Most people probably assume that by my usual content and snarky attitude on dress shoes that this is all that I wear, but the reality is that I love all shoes, from hiking boots, to dress shoes to espadrilles and all sorts of sneakers. A real true shoe lover. And one company that has been impressing me on the more smart-casual side of things is Aurelien. A while back they were kind enough to send me a pair of driving loafers to review and they were great. I love them, kept them, and actually always bring them with me when traveling to hotter climates. I am soon taking a trip to the Caribbean and am thinking to pick up a pair of their espadrilles which are easily the best that I have ever seen and what inspired me to write this post.
I recently saw them (the espadrilles), I think that Google advertising caught me, and was instantly intrigued by them. So I followed the link and went to the site to discover all of their new greatness. Since the time I last wrote about the brand, they have greatly expanded their collection in shoes and offering in general now doing clothes as well. It is actually quite impressive, to say the least. Not to mention how incredibly vast their collection is, literally having the entire Pantone spectrum of colors available in nearly every model. The downside is that it makes it really hard to choose the pair you want as there are so many nice ones, that are also quite unique like that petrol blueish-green suede in the photo above (lower right corner).
Then I saw all of these unique models too and was even more impressed. I never thought I would like an apron stitch on a chelsea, but they nailed it! Maybe because it is more casual and suits the look they gave it. As a proper dress boot option, I do not think that it would suit. But the most intriguing of all was the idea of the edging of the sole in suede with the small lip of sole in the gum color. I have never seen that done before and really makes a unique look for the sneaker and the loafers. Great stuff they are creating and what looks like very quickly growing to the top of the ‘smart luxury’ sector of the industry. I look forward to seeing what they come up with next!
Learn More: https://aurelien-online.com/
They look great. Anyone know if they’re resolable?
highly doubtful. A good cobbler might be able to add a sole on top but a lot of these types of soles are heat injected and that is a one time use sole.
A few years back I had a few pair of drivers that accumulated a large amount of walking mileage and the spikes had worn down especially at the heel. Luckily my neighbor hood shoe repairman, who was also a licensed orthopedic shoe maker/repair person, was able to place Vibram soles on top of spikes. the shoes lasted for many years after. I would not trust the process to just any repair shops
Nice! It helps to be able to get that treatment done by a trusted cobbler and actually get the mileage out of the upper.