What One Guy’s Buying on eBay: Carmina shoes

I would estimate that for 99% of readers of this post, a pair of Carmina laceups would be the best shoes in your closet.  I would say that they’re the best shoes in mine.  I would further estimate that 99% of the readers of this post have never even heard of Carmina.  That’s partly the point of this series of posts – bringing to light little known makers of the highest quality goods.

Whereas, in my initial ‘What One Guy’s Buying on eBay’ post, I talked about Martin Dingman (a cursory search of eBay will turn up over 100 listings), this post focuses on a much rarer beast.  eBay can often go for a month with only one Carmina shoe listing in one size; yet, when your number is called (i.e. your size becomes available at a good price), I can’t recommend more that you pounce on them.  For example, there’s a pair of Carmina shoes on eBay at this very moment, in size 7.5US that are amongst the most elegant shoes I’ve encountered (the listing can be found here).  Judge for yourself, they’re the same shoes as are pictured above, except in brown.  At the time of this post, the current bid is $102 (no reserve), with a Buy It Now price of $250.  While $250 may seem like a bit of an investment, keep in mind that ‘The Armoury’ men’s store in Hong Kong, one of the only places online to purchase Carmina shoes, has these precise shoes for sale at a cost of HK$4,500 (or, nearly $600 Canadian), and these shoes will last a lifetime with proper care.  Sometimes Carmina shoes are listed at higher prices – but quite regularly a diamond in the rough will appear.

Shoes, like watches, are one of society’s (and, more importantly, women’s) clearest identifiers of social status and taste.  So, when the opportunity to thrust your shoe wardrobe into the upper reaches of the social strata for $200 appears, DON’T HESITATE – JUMP ON THE CHANCE!

Also, I’d be remiss not to point you to The Armoury’s online store and website at thearmoury.com.  If you can’t quite track down the pair of Carminas you’re looking for on eBay, than this Hong Kong store is likely your best bet.  Beyond that, their website is well worth a perusal as they sell some of the finest men’s clothing and accessories in the world (Drakes ties, Fox Umbrellas, John Smedley knitwear, to go along with stunning tailored clothes) and their Tumblr site may just be my favourite place online right now for men’s style photography: thearmoury.tumblr.com. 

Thanks for reading and please feel free to add comments below, email me at oneguysstyle@gmail.com, or follow me on Twitter, @oneguysstyle.   For the first installment of the ‘What One Guy’s Buying on eBay’ series, please check out my post on Martin Dingman belts here.

Corporate Style: Part 2 – The Shoes

In my last post, I mentioned that the business wardrobe has two anchors, suits and shoes. Suits are like Chris Bosh; important but nonetheless subtly overrated. Shoes on the other hand are like Manu Ginobli; people understand their importance at some level and yet they are highly underrated.

You will need a minimum of two pairs of shoes. There are a number of reasons for this, both practical and stylistic. First, it is extremely hard on a pair of shoes to wear them on back-to-back days. Some time apart from your feet in shoe trees are integral for them to last and stay looking their best. The second is that you will need a pair in black and a pair in dark brown. A running theme in dressing for business is trending towards dark items of clothing as dark clothing (other than with dress shirts) connotes formality. Thus, one’s first few pairs of brown shoes should be dark brown and not some of the lighter shades that are often available. In addition, these first two pair of dress shoes ought to be lace-ups as they are far more versatile than loafers. This versatility stems from their ability to be dressed-up while still looking cool with a pair of jeans on the weekend. Finally, shoes are the one item of clothing that is difficult to take short-cuts with in terms of cost. There is an incredible difference between cheap shoes and nice shoes and these tend to be readily obvious to just about anyone. Many women even suggest that shoes provide a barometer for them in terms of determining a man’s socioeconomic status. In the same way that fit is the first thing that people notice about suits, quality is the first with shoes and thus is important to buy, at the very least, one pair of good black shoes. Finally, under no circumstances should you purchase square-toed shoes. There was a brief time almost a decade ago where this style had a moment. However, one should never strive to be trendy in one’s business footwear; it is far better to buy a versatile and traditional pair of dress shoes with a rounded toe.