First Time Buying good shoes! Please recommend me few shoes to start! $1000 budget

[Jvivek]

my plan was to buy AE park avenues and buy some Crockett or EG's. but I can't decide on what I should buy first.

 

[Jvivek]

maybe three shoes and one boot. thanks

 

[edmorel]

If you want a total of 4 shoes, you are not going to get any new EG's in the mix, unless you catch a Polo sale and even then. You need to decide exactly what shoe styles you want, and if you prefer to have 2 C&J and 1 AE or 1 EG and nothing else or 3-4 AE's and maybe an RMW chelsea etc.

 

[lee_44106]

What is your need?

Do you need "dressy" shoes?
Do you need casual shoes?
Should it be weatherproof/waterproof because you want to frolic in the rain/snow?

We need more information than just "need good shoes!"

Suggestions:
-one pair BLACK captoe (the AE park avenue will fit the bill)
-one pair brown captoe (this will be very versatile pair of shoe, maybe even the park avenue in brown)


Your $1K will only get 4 pairs AE or 2 pair C&J or 1AE + 1 EG.

 

[Jvivek]

alright I guess I will do the following:

1 Park Avenue
1 boot
2 other shoes

I want to shoes for casual something that will work with jeans. I also want to buy dress shoes, this is just a start, I could have one dress shoe and buy one casual shoe, also need a boot that will work with jeans.

thanks

 

[philosophe]

If at all possible, go to a decent shoe store and try on whatever good brands they have in stock. There are scads of black captoes out there. You need something well-made that is actually comfortable on your foot. Whether that's AE or EG or RLPL or C&J or whatever, only experience will tell.

 

[Jvivek]

no stores around me that carry anything good, one store carries AE, I will buy the Park avenue from there. thats about it.

 

[Jvivek]

I just want some help in this matter:

so far I got this:
Park avenue

for thousand more, I want two shoes, one dress and one casual, I guess I am looking for a shoe that is on everyones list to buy.

thanks

 

[sartort]

i have to say the Edward Green/RLPL Grant monkstrap. You can wear them both casually and more formally. Look as good with jeans as they do with suits. You can usually get them on sale from Ralph Lauren for around 650 or less. If I could only have one shoe, this is the one. With you remaining 350, I'd get a pair of C&J from Plal.com. Perhaps the Merton Loafer. Very stylish loafer that can again be worn with jeans, or with odd trousers and a sportcoat.

To sum up:
EG/RLPL Grant on sale! in a brown hue (burnt pine, chesnut, or dark oak)
C&J Merton loafer in beechnut

 

[Phoenix]

I recently started a shoe collection from scratch and here's what I bought, in what order, for how much, and from where (after lots of research on these forums):

Santoni FAM Shell Cordovan Balmorals, $340 off eBay
Alden Captoe Balmorals in Black, $215 from TeamShoeSeaport.com
Santoni FAM Semibrogue Captoe Balmorals in Brown, $320 off the B&S Forum
RM Williams Forum Special Boots in Black, $300 from Nungar
Santoni Semibrogue Captoe Balmorals in Black, $130 off eBay
RM Williams Craftsman Boots in Whiskey, $200 off the B&S Forum
AE Delray in Chili, $135 off eBay
Loakes Brogue Wingtips in Antiqued Brown off the B&S Forum, ~$100
Frye 8R Harness Boots, ~$100 from Nordstroms
Patent Leather Opera Pumps, $80 from Shoes.com
Jack Purcell OTR shoes in Caramel, $94 from LastPair.com

I also invested in a mix of Ultra and Epic shoe trees from Woodlore, a spiffy shoe shine kit (polish, conditioner, edge dressing, mink oil, etc.), some tingley overshoes, and insoles when warranted.

Hopefully that gives you some ideas . . .

 

[Mr T]

Too many unknowns to give a good answer. But be warned that this quickly develops into something larger than intended. It is a sickness...a real shoe fever.

 

[DocHolliday]

Originally Posted by sartort

i have to say the Edward Green/RLPL Grant monkstrap. You can wear them both casually and more formally. Look as good with jeans as they do with suits. You can usually get them on sale from Ralph Lauren for around 650 or less. If I could only have one shoe, this is the one. With you remaining 350, I'd get a pair of C&J from Plal.com. Perhaps the Merton Loafer. Very stylish loafer that can again be worn with jeans, or with odd trousers and a sportcoat.

To sum up:
EG/RLPL Grant on sale! in a brown hue (burnt pine, chesnut, or dark oak)
C&J Merton loafer in beechnut

I like the Grant, but it's becoming increasingly difficult to find at all these days, much less on discount. Weren't the EGs exempted from Ralph's last sale?

 

[mr monty]

Originally Posted by Jvivek

no stores around me that carry anything good, one store carries AE, I will buy the Park avenue from there. thats about it.

1) EGs for $499. Don't be too proud to ask for additional saving.

http://mausandhoffmanonline.com/Merc...learance_shoes

2) Park Aves for $195. Check site for other deals.

http://stores.ebay.com/Allen-Edmonds...dZ2QQpZ5QQtZkm

That leaves $300 for boots and a pair of casual shoes. Check these 2 websites

http://stores.ebay.com/Italian-Leath...8Q2em118QQtZkm

yoox : lots of boots for less than $150

http://www1.yoox.com/searchResult/c/...tskay/3FD17CD7

 

[GeorgePaul]

Originally Posted by Jvivek

no stores around me that carry anything good, one store carries AE, I will buy the Park avenue from there. thats about it.
Where do you live? Is there a Brooks Brothers store anywhere near you? It might be worth traveling to the nearest large city and trying a few shoes on. BTW, for your budget and for what you are looking for, I think C&J offers the best choices.

 

[Jvivek]

any other inputs, I am not to found of classic designs at all