Exotics - Your cow leather alternatives

Shoes Above: Crocodile by Riccardo Bestetti

Up until I moved to Italy to learn bespoke shoemaking, I never really was a fan of exotics. This was partly due to the fact that in America, certain exotic leathers are made in a way that they are insanely gaudy i.e. blue and green 'pythons', yellow 'gators,' pink stingray etc. And the other reason being that many of them are made, in my opinion, on the ugliest lasts and in terrible styles. So, needless to say, living in the States gave me a very skewed perspective on how I felt about exotic leathers. It wasn't until I went to Stefano Bemer's RTW shop and saw these two crocodile derbies (one pictured below in red) that I began to understand that exotic leather shoes can be made beautifully...

Sea Creatures - Shark, Stingray, Fish etc.

This category is probably (no, definitely) my least favorite of the exotic leather kingdom. With the exception of shark, I really don't care for anything made from a creature that comes from under the water. I see, admire and appreciate beautiful stingray shoes made by Riccardo Bestetti, but I just don't seem to ever really desire them, especially when they have the white bit on them that looks like an eye or something. Fish too, simply awful in my opinion. While it can give a cool-looking effect, it just seems so limiting to me. What if the scales flake off? And you can't shine them, not well at least. But hey, to each his own right?

Shoes Above: Stingray by Riccardo Bestetti
Shoes Below: (L) Sharkskin by Stefano Bemer; (R) Morse Fish skin

Reptiles - Snake, Crocodile, Alligator, Lizard etc.  

Another category that I cannot say that I am ecstatic about, but I can say that I do like a nice wholecut made in crocodile or alligator. The key here is about choosing the leather properly, making sure that it's symmetry is as tidy as can be and the the scales are not too differentiating. But this is difficult (and extremely costly) to do. That's the reason why, you see that few people can do it. And they are usually the people whose shoes cost $1000+ just for their calf skin shoes, let alone the price of a crocodile shoe. Snake skin I am just not a fan of period and lizard I can only do in small amounts, like the facing of a shoe or some sort of accent on it. Now just because I know that this might come up, I will preemptively say, without embarrassment, that I have no clue how to tell the difference between crocodile and alligator. I do know that there is (according to experts) a difference between their scales but cannot say with confidence what that difference is. So, if you are one of those experts reading, then please feel free to leave a comment, in order to enlighten us all.

Shoes Above: Crocodile by Stefano Bemer
Shoes Below: (First Row) L - Croc by Dimitri Gomez; R - Snakeskin by Sperry (I believe)
                      (Second Row) L - Anthony Delos; R - Alligator by Gaziano & Girling
                      (Thrid Row) Lizard by Carreducker

Others - Carpincho, Pig, Elephant, Russian Reindeer, Mountain Ram, Pony, Ostrich etc.

Now this jumbled category does contain many of the exotic leathers that I find to be much more appealing. That being, it would appear that I tend to appreciate things that seem to have legs, with the exception of pony and ostrich that is done awfully. But the rest of these can produce a shoe that is not only intriguing but very cool too. Funny thing is, since delving myself head first into the shoe industry, I had never seen many of these leathers let alone heard of them being used to make shoes. But after having seen the likes of carpincho and mountain ram, I will definitely be on the hunt to acquire a pair or two in the --most likely distant-- future.

Shoes Above: Carpincho by George Cleverley
Shoes Below: (First Row) L - Elephant by Koronya; R - Pony by Jan Kielman
                      (Second Row) L - Russian Reindeer by George Cleverley; R - Pigskin by Gaziano & Girling
                      (Third Row) Elephant by Stefano Bemer (both)
                      (Fourth Row) L - Ostrich by Barker Black; R - Mountain Ram by George Cleverley

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The eBay Experience

I have never been someone who has had a whole lot of patience, unfortunate as that may be. This downfall has prohibited me from taking part in many things...like learning how to actually hit the ball in golf, reading a book past the first 10 pages (it better grab me), and last but not least, taking advantage of the wonderful creation called eBay. Some things are obviously more important than others, in terms of helping my intelligence (like the reading bit, that would help me write and speak better) but none could have probably saved me more money than, being a smart eBay shopper could have. I mean, I have wasted tons of money in my life from things that I bought, and then never wore or wore just once or twice and then gave away. It hurts to think of that sunk cost that I cannot regain.....But let's now dwell and move back on to the subject.....I can't even begin to imagine how many amazing products have been sold on eBay for next to nothing: millions. And to think that I have missed out on all of them! But, apparently I have reader that has done the opposite of myself and has completely taken advantage of this brilliant creation and by doing so, has acquired around 75 of his 150 pairs of shoes. (Makes me look like a chump!) And by doing this, not only has he been able to purchase very nice, high-end shoes, but has also probably been able to save tens of thousands of dollars, which I am sure has helped him buy more clothing! :-)

What's most amazing about this, is the eclectic array of shoes that my reader now owns. I mean, it ranges from those Florsheim looking cream slip-ons (which for me don't match the vibe of the others) to the most amazing suede Lobbs. But that's what happens when you have the ability to get a shoe for $20-$30. At that price, you just might buy anything. It's like when I used to work in retail, made loads of money for a 22 year-old, and had a discount. I frickin' bought everything, even things that I hated after one wear. It was stupid....but that's what happens when things are too cheap to pass up, which is why eBay is brilliant. Someone literally came up with the idea to have people pretty much swap crap that they don't want and then the company makes loads of money from fee's. Simply amazing! And while it sounds like the owners of eBay are having all of the fun, its actually people like my reader who (if they are diligent enough) are able to profit off of this concept and build a wardrobe (or whatever product they are after) on basement bargains!

Some of the shoes that he has gotten are simply beautiful. The suede Lobbs (above) are most likely my favorite, just because I love the uniqueness of the design, so French, yet so elegant! Next up, must be the Berluti wholecuts in a pebble grain. It's funny because I have never seen that before, nor have I even thought of it, but to me, it looks brilliant. It's the only way to tone down the dressiness of the whole cut, and make it a bit more casual. Great idea! And last, but certainly not least, are those yellowish/tan Bontoni wholecuts with brogueing. Those are simply beautiful! And for those 3 shoes, that probably retail upwards of about $4000, it would not surprise me if he got them for about 1/4 of that price. How can you beat that? You can't really and that's why the eBay experience is so genius. I tip my hat to the owners and to those (such as this reader who owns all of these amazing shoes) whom have actually been patient enough to take advantage of the sheer brilliance in trading crap for bottom dollar prices!

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