12 Split-Toe Shoes from J. M. Weston, Edward Green, Saint Crispin’s …

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spli-toe-shoes from j m weston chasse_demi_chasse-brown_shoes

Split-toe shoes: Chasse and Demi-Chasse from J. M. Weston. Photo: J. M. Weston

The split-toe shoe I fancy. I remember it was one of the first welted shoes I wanted to buy. In particular I adored the Avignon from Paraboot. I couldn’t find the right size in that model though, so ended up with a chukka boot from the French maker.

Later, J. M. Weston’s Chasse became the ideal to me, when looking a split-toe shoes. It appeared to embody le style anglais, the French interpretation of British style. The Chase is a rustic shoe, yet with a refined French touch to it.

However, my first split-toes were neither from Paraboot nor J. M. Weston. Kielman in Warsaw made my first split-toes. They could not compete in design with Weston’s Chasse shoes, but they were handmade to the measures of my feet.

Trying to get to an overview of the present market for split-toe shoes I ended up with 12 models. Here you are.

split-toe j_m_weston_chasse_demi_chasse-brown_shoes_comparison

Demi-Chasse and Chasse face-off. Photo: En Grande Pompe

paraboot avignon brown

Avignon from Paraboot. Photo: Timothy Everest

saint_crispins_split-toes-derby_shoes split-toe shoes

Saint Crispin’s split-toes. Photo: Leffot

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Esquire ad from 1949. Illustration: Esquire Classic

alden split toe shoes

Split-toe from Alden. Photo: Alden of New England

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Scotch grain split-toes from Carmina: Photo: Carmina

heschung split-toes

Split-toes from the French firm Heschung: Photo: Care of Carl

enzo bonafe split toes

Scotch grain split-toes from Enzo Bonafe. Photo: Skoaktiebolaget

churchs northwood split-toe derby

Old Church follows suit. Northwood, Church calls its split-toe. Photo: Church

gaziano and girling split toe

For the slender feet. Gaziano & Girling’s split-toes. Photo: Skoaktiebolaget

edward green dover split-toe shoes

To some the ideal, Edward Green’s Dover. Photo: Care of Carl

The last pair of Danish goodyear welted shoes

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Nowadays, a Danish shoe is an Ecco shoe, a typical brand shoe, that is, noisy and with little substance. Some decades ago we could tell a different story about goodyear welted shoes made in the center of Copenhagen.

The most famous name was Hertz. A Danish jew, Abraham Hertz, founded the firm back in 1821 in Copenhagen. The firm was to be in business for more than 150 years.

In the 1960s trouble began, because Italian shoes started flooding the market. Production was moved to the suburb of Copenhagen but it didn’t help much. In 1974 production of classic goodyear welted shoes in Denmark ended.

The man on the photo, a young doctor, found his Hertz shoes in a second hand shop a few weeks ago. He combines them with blue jeans, a Brooks Brothers buttondown shirt, and a grey herringbone tweed. Well done, I think.

Photos: The Journal of Style

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