Over recent years I’ve gotten into the habit of stopping by the local Salvation Army shops nearby when passing. I’ve been lucky to have a fairly decent one both in the small town where I live, and right next to where I’ve been working for the past 4 years. The combination of doing my bit for charity and possibly finding an amazing deal is a little hard to resist.
It’s been a while now since I saw anything that was more than a marginally decent deal. That is, until I stopped by the local branch in town yesterday. Even in the midst of Xmas shopping, I still couldn’t resist the lure of the bargain hunt, and a quick look usually only takes a few minutes.
As found, recreated at home for testimonial purposes.
And what do my roving eyes fall upon? There on the shelf, just half-peeking out from under a low hanging suit jacket, a pair of brown brogues. Now, brogues aren’t really all that common in Norway, and the shoes that tend to end up at the Salvation Army shop tend to be pretty crummy. In 4 years I’ve seen 2 pairs of Dr Martens, and that’s been the best of the lot. In fact, I passed on a pair of Dr Martens brogues in black only a week ago. They may have fit, but I have no use for black shoes. Brogues though? I do like the brogues. The added detail the brogue patterning gives can lift what is otherwise just a rather plain shoe to a shoe that is almost a work of art, or at least looks very much more interesting than plain leather. Plus, brogues have a long and interesting story behind them!
More “as found” documentation.
Ah, but back to the quest at hand! Brown brogues a’peeking! What have we here? I may have said it aloud even, as I made a grab for one of them. At this point I didn’t really have too high hopes, but looking into them and seeing they were made by Church, and Custom Grade at that certainly got my attention! A quick Google showed me that this was the proper stuff indeed. And a quick trial fit showed me that they actually fit me as well! An Xmas miracle, indeed.
The Church factory in Nottingham, modern photo, obviously.
So, Church, any good? Well, they’ve been making shoes in Northampton since 1873, and to this day they are still handmade in their factory there. A process that takes around 8 weeks and involves over 250 detailed manual operations.
A craftsman busily crafting, in the traditional way.
The Goodyear Welt construction means that when the sole is worn out, the shoe can be taken apart and resoled. Sustainable shoes indeed, how eco-friendly is this? Church is no longer owned by the Church family, as they sold the company to Prada Holding in 1999. A blemish on a proud history, though I’m sure it made sense at the time.
Leather soles showing a little wear. Would appreciate tips on what upgrades might be proper!
In any case, I couldn’t possibly put these shoes back on the shelf, so 25 pounds (!) changed owner and they came home with me. Closer study shows almost no wear at all, as far as I can tell they’ve not even had a good polishing yet. The soles show some wear from outdoors use, though not much. Wearing them around the house yesterday I did notice how incredibly slippy the leather soles are. Perhaps I can have something added in durable rubber? Maybe not a full commando-style resoling, but a little grip and added durability would be nice.
From the tomb of Tutankhamon, or the inside of a traditionally handmade British shoe?
The hieroglyphics inside the shoe intrigue me. Most likely they only give the specifications and serial number of the show, but those unreadable scribblings are certainly cryptic. Any code breakers out there?
Plenty of brogueing all the way round!
Oh, and I almost forgot. Why did I title this post “A pair of brogues with my name on them”? Well, trying to find out a bit more about these brogues, I asked for help on Twitter. Almost immediately a helpful chap replied that they were the “Chetwynd” model from Church. A 390 pound pair of shoes. Chetwynd? Well, that’s our family name on my mothers side, a generation or two back! Hardly a common name either. So these shoes did actually have my name on them. How bloody marvellous is that?
And after an application of Bear Creme and a quick buff, this is how they look!
I have previously written about my great-great-grandfather Joseph Chetwynd, a mining hero of his day.
I’ve written about the next step for my lucky brogues, where they fly back to England for a some loving attention from the Shoe Healer in Nottingham. Read about how they were resoled in this post!
Church, from Nottingham to London, to Paris and New York. Quality travels!
Great story…the fact that you can even trace the name of the model to your ancestors is priceless.
Thanks Antoine!
That’s a score there chap.
I’d dismiss the leather sole forthwith and get them resoled with a good Danite rubber sole. Tis the best sole about imo. Super durable, good grip and they look fantastic.
http://www.dainite.com/flash.html
They aren’t too common either which just adds to their allure.
Dainite certainly looks the business. I will start searching for a shoemaker that can offer me a Dainite resole! Excellent tip, chap!
You found Church’s brogues in a second hand shop! Surely only in Scandinavia 🙂
I thought I was doing well with my £8 Loakes I found in a Glasgow Oxfam.
Is that Hebrew? Could they have been sold somewhere in the middle east?
It ‘s not Hebrew…the model’s name is there. Some have ledger/batch reference.
Whoa what a find mate, I’m so glad you didn’t leave these on the shelf. Churches are for sure the real deal. I’ve been past their factory actually, on my way to the Grenson factory.
So how come brogues are so common where you are then?
Buckets & Spades
To be honest, they’re not at all common here! At least not proper ones like Church. The cheap, modern fashion brogues are all over the shops, though seem to have a hard time finding buyers. Me finding the Churches was almost an act of higher powers!
[…] used the Bear Creme on my Red Wings with good effect now, and have also applied some to both my lucky brogues and another pair of brogues. It smells terrific (so much so that WellDressedGirlfriend asked me to […]
[…] there is nothing worthwhile there, but on a rare occasion I will strike gold, like when I found my lucky brogues a few months […]
A great shoe to find, I always consider to buy a pair of these brand new, as I love the James Bond connection, as well at the shoes themselves!
http://www.jamesbondlifestyle.com/product/churchs-chetwynd
Fantastic find! Congratulations!
Since the insignia on the insoles of the shoes do not carry the word “Milan”, and that the front part of the shoes are linen lined, there’s a high possibility that the shoes were made pre the acquisition by Prada. A lot of people think that Church’s quality has gone downhill afterwards, so very very nice.
And I hope that you did not resole them with Dainite- that would be a bloody waste of an excellent pair of leather shoes
Thank! And do read on, as I did indeed resole them! 🙂
Great story – I’ve had two similar experiences recently via eBay. The first a pair of Vintage, barely worn, Crup/Cordovan Church’s that look like today’s Grafton. I don’t think the seller realised they were Cordovan – I didn’t either until I inspected them. Only 3 weeks before I’d paid a ridiculous amount for some brand new Alden Cordovan Wing Tips – the most beautiful shoes I’ll probably ever own but the Church’s I like almost as much.
Can I ask if you deliberately darkened your Church’s. The second pair I’ve bought are almost identical to yours – they’re Brisbane which I understand were replaced by Chetwynd. I prefer the darker shade and wonder if your Bear Cream did that or it’s just a trick of the light?
This is interesting to me as my Grafton Triple Welts I also think are a bit too light.
Thanks
A question
No deliberare darkening, but I suspect the leather was a little dry when I got them. The bear creme does penetrate and soften, which will darken the leather though. To my mind much better for maintenance than just adding a wax coating to the outside.
Hieroglyphics:
85 – the size in UK sizes, is 8.5
H is the width
The next text is the last it was made on, but I cant decipher that
The last line of the 4 is Chetwynd, the style.
Thank you!