Another shoe advice thread

[James MacMillan]

I am picking out shoes for my wedding.
I like the Doc Martin brogues, but they are out of my price range for now.
I am not a big fan of traditional 'Ghillie' brogues nor yet traditional buckled kilt shoes. (They just give me bad memories of girls in primary school wearing mary janes.)
So, what do you guys think of these?


Good price, good quality and I really do like them.
But, do they pass muster for a wedding?

Would Hamish, lord of kilted style, be seen in them?

Give them a nice shine, and I don't think you will look bad!

I wear formal evening attire about three times a month, and I have taken to wearing the slippers normally used with saxon tuxedos, more for comfort than anything else. For me comfort is the most important factor!

[Mark Keeney]

I am picking out shoes for my wedding.
I like the Doc Martin brogues, but they are out of my price range for now.
I am not a big fan of traditional 'Ghillie' brogues nor yet traditional buckled kilt shoes. (They just give me bad memories of girls in primary school wearing mary janes.)
So, what do you guys think of these?


Good price, good quality and I really do like them.
But, do they pass muster for a wedding?

Would Hamish, lord of kilted style, be seen in them?

I think they would look great. What does the Bride to Be think? If you both like it, settled.

[Jock Scot]

They'd be greatly improved if they were modified to take these buckles.


I was shoe shopping only yesterday. I saw what I really wanted; Florsheim "Lexington" wingtip brogues with a really high polish; almost like patent leather, for $100. On the way home I stopped by a second-hand store, and found a pair of virtually unused wingtip brogues for $6.00. Once they're properly bulled up, I'm quite sure that they'll do just as well, for a savings of $94.00.

Slightly off topic,but I have been wondering what "wingtip brogues"were,now I know.Another trans Atlantic English language mystery solved.How did they get the title "wingtip"?By the way.

[PiobBear]

I have been wondering what "wingtip brogues" were, now I know. Another trans Atlantic English language mystery solved. How did they get the title "wingtip"?

Well..because that's what my Dad (who wore them) always called them. Not an entirely satisfactory answer to your question, I know; so I looked it up:

"Brogues, often called wingtips in the USA, are low-heeled shoes that are made of heavy and untanned leather, said to have originated in Scotland. Brogue also refers to Oxford shoes that have fringe or wing tips. The term wingtip derives from the toe cap pattern, which forms a W and resembles the profile of a spread bird wing."

So...what do you call them on that side of The Pond?
(looking at them...perhaps I lack imagination, but "bird wing" doesn't leap to mind.)

Another gem from my research:

"Brougeing refers to the holes in shoes that make an ordinary shoe look snazzy.

Legend holds that holes in shoes were put there by the Scottish who had to step in and out of bogs all day (back before malls were built) and they needed a shoe that would allow good drainage."

And here I was thinking that's why ghillies haven't a tongue and lace up in such an odd manner...learn something new every day.

[James MacMillan]

Oh the English language! Here we go again - wingtips and brogues are two words to describe the same thing. In common usage they have come to mean something different.

Just as Sept and Clan mean the same thing, but when combined have come to mean something different!

One fault of most dictionaries is they only list meanings for single words.

[Cawdorian]

Arlen, I think those shoes would look great with a kilt.

The Florshiem Lexington Wing Tips are a great shoe, I have a pair I wear regulary with my kilts, I prefer them to ghillie brogues. If you watch you can find the Lexington on sale at JCP a couple of times a year. If you have a narrow foot as I do the Lexingtons will fit you quite well.

[Jock Scot]

Thanks PioBear and James for the information about "wingtips".In all my years,and there are too many,I have never heard the term "wingtip brogues"used over here.That of course does not mean that the term is not used over here,it is just that I have never heard it!Oxford brogues,ghillie brogues and just brogues(most common) yes.

[haukehaien]

I was shoe shopping only yesterday. I saw what I really wanted; Florsheim "Lexington" wingtip brogues with a really high polish; almost like patent leather, for $100. On the way home I stopped by a second-hand store, and found a pair of virtually unused wingtip brogues for $6.00. Once they're properly bulled up, I'm quite sure that they'll do just as well, for a savings of $94.00.

I found a pair of those this summer for $50 ... clearly I should have bought two pairs. I didn't realize they were marked down quite that much.

[Chef]

Legend holds that holes in shoes were put there by the Scottish who had to step in and out of bogs all day (back before malls were built) and they needed a shoe that would allow good drainage."

And here I was thinking that's why ghillies haven't a tongue and lace up in such an odd manner...learn something new every day.

According to legend both are correct. Supposedly the reason they lace up on the ankle was so that the shoe wouldn't pull off when they pulled their foot out of the bog.

[Rampant Lion]

The leather and buckles look kind of dull in the picture. If you can put a good shine on them I think they'd look great for your wedding.