1920s men's Art Deco shoes, 2 pairs

[Marc Chevalier]

Thought these deserved to be memorialized here on the Lounge before they go off to eBay :cry: . In my 19 years of collecting, I have run into this type of shoe only twice ... and here they are. Both were made in the U.S.A. in the second half of the 1920s. Both are nearly deadstock (worn only once).

 

[MudInYerEye]

Oh man. Wow.
What size are these shoes?

 

[Hemingway Jones]

Those red ones are awesome! If I owned those and they fit me, I would want to be buried in them!

 

[herringbonekid]

hi, i'm new here.
i think i bought one of your suits from ebay a while ago. (a medium grey belt-back). fantastic shoes. why do you have to sell them ?

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Graduate school expenses.

If you live in New Zealand, then I did sell that suit to you!

The reddish brown shoes are size 7 D. The black shoes are 7 1/2 D.

Glad you like them!

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Actually, the black shoes are pretty cool too. Did you noticed the raised vertical "spine" on the toe?

 

[herringbonekid]

no, England. but i'm sure it was you.
i'll look out for them on ebay, but my feet are usually too big for vintage shoes.

 

[Pinkcoke]

Hi, I'd be very interested to know if those shoes did sell if Marc's still around, as I have just aquired this pair of Florsheim shoes and am struggling to find comparisions as I think they're pretty rare.

 

[esteban68]

what size are they pinkcoke?

 

[Pinkcoke]

7 1/2 D, if they were bigger, I doubt they would have survived so well! I haven't yet worked out if this is the US or UK size (6) as thought D was only a UK width.

 

[dhermann1]

Those are totally cool. However, I can imagine Lord Peter Whimsy's batman discreetly pointing out to Lord Peter that their owner was wearing a tie and pocket square of matching pattern, and Lord Peter whispering under his breath, "Most unfortunate."

 

[Isshinryu101]

Hi, I'd be very interested to know if those shoes did sell if Marc's still around, as I have just aquired this pair of Florsheim shoes and am struggling to find comparisions as I think they're pretty rare.

i saw that auction as well. If you can post pics of soles/ heels, footbed & interior sizing writing, I can tell you much more.

 

[Pinkcoke]

Thanks, but I'm intrigued what more you think there is to know? as I contacted Florsheim's directly and the pictures were sent to Mr Florsheim senior, who confirmed their age based on my hunch. They are still looking for perhaps an advert or mention in their archives for me but I'm not sure I'll get any more.

 

[cookie]

Thanks, but I'm intrigued what more you think there is to know? as I contacted Florsheim's directly and the pictures were sent to Mr Florsheim senior, who confirmed their age based on my hunch. They are still looking for perhaps an advert or mention in their archives for me but I'm not sure I'll get any more.

Time for them to meet Mr Pecards the leather conditioner for an overdue 80 year old bath.

 

[Isshinryu101]

Thanks, but I'm intrigued what more you think there is to know? as I contacted Florsheim's directly and the pictures were sent to Mr Florsheim senior, who confirmed their age based on my hunch. They are still looking for perhaps an advert or mention in their archives for me but I'm not sure I'll get any more.

post them and find out.

 

[Isshinryu101]

Thanks, but I'm intrigued what more you think there is to know? as I contacted Florsheim's directly and the pictures were sent to Mr Florsheim senior, who confirmed their age based on my hunch. They are still looking for perhaps an advert or mention in their archives for me but I'm not sure I'll get any more.

the heel counter is odd. Florsheim closed their heels with a single seem down the back in every dress shoe i've seen of theirs thru the 30's. Although the general style is the same as Marc's tan pair at the beginning of the thread, the heel counter really strikes me as odd.

 

[Isshinryu101]

Odd post in retrospect. just the original ebay pics, then no follow ups whatsoever. As this site is usually a good place to learn about and be exposed to Vintage styles and histories I must say I am mildly disappointed.

 

[Pinkcoke]

Sorry, I don't come on here regularly and couldn't find this post again when I looked for it.
If I remember correctly, I posted those before I'd received them (they took a good 40 days to arrive), hence the original pics, I was a bit eager to learn about them. I am glad to say they are much better in reality. They do only have one seam down the back. Here are my pictures with more detail;

 

[Isshinryu101]

They are very cool. That said, they are the 1960's- 1970's reproductions from the original models Marc displayed. There is a whole separate piece of leather used as the heel counter, rather than the single seem with the tab, which Florsheim used in the original model. The Interior markings, footbed, soles and heels are all much later Florsheim. Not a criticism, they are VERY cool shoes (that I wish I owned- if my size), they are just not 1920's-1940's Florsheims.

 

[Pinkcoke]

hmm well what do I say to Mr Florsheim senior - who suggested 1920's first, and the specialist UK auction house who valued them for me? Neither have even mentioned being unsure of the dating.

The inserted oval label also matches other 1920-30's womens shoes I have, and have seen. By the 1970's Material content laws would also require the shoes to have leather stated on them somewhere, either with the leather symbol or upper, lining and sole materials.