Today's Shoes

Martegani six-eyelet plain-toe bluchers with a floating medallion in navy blue shell cordovan with a thick single leather sole (3B last). Martegani's US representative, Ron Rider, calls this model the Lucca II. My shoes are identical to the ones pictured to the right in every respect except that they are made from navy blue shell cordovan instead of that tan calfskin. Yes, you read correctly. They're navy blue shell cordovan. Horween, the Chicago tannery that makes the best shell cordovan, actually makes small quantities of navy blue. When I first heard that, I knew that I would have to have something made from it, and this particular model seemed like a good choice. Getting the shoes was a bit of an adventure: when Martegani started to make them up, there were exactly two navy shells in Italy; and it takes two shells to make one pair of shoes. They accidentally split one of them while lasting it, and they had to wait several months before getting a replacement. No matter. The shoes were worth the wait. The 3B last runs long naturally, and, as with all shell cordovan shoes, these fit a bit more loosely than the same shoe in calfskin. Today, though, they fit reasonably well -- no heel slippage after a day of wear. I may have to wear these more often.