HE AND SHE.

[via]

THE MEN'S DRESS SHOES [2] - OXFORD.

Dress Shoes 第二彈
今天來說一下最為人熟悉的一款closure style: Oxford.

在看closures種類前 學懂一隻鞋的基本結構是必須的:

[click to enlarge]

Oxford/ Balmoral
Oxford是一種系帶鞋
特徵是鞋帶排孔 i.e. shoelace eyelet (有時候是鞋舌 i.e. tongue) 是縫在鞋面 i.e. vamp那塊皮之下
這種construction method亦稱為'closed lacing'
Oxford於1640年由英國牛津大學發明
原因是當年校方反對學生穿knee-high/ ankle-high boots的風氣因而設計出來.

Oxford這把umbrella之下也有不同款式的設計
主要是以toe cap和花紋的分別來分類.


1. Full Brogue Oxford

[Full brogue Oxford]

上一回已經說過怎樣去鑑定一雙full brogues

再加上Oxford shoes的closed lacing

視為'Full brogue Oxford'.

2. Wingtip/ Wingcap Oxford

[Wingtip/ Wingcap Oxford]

雖然驟眼看跟上面的Full brogue Oxford十分相似
但仔細看W形鞋頭的變沿是沒有broguing和serration
所以只是普通的wingtip/ wingcap皮鞋.


2. Plain Toe Oxford

[Plain Toe Oxford with a medallion]

[Plain Toe Oxford]

Plain Toe就是完全沒有toe cap 非常簡潔俐落的設計.


3. Cap Toe Oxford

[Cap Toe Oxford]

Cap Toe的特徵是鞋頭horizontal stitching形成的straight cap.


4. U-cap Oxford

[U-cap Oxford]

U-cap是相對較為少見和舊一點的款式
characteristic就是延伸至鞋邊兩側 呈U型的toecap.


5. Saddle Shoes

[Saddle Shoes]

last but not the least 介紹跟我最有關係的一款牛津鞋: Saddle Shoes

沒錯 Saddle Shoes就是陪伴Paul Con姊妹們返學多年的黑白鞋

這款鞋的特點就是鞋的中央處有個馬鞍型的decorative panel

白底黑panel是最common和經典的colour combination

當然也會有其他的顏色配搭

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

until next time.

[pictures are from random search in Google]

JULIA.

time to get androgynous.

THE MEN'S DRESS SHOES [1] - BROGUES.

電影Forrest Gump有句經典對白:

"Momma always says there's an awful lot you could tell about a person by their shoes. 

Where they're going. Where they've been. I've worn lots of shoes..."

很多人 尤其是男生 都很容易忽略一對鞋的重要性

一對鞋的款式 物料 顏色 形狀 結構 損耗和清潔程度

都會充分呈現它們主人的生活模式 品味 階層 學識 歷練 甚至是個性

一個造型和氣質 會因為鞋的轉變而改變

一雙鞋 無疑最能體現"見微知著"的意思.

對男生來說 擁有一對像樣的dress shoes是個must 是一種經典 一種態度

(忘記以前那雙返學/追巴士/踢波/打交都穿着它的皮鞋 

除非你16歲已經識着Church's/ Alden/ Edward Green 否則那雙絕對唔count)

對女生來說 自從Coco Chanel帶起男裝女穿的不敗潮流後
直到今時今日androgynous中性風仍是主流造型
皮鞋也是我們的shoe collection essential.

眼見現在只要是有花紋的皮鞋都會被統(亂?)稱為Oxford Shoes 偶然心中也是會有點不是味兒

無他 和街頭時尚不同 dress shoes始終是有故事有背景有歷史有歷練又永遠不退流行的style item

(對 是'style' 不是'fashion' 因為"fashion fades, only style remains the same." - Coco Chanel)

因此說起皮鞋還是難免會有點學院派 要說點theory.

今天要說的 就是all about men's dress shoes.

Brogue (拷花皮鞋)

"A laced shoe with many sections, which are punched and serrated around the edges." - Drummond. S. (2010) History of Footwear. 

簡單來說就是所有以針孔小洞形成花紋的mens dress shoes的統稱 通常都是綁帶款式.

據歷史記載brogues是源自蘇格蘭和愛爾蘭.

Dress shoes可以以2大標準分類: 1) toe cap styles (shapes) 2) closure styles

toe cap styles顧名思義就是鞋頭的設計

是determine brogues styles的defining characteristics;

closure styles是指如何將一雙鞋enclose 例如lacing的款式

是負責further narrow down dress shoes的種類.

Toe Cap Styles

1. Full Brogues (UK)/ Wingtip (US)

[Full brogue/ Wingtip]

Full brgoues的主要特徵是那個W形的鞋頭 (i.e. toe cap)

中間有個尖位 然後向左右延伸到可以cover both sides of the toes

從上面望下去好像大鵬展翅所以美國人稱之為'Wingtips'

一對Full brogues的W形toe cap和heel cap邊沿是應該呈鋸齒形(i.e. serration)
及有一個個小針孔(i.e. perforation/ broguing)的設計
toe cap中央會有裝飾花紋
請注意toe cap是由另一塊additional的皮所做成
所有broguing都是punch在那塊皮上

如果沒有additional的那塊皮做toe cap 而是將wingtip pattern直接punch在鞋面上
這種設計稱為Blind Brogues
為的是讓皮鞋看起來比較sleek 比較輕巧和flexible

[Blind brogues]

一雙有Wingtip型toe cap 但沒有perforation/ broguing的皮鞋稱為Austerity Brogue

[Austerity brogue]

有時候會見到一種是由兩種顏色合併的設計
通常toe cap heel cap和lace panels比皮鞋的main body深色
這種叫做Co-respondent Shoes (UK)/ Spectator Shoes (US)

[Co-respondent shoes/ Spectator shoes]

2. Semi-brogues/ Half-brogues

[Semi-brogues/ Half-brogues]

Semi-brogues跟Full brogues的主要分別在於toe cap的形狀

Semi-brogues是straight toe cap - 鞋頭是一直線而非W形

Semi-brogues跟Full brogues一樣toe cap邊沿有serration中央有decorative perforation (i.e. 雕花).

3. Quarter Brogues

[Quarter brogues]

Quarter brogues跟Semi-brogues的toe cap形狀是一樣

邊沿亦同樣有serrations和perforations

不通的是鞋頭中央位置沒有decorative perforations.

4. Longwing Brogues

[Longwing brogues]

顧名思義Longwing就是Wingtip的延長版 W形toe cap會延伸至鞋後跟位置

有趣的是 英國人會稱Longwing為American brogues 而美國人就會稱之為English brogues.

5. Ghillie Brogues

[Ghillie brogues]

Ghillie brogues是很傳統的Scottish dress shoes

通常會在比較formal的交際場合 配合着傳統蘇格蘭服飾一起穿著

比前面提及的各類皮鞋不同的是Ghillie brogues是沒有鞋舌

鞋帶亦比較長 是綁在腳踝以上的位置.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

brogues以toe cap styles分類就是以上的幾種

下回會介紹各種closures

即是平時經常聽到的Oxford/ Derby/ Monk...etc.

[pictures are from random search in Google]

STRAIGHT FROM KOREA.

woohoooo finally got the two versions of Super Junior 5th Album and all the other gorgeous stuff, freshly delivered, straight from Korea by my amazing friend Cindy!  감사합니다 ♥

MR. SIMPLE

Super Junior for Ceci Magazine Korea September 2011.

[Photo Courtesy of Ceci]

the most stunning photoshoot i've seen recently - beautiful people, gorgeous clothes, amazing setting; 

establishing the fall/ winter trend and featuring a lot of menswear styles and products which are always in vogue: monotone preppie, dandyish preppie, street style,  and a little bit of grunge.

Style Alert

1. suspenders: 

dont be afraid of adding suspenders in casual wear. balance out the formality with a nice pair of jeans and a pair of vintage/ distressed Red Wing. skinny jeans for a dandy look, slim fit or straight cut jeans for a more sophisticated look; roll the jeans up for a more toned down look if necessary. dont forget to leave the first few buttons on your shirt alone, and tuck the shirt in. a (black) leather jacket would be a nice bonus to the outfit. 

[as shown on Donghae]

2. the 'dandy' colours

A dark, shady range in a variety of inky tones: dark purple, wine red, khaki, taupe brown and green...etc. if putting all these together sounds scary, simply start with getting accessories or one single item of such colours, and tone down with white and grey shades, or with a pair of black military/ riding boots.

[as shown on Sungmin and Siwon]

2. glasses:

glasses can be tricky, especially on Asians. it could go either very sleek and stylish, or go totally nerdy or cheap-looking. with the appropriate clothes and hairstyle  (yes hairstyle is VERY important), a pair of glasses would be the perfect touch-up. always start with the basic black ones. dont buy one until you find the perfect pair which fit perfectly with your face. yes it takes time to find the perfect one. when you find yours, it's done. it's gonna be your closet essential. 

something to note about eyeglasses frame styles. many guys tend to start trying on glasses with wayfarers. the problem of this type of frames is they only look good on people with higher nose and more outstanding features. it is because the inner arc of the frame actually emphasize the nose. so people with rounder/ bigger nose might not look good in it. Asian faces with flatter features should wear angular and geometric frames that sharpens facial features. rectangular ones also make your face appear longer and thinner. 

as for the trend, duo-tone spectacles (half black half transparent) would be something fresh and different.

[as shown on Sungmin]

4. English checks: 

choosing checkers pattern shirts and waistcoats is a good way of toning down the seriousness of suit and make you look younger. get hands on small checkers first as it's easier to handle.

[as shown on Siwon, Donghae and Yesung]

advanced version: pattern-on-pattern look

[as shown on Ryeowook]

DO YOU WANNA BE - BLOCK. B!

just to share an amazing Block. B members ranking done by BBC (aka Block. B Club, name of Block. B's fans). [click to enlarge]

MELT.

Melt Pump by Minna Parikka

yummyummm the perfect summer pump

[via]