A short review of these very stylish Orange, Yes ORANGE cord shoes.
The shoes are part of the DJ range of shoes, This one is the Rawlings. The shoes comes in 3 colours Green, Purple and the one in review here Orange.
I have worn some green ones 4 -5 times now to various events. The shoe has been very comfortable. The style hugs the foot and is not for a very wide foot. What i was surprised about was the sole, it felt hard to touch and thought it may not prove good to wear. I was wrong on this, the hard sole made it slip very nicely around Mod Club The Alley Club dance floor recently.
The suede upper has nice cord effect and if i am honest i thought would be more expensive shoe. Certainly i think it would sit well with some more high level shoe makers. But this is where i think DJ have done us good again, good looking shoe at a great value.
One thing that has been debated is what colours will go with the Orange. We think this
Dark Blue suit
Black Suit with another spot of orange somewhere
White jeans and very light green or orange short.
Yes dark blue demin
and possibly a dark brown suit
I welcome peoples thoughts on this. Below are some pictures of Mr Darrin Clarke wearing his recently. I think Darrin got it right, the suit looks nice with the shoes and notice the hanky in the pocket of the jacket. Also notice his very lovely wife with orange on as well.
Thought it would be fun to do a Photo only(ish) blog. Below are some people who I feel best represent cool shoes, each is an icon in many ways, but when i think of them i think, yep “smart dresser” and always good shoes !
Finding pictures, with shoes in, was hard work for some, as we see them in films or videos for only a second !
I make no apologies ! this is my list! , and a very incomplete, but it will do as a start !
Enjoy Andy
Suggs
I think smart dressing and cool shoes may have started here for me. Suggs was always stood out for me in his brogues and loafers. And i suppose because of the nutty dance you had to look at the feet!
Paul Weller
Weller of course he had to be in the list. Weller was my hero for so long, musically he inspired so many of us and i love the fact he is out there still playing with new sounds. Style wise he cant be bet most of the time. Â Shoes wise he is normally a mile ahead of everyone ! except perhaps the next set of pictures.
The Small Faces
Yes all of them ! There are literally 1000’s of pictures online of Marriott Lane, Mac and Jones. and in them they are always look brilliant including the shoes. The first picture here is my favourite picture of them.
Liam Gallagher
Liam enters the list because although i am bigger Blur fan, Liam is the archetypal rock star . He is one of the guys who can pull of anything and look cool in it. I am not so sure about the recent ‘Pretty Green’ range , i always think thats someone behind him ! but whether you like it or not Him, Neol and Damien all gave the MOD scene a big bloody kick in the 90’s
James Brown
James Brown is one the best dancers ever, anyone who has ever seen him slide across the floor will know that. But if you are going to slide across the floor like that, you are not going to be wearing rubbish shoes when the whole crowd is looking !
James Bond
Yes all of them ! James bond always looks cool, and whether it be Connery Moore, Morgan or Craig ( i know there are others) they always look their best! Possibly not strictly MOD! but cool anyways.
Michael Caine
Yep another actor. In the famous picture below with the Shooter from Get carter look at those cuff links !!!! Again bit of mare trying to find a picture of him full length, but in the Italian job, Get Carter, Icpress file and countless others inc the Eagle Has Landed Caine looks ace.
and a button down shirt !!!!
George Harrison
My favourite Beatle. Since i think 6 years old i have wanted to be George in the Beatles. Why you ask ? when i was younger it was the guitar, and as i have got older he seemed like the cool one. John and Paul may have wrote some of the best songs ever, but George wrote two of the Beatles most beautiful tunes. ‘While my guitar gently weeps’ and ‘Something’. He was no slouch either as these pictures prove.
I dont think there is a summary or conclusion really. Just an excuse to look at cool people in cool gear. I hope some of you agree and welcome hot debate at who i may have missed out !
Video Review of the NEW Weavers from Delicious Junction
Apart from loafers, the weaver is one of the shoes we get asked about a lot. Mainly I believe because they are so hard to find. Until recently DNA Groove have been the only people making them since Hudsons.
So Delicious Junction have filled that gap, which is good, and also as a bonus not at the top end of the price range. DJ shoes all under £100 which makes them very good value.
This style comes in 2 colours, Black and Bordo. If you have ever seen a pair of the Vandellas, this is very similar to them, but obviously in Weaver style. The shape of the sole and feel of the shoe is very similar to the Vandella.
The weaver effect is embossed and not a true ‘Weaver’ but for the money these are spot on. What i do like about the black ones is that these could be worn daily to the office.
The bordo has i believe has a very similar leather as the Rudeboy , so that Two Tone effect of Black and Bordo. Look at the pictures below for closer inspection.
DJ are doing full page adverts for these in Scootering so i assume they also think they are going to sell well.
In terms of wearing it is very comfortable shoe and fits snuggly. The sizing is good on these, so go for your normal size.
2 eyelet derby lace shoe with an embossed matt leather upper and a hard wearing smooth outsole.
Construction: Embossed leather upper – Leather lining – Other materials sole
Colour: Black matt smooth leather
Sizes available: 5.5-12
Brogues come in many colours and many shades, not to mention styles, but I wanted to concentrate on colours.
When buying a shoe you should consider ‘what I am going to wear them with‘, and that will help you to consider the most appropriate colour.
So, are the shoes mainly to go with jeans for a casual look, or suited and booted? I think about where I am going to be wearing the shoes. So for instance, I go to at least one Northern Soul do a month, where I may be wearing jeans or trousers. I am not likely to have a suit on at this kind of event. During the day though, I am more formal at work, and I tend to stick with classic business Black and Greys, and on occasion a dark blue pin stripe suit.
A ladies very slight brogue. http://www.modcloth.com/shop/shoes-flats/brown-sugar-brogues
A brown brogue is a very versatile colour, and possibly goes with any other colour of trouser including blue jeans. The one time i would say it doesn’t work is with black trousers or a black suit.
‘Black and brown makes a frown’
Aside from black, brown will go with every colour under the sun. From navy to grey and green to burgundy, the deeper, richer, tones of brown and tan shoes will much better compliment a wider variety of colours than black shoes – making them much more versatile.
Not just a Skinhead look, this brogue colour with jeans is very popular in the UK at the moment.
A light brown (Tan) brogue is very popular with the Smart Skin. Oxford Paul ,who lives around here, has several pairs which he combines with light faded jeans and a classic ‘Twisted Ben Sherman’. Worn with confidence it is a good striking look.
One style that DNA Groove do, is the brown suede brogues. I love some of DNA’s designs, think they are really good, especially the basket weavers. All DNA Grooves design are very MOD. The dark browns ones I like the most, the brogue fits well with the colour and styling.
Again shading plays a part, because the darker the shoe, the easier it sits with other trouser colour.
So if you are thinking of buying a brogue, perhaps brown is the best option?
Like these Black Brogues from Churches, £390 !
Black brogues are still a worthy contender though. Black goes with everything, but in my opinion can sometimes look a little stark. Meaning black is more for formal occasions. I wear black loafers with dark blue jeans, but have never liked the faded jeans with black shoe look, too 80’s for me!
For work, I have a pair of Half Brogue Loakes in black. The lacing style is an Oxford, which give the shoe a more formal office look. I wouldn’t wear these with jeans, they just dont sit right. The front is more pointed. I wear this make of brogue because I want something tough which will last.
I have seen the Oxford style black shoes at a Northern Soul do only this weekend, but whilst great for dancing and functional, I dont think it is a great looker!
Which brings me on neatly to Oxblood Brogues. This is my fav colour of Brogue. I don’t think all styles of Brogues suit Oxblood and I don’t think it is for every occasion. What i do like though, is that it stands out enough to say ‘This is a going out shoe’.
Oxblood isn’t everyone’s first choice of colour by any stretch of the imagination, but they are in fact one of the more versatile colours that you can wear. Oxbloods are compatible with all shades of grey, most navy hues and are perhaps a little bit more suitable when worn with black. Not dissimilar to brown brogues, they work with pretty much every colour you could think of.
When we were in Brighton recently, it was Remembrance Sunday, a guy walked past in Black Crombie, Dark Grey Trousers and Oxblood Loake Royal Loafers. The look was very smart and worked well. The same shoe could then be worn with jeans.
One style of oxblood brogue I have seen that looks very good, is combined with a Tassel Loafer. Not two styles you would immediately put together. The shoe is not a heavy shoe, but has a light sole. Terry my friend who owns them wears them with 16inch bottom blue trousers. The loafer part stops to show just the right amount of sock. The shoe is not an obvious choice and not one you see lots, but worn in the right way, which terry does, is very MOD.
The make of these is Mario Bruni. Very nice but not for the faint hearted.
I would go so far to say that should you wish to make an easy, simple statement, Oxblood is the way to go. Oxblood can be utilised in a near identical fashion as brown but the colour is bolder, more interesting and definitely more individual.
I have seen the style work well with a suit and also with jeans at Northern Soul do’s.
My favourite Oxblood Brogues, The Loake Royal. This is one mother of a shoe. Great with a suit, great with jeans at a soul do! They last ages, and why we sell them.
The oxblood colour lends itself well to being that little bit smarter than the Light Brown Brogue.
One issue you might have is that they are an unquestionable step in a new direction for most of the population, so you will have to wear them with a great deal of confidence to pull them off convincingly. But in the main you are buying these shoes to go out in, so why not stand out and wear them with pride!
The Tassel Loafer (or Tassle Loafer) is a classic Mod style. For me it started with The Specials and the Two Tone movement of the late 70’s. In many of the pictures, the band can be seen in a cross blend of MOD, Skinhead & Rudeboy style. And on their feet a mixture of shoes, but two favorites, Brogues and off course Tassel Loafers.
The Specials, 7 people with 3 of them wearing Tassel Loafers. And the iconic sleeve.
The tassel loafer is a variation on the Penny Loafer. Examples of the shoes can be seen certainly in the 50’s with the IVY League look, Alden’s and Bass Weejuns everywhere. The original shoe was a copy that Alden made, I believe in the 30’s. The Alden loafer is more pointy than the traditional MOD loafer.
As we know a lot of the look for MODS and Early Skinheads was taken from the IVY League look and I also think the Jamican Rudeboy look. The Jamican look I assuming came also from Black America!
Recently I have been trying to find Blue Note, Modern Jazz players wearing the shoes, but no luck yet, but I do seem to think this may also be why the shoe in on the scene.
Style wise, there several variations, Bass Weejun just have the Tassel, where as Loakes Brightons come with the feather. IKON is very similar to the Loake. Delicious Junction, who we stock, do both styles. The Merton is very like the Bass weejun and the Rudeboy, as it name suggest has the classic feathers.
The Rudeboy has the leather upper and sole. Stitching at the back of the shoe and a hi shine. Meaning the shoe looks great straight out of the box. To me the box is important as well, as I like to keep my shoes in tip top condition, so a decent box means I can keep them on top of the wardrobe out of harms way.
The Classic look, look at the guys towards the back, harringtons, monkey jackets and loafers. The guy in the foreground in Tassel Loafers
Colour wise, the shoes comes in 3 colours, Black, Brown & the very Popular Oxblood. The Oxblood colour is not a pure colour, but very nice effect in a cherry red , which has had a slight bit black shoes polish added which gives it a Vintage look. If you look at the picture you can see the effect. It reminds me a lot of the look that Trad Skins went for in the 80’s when they were trying to distance themselves from the OI Boys.
Notice the Mottled effect
The shoe as always looks great with a suit and jeans. Looked after the leather upper and leather bottom will last ages. I personally have a pair and they are really comfy and not at all like the cheap shoes I had as a 2nd generation mod in the 80’s.
The Oxblood Tassel Loafer is a very popular style with us, feel free to ask questions.
There are many different types of Brogues. The pair above perhaps are the classic look. The above pair are called ‘Wingtails’ in America.
The Brogue has a long history before getting to MOD. Many companies in the UK still produce handmade Brogues: Loake, Earl Barton, Chencery to name a few. Â Loake make an old style look called the Chester. At the time of writing these have become fashionable with boy bands like JLS.
In terms of 60’s MODS I saw this on the Modgeneration website.
Adrian Stern
In the 60’s I bought mine from Saxones and complemented them with fringed things that covered the laces. Back in those days good shoes lasted for anything up to 20 years if you looked after them and especially put them in trees to dry after use. The leather used for the uppers was dyed of course but only waxed and one never used polish on them, only wax. The wax hasn’t been made for I don’t know how long and the company went out of business as all shoe leather now has a plastic coating instead of wax which means they will crack well before 15 years have gone – I think after 8 or so.
Churches dropped their beautiful round last for much more pointy ones around 68 or 70 I think and the other British companies followed suit so real round toes probably don’t exist today.
I now have arthritis in a big toe and can’t wear good leather shoes anymore – except for my loafers – made by Barkers and they really are the originals and the best – if you examine the way the top is attached all the other brands join them edge to edge but Barkers are folded over – which means hand-stitched!
The later two tone style that Marriot wears on the ‘Colour Me Pop’ show are more late 60’s, and have an air of Dandiness about them. I like the look on Marriott.
I think Weller had some in The Style Council, and Madness have been known to wear them.
The Skins and Suedeheads adopted the Brogue for themsleves and today the shoe is still seen widely on the Northern Soul Scene.
I like them a lot, always have, they are a really good hard wearing shoe that, if you look after, last ages. I’m not sure if this happened all over the UK or was regional, but at our school we would add Blakeys which would cause the shoe to make a clicking noise as you walked around. This was done mainly to wind up the teachers.
Not just a Skinhead look, this brogue colour with jeans is very popular in the UK at the moment.The make of these is Mario Bruni. Very nice but not for the faint hearted.
I wonder if every real MOD that’s ever been has owned a pair of Desert Boots. I have lots of pairs, all slightly different. There are lots of pictures of MODS in Desert Boots.
The comfortable boot can be seen in the MODS book and has survived all the MOD revivals and still is a player. Fred Perry’s recent boots are very much a play on the style.
One thing that has been debated is what colours will go with the Orange. We think this
I have seen the Oxford style black shoes at a Northern Soul do only this weekend, but whilst great for dancing and functional, I dont think it is a great looker!
