or push on leather. It reminds me of some of those store shelf shoes you see where they look all old and wrinkly throughout the leather like someone went running through them when trying them on. I have worn a fair few slip ons from Thailand etc. and even Aquila here and while they do get creases and the usual scuffs I always associated this dry, old man like skin look to cheap leather shoes and they never occured in my own shoes.

The first two pairs of these slip ons that I received had none of this leather skin issue (just the brown colour being scuffed/missing off in places problem).

I was told I could 'see how i go' with these and bring them back if i dont like it. I'm tossing up if it's a defect or if it is just the part of the leather I got (my luck of the draw) and i should suck it up? I do like the slip on factor and being a typical bloke I cbf going out to find another slip on as this was my pair to set me through the rest of the year….my old pair was like a dog chewed through it so if I return these I'll be stuck with black shoes only for awhile (first world problems haha).

Have 3 pics, what do you think? Is it the leather type? Or is this shoe just worthy of throwing it in the refund pile and trudging out to find another slip on elsewhere i.e. not a florsheim? Most of my $70 AUD converted Cross shoes from Thailand were great, but I find most leathers here seemingly over priced. I.e. well closer to $200-300, just wondering if any brands do 'economy' slip ons that look decent, throw after one lot of use (no resoling etc)?

Pics:
https://imgur.com/a/Vw0ray8

First pic - This is the shoe as per normal. It looks fine and until pressure /bending is applied you don't notice the spiderwebby, kinda odd leather:

Second pic - Photo of shoe from my POV looking down. I was stepping on balls of toe with a slight bend to mimick a mild bend in the shoe… You can see the old creasy look.. keep in mind these shoes haven't been worn for a day out…

Third Pic - I feel this pic shows best what I mean by the weird old man leather skin look. This shows gentle pressure from a finger and how the dry scaly skin look appears nearby? It somehow bugs me in terms of not having that smooth leather look as I have been used to with my other shoes? It's almost like the whole "skin" of the leather is from a certain part and hence the look, or is it just down to the fact it hasn't been treated right or manufactured properly?

Hoping someone who is knowledgeable with their leather could let me know if I have a dodgy pair and should return them? Otherwise some education in the art of leather would be great and much appreciated!

Thanks in advance. Sorry i am abit fresh with leather shoes. I am just learning to take care of them and bought conditioner, shoe wax etc…. hence I hadn't got a clue on what is 'normal' for leather.

Fashion & Apparel Footwear

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[Deactivated] on 14/08/2018 - 01:53

+8

May I suggest a tl;dr
- spackbace on 14/08/2018 - 01:56
  
  +5
  
  Got shoes, faulty
  Got replacement pair, faulty
  Got another replacement pair, faulty but does he just put up with it coz cbf looking for a diff design
  - [Deactivated] on 14/08/2018 - 01:58
    
    Thanks
    
    OP. I then suggest you return to previous shoe material and avoid leather.
    - poohduck on 14/08/2018 - 08:05
      
      It looks like the shoes you want aren't made by Florsheim - perhaps Florsheim don't make shoes anymore. It sounds like the model you want is made by a separate manufacturer - other manufacturers make other model shoes. Welcome to the global economy.
  - HighAndDry on 14/08/2018 - 10:20
    
    Honestly looking at the photos…. there's nothing wrong with those shoes. I think OP expects leather to not crease.
    - SaberX on 14/08/2018 - 22:54
      
      It's the surround leather such as the picture with the finger pressing lightly on the surface. Leather creases obviously where the folds and all will be but having not worn it the scaly old man skin look of the leather seems odd.
- Wystri Warrick on 14/08/2018 - 08:25
  
  That's tight!
- Godric on 14/08/2018 - 10:21
  
  i prefer a cliff note
[Deactivated] on 14/08/2018 - 06:08

+2

Looks like a perfectly normal leather shoe to me in those pics. They will crease a bit more with use but will become more comfortable too. Don’t worry about them looking worn, just look after them and enjoy.

Some care tips:
If your shoes get wet never use a hairdryer / heater to dry. Let them dry normally and once dry apply a little bit of leather conditioner. Don’t use leather conditioner too much, leather needs to breathe.

You don’t need to spend a lot on shoe care products - it’s worth buying:
Two horse hair brushes from woollies
Leather conditioner (you already have)
If your exact colour is available - coloured shoe polish. Otherwise neutral.

I’m not sure why you need wax for dress shoes - I put this on hiking shoes only.

Once every 2-3 months if you want to keep them looking new

One of your brushes for removing dirt. (About 1min). Only use light pressure.
Shoe polish / neutral with a toothbrush sparingly. Make sure you do edge of the welt to keep it water resistant.
Other brush to buff in the polish / neutral (about 2 mins). Medium pressure.
Soft cloth to buff for a bit of extra shine
Then if it’s going to rain - leather conditioner with a soft cloth

Above is probably OOT for a lot of people but my 12 month old boots I wear 4x/week look great. RMW comfort craftsman.

IMO paying anything like $200 for non replaceable sole shoes that last only a couple years is a bit expensive per year, but if you like the style why not. Julius Marlow do great slip ons for less than $100.
- SaberX on 17/08/2018 - 02:21
  
  Thanks for tips.
  
  I have kombi brush is that ok for applying the shoe cream (not using wax. As you mentioned probably dont need it) ?
  
  So my understanding is whether you use the toothbrush or kombi brush you just need to get the cream onto the shoe in circular motions all throughout. How long does one wait between application and using a brush to go over the leather??
  
  The stores only mentioned using a cloth post application of the shoe cream,is the brush a necessity to brush the cream in?
  
  With brand new shoes like this i conditioned first before use to protect and moisturize it. Is that the norm or recommended for new leathers? Should one be conditioning leather before adding shoe cream or the fact that i only conditioned without any shoe cream or wax as shoed are completely brand new…
Zedsdeadbabyzedsdead on 14/08/2018 - 06:25

+4

"But the leather has this real old person sort of dry skin look throughout when pressure is applied to it"

Why are you going around poking leather shoes and old people?
dcep on 14/08/2018 - 09:51

next time just get hush pups .. for 50 bux
- macrocephalic on 14/08/2018 - 10:24
  
  +1
  
  I owned a pair of Floorsheims a couple of years ago. They were almost new when I wore them on a holiday for a month, and by the end of the month the sole was literally falling apart (chunks of it were falling out). I threw them in the bin before I flew home - rather than carrying them.
  
  OTOH, I have a pair of Hush Puppy shoes which I have been wearing to work every single day for about 3 years now. They have some scuffs, and one of the zips needed a few stitches put into it the other day, but otherwise they are still fine.
  
  As far as I'm concerned, Floorsheims are pretty much bottom of the barrel shoes - which is why they're so cheap now.
- SaberX on 14/08/2018 - 20:53
  
  What hush pups are that cheap??i got some slip ons recently and theyre still between 70 to 99 usually. Unfortunately hush pups seem to be the comfort shoe which is why i bought some slip ons. But not so much the long dress shoe styles of other brands?
  - macrocephalic on 15/08/2018 - 10:29
    
    You might be able to get them that cheap at an outlet store, but they're normally over a hundred for HPs.
HighAndDry on 14/08/2018 - 10:20

Yes, leather creases with wear. Those photos look perfectly normal.
- SaberX on 14/08/2018 - 20:50
  
  I've had many creasing shoes but these arent creases along folds. With the picture of me pushing the leather with finger you see the surrounding area display the old skin look that you dont see in alot of other shoes. Even the first two pairs did not exhibit this look before i switched for this third pair?
- SaberX on 14/08/2018 - 20:53
  
  And that is 0 wear apart from trying on. The pressure from my finger pushing on a spot on the leather as per the picture shows how the leather looks despite not wearing ir for a day.
esty on 14/08/2018 - 10:57

+3

Don't let the marketing and price tag fool you, Floreshiem are not high quality crafted shoes.
- SaberX on 14/08/2018 - 20:52
  
  Figured by the price. Same for aquila i thought.
  
  Was quite happy with my cross leathers from bangkok… 70 aud converted. Get the job done.
buckster on 14/08/2018 - 16:23

+1

Normal for that quality of shoe.

For a better quality shoe you would be better looking at Lloyd's/Loakes etc but they will cost more.
- SaberX on 14/08/2018 - 20:51
  
  The previous 2 shoes of same model and my previous leather shoes have never shown such widespread look of leather though? I mean that flakyish old man like skin throughout seems abit unnatural compared to creasing along fold lines etc. Of a typical shoe isn't it?
  - buckster on 14/08/2018 - 23:11
    
    It looks like they've used a cheaper leather, maybe they've changed production to cut down on costs since you last bought them?

Leather Shoes - Leather Ok?

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