Newbie needs advice on ghillie brogues or similar footwear

[VirginiaHighlander]

Hello folks, I'm new here and also new to kilted life. I have questions about brogues or similar for my semi and formal kilt.
I've been diabetic for 45 years and have lots of troubles with my feet so my question is, where can I find the most comfortable brogues? I cannot afford but one pair so they will have to be good the first shot! I cannot afford to risk a blister (diabetes plus immuno-suppressed post transplant) that could easily cost me my foot. Add to this bunions and skeletal pain and you get the picture. Any advice and suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

[Father Bill]

Hi Virginia!

My approach: don't try the high-laced Gillies. They'll just restrict your circulation further, and with diabetes, you don't need that at all. Just go down to your shoe store and get a pair of good-fitting regular brogues. Nobody will ever notice the lack of laces, they're more comfortable, and they're absolutely normal, proper, and appropriate for kilt wear.

Cheers!

[VirginiaHighlander]

Father Bill, thank you sir! I had wondered about that option but still learning the "rules" especially for more formal wear. I have some Oxford-type (most likely from my days in uniform) from Bates that look very similar to ghillie X in the shoe part and are very comfortable, if I can locate them I might give them a try. I'm not one to shy away if anyone were to confront me on the inaccuracy but would still like to honor the traditions as much as possible.
Thank you again and have a wonderful weekend sir!

[The Wizard of BC]

And just a clarification of some terms.

Brogue in the UK refers to the small decorative holes in some shoes. Any shoe with those holes is a brogue.

In N. America many people call this type of shoe a 'wing tip' although the term "wing tip" refers to a specific shape of the toe cap.

The words oxford and blucher refer to the way the bottom of the laces is made. An oxford shoe is closed at the bottom of the laces and a blucher is open.

So if using the correct terms this pair of shoes would be known as Brougued Oxfords in the UK and wingtips in N. America.



Ghillie brogues are simply the result of turning a dance shoe into a street shoe. They took a standard Brogued Oxford, (wingtip) cut out the tongue and cut out around the lace eyelets then added really long laces.

I do not wear Ghillie brogues at all. Instead I wear wingtips. I wear them for daily wear and for up to, but not including, black tie.

[VirginiaHighlander]

Thank you as well Wizard! I wasn't aware of the terminology, so thank you again!

[Tarheel]

John, I bought a pair of Rockport, "dress-port" wingtips thirty years ago. They have lasted through my ability to destroy most shoes. The price is above average, but worth the initial cost due to the wear-ability factor. These look good with my kilt also.
Good luck with your footwear hunt.

[kilted firefighter]

John, I bought a pair of Rockport, "dress-port" wingtips thirty years ago. They have lasted through my ability to destroy most shoes. The price is above average, but worth the initial cost due to the wear-ability factor. These look good with my kilt also.
Good luck with your footwear hunt.

This would be my suggestion as well. If you can find your Bates uniform shoes they would not only look great but if they are well broken in could be very comfortable, on the other hand, age and medical conditions may have changed the size and shape of your feet significantly. Don't be self conscious about whatever solution you arrive at. Healthy feet trump fashion always.

[Father Bill]

John, I bought a pair of Rockport, "dress-port" wingtips thirty years ago. They have lasted through my ability to destroy most shoes. The price is above average, but worth the initial cost due to the wear-ability factor. These look good with my kilt also.
Good luck with your footwear hunt.

Viriginia, this is indeed the style of shoe I was suggesting. Frankly, if it's important to you, you could probably buy long laces and lace these shoes all the way up your leg and nobody would likely notice. If they do and make disparaging remarks, you'll be wearing comfortable shoes with which to kick them in the shins.

The advantage to shoes of this sort which i've always called "brogues" and which Steve has correctly pointed out, are often called "wingtips" in North America, particularly in the U.S., is that you can go to the shoe store and buy them, which means, unlike online purchases, you can try them on and fit them to your foot, and if they don't fit comfortably, walk down the mall to another shoe store and get a pair that do.

The one point on which I would quibble (and only with deep respect) with this particular pair of shoes, is that they're not top grain leather, which means you'll spend an awful lot of time shining them and still not acquire a shine that the Regimental Sergeant Major in my soul would approve. Insist on top grain, and be prepared to find it for yourself. Many shoe store employees have no idea what that means. You'll know because they'll come out of the box already suggestive of patent leather. (I'm a purist; I own NO patent leather. People just think I do.) It will be up to you to complete the transformation to a black glass finish, but at least you'll stand a fighting chance. The shoes I have which accomplish that purpose are branded "Bostonians" and "Florsheims"

As an abbreviated shining explanation: I cover my shoes with a fairly thick coat of high quality wax polish using a small wet cloth wrapped around my fingers (a surgeon's glove may make subsequent cleanup easier) and then heat the concave surface of a large tablespoon inverted over a candle flame. I then rub the smooth, smoke-free convex side hard over the leather to melt the wax into the pores of the leather, and finish the job with a traditional water shine followed by an hour or so of rubbing with a succession of very soft cloths while I watch TV. You can find other and more thoroughly explained techniques here on XMarks if you search for them.

Cheers!

Bill+

[tpa]

As an abbreviated shining explanation: I cover my shoes with a fairly thick coat of high quality wax polish using a small wet cloth wrapped around my fingers (a surgeon's glove may make subsequent cleanup easier) and then heat the concave surface of a large tablespoon inverted over a candle flame. I then rub the smooth, smoke-free convex side hard over the leather to melt the wax into the pores of the leather, and finish the job with a traditional water shine followed by an hour or so of rubbing with a succession of very soft cloths while I watch TV.

Fascinating, Father Bill, I had always wondered what you were supposed to do and as a consequence was always getting punished, when in the school Combined Cadet Force, for never bothering to clean my boots after the first time it happened when I had cleaned them! Nowadays I find that just leaving the polish on for a few hours before rubbing it off is an improvement on applying and polishing instantaneously.

Back on the thread, I actually like my ghillie brogues, especially for indoor events, because they keep my feet cooler, however SWMBO is not so keen, so ordinary brogues are usually worn for most occasions and are acceptable for all occasions.

[VirginiaHighlander]

Thanks to all that have responded, great info and ideas! I looked into Tarheel's idea of the Rockports and found a pair on Ebay in my size for $30 that look brand new, I saved the auction for Tuesday when I get paid and am going to give them a try. I might take Father Bill's suggestion and get some long laces to try when needed. As for the polishing tips, I too have "tennis elbow" after many years of nightly polishing whilst on the police force! Same process too with the spoon but somewhere in mine was a cotton ball dipped into ice water and then buffed to a finish!