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Oxfords
& Derbys
These
are two terms that signify the construction of a shoe:
--The Oxford is constructed by laying the toe over the vamp (the
vamp is the part of the shoe over the ball of the foot) and then
laying the vamp over the middle of the shoe. This will result
in a Balmoral style shoe.
--The Derby is constructed by laying both the toe cap or wing
and the "Quarter" (the middle part of the shoe that
holds the facing with the eyelets for the shoelaces) over the
vamp. This will result in a Blucher style shoe.
Spectators
Spectator
refers to two contrasting tones being used in the design of the
shoe. Two-tone wingtips and captoes are refered to as being Spectators.
Spectator shoes were associated with Jazz musicians during the
1920's and 1930's and are used today for dressy and festive occasions
in Latino and African American communities and by dancers and
musicians reviving the classic styles of the Jazz and Swing eras.
Saddle
Shoes
A
Saddle Shoe is usually made in a lighter tone (white or tan)
with a piece of leather sewn across the middle top of the shoe
down to the sole that is reminiscent of the saddle on a horse.
The "Saddle" part is traditionally darker than the
rest of the shoe (black, brown or red).
 Wedges
or Wedgies
Popular
in the 1940's and revived in the 1970's these are women's shoes,
often open toed and open backed, that have a one-piece sole that
is shaped like a wedge. They can be slip on, lace up or buckled.
Click here to see how
to properly size your heel on a Wedge.
Loafers
and Moccasins
Loafers
and Moccasins are slip-on shoes usually with rounded fronts that
are built more for comfort than style. Often the entire shoe
is constructed from just 2 pieces of leather which form a bag-like
shoe that consists of a bowl shaped piece of leather that has
an "apron" of leather sewn to the top front.
Venetian
Loafers
A
loafer that has no ornamentation across the middle (nothing to
put a penny in).
 Moc Toe
Laced
shoes that have construction on the vamp and toe similar to moccasins
- but are not slip-ons. Dress shoes and work boots often have
this construction.
Mary
Janes
Women's
shoes that have a strap across the middle to hold the shoe on
the foot.
Pumps
Women's
shoes that slip on. Normally they are dress shoes and have a
closed toe and sides.
Nappa,
Patent, Suede & Nubuck
--Nappa
Leather is the smooth, slightly shiny leather found on most dress
shoes.
--Patent Leather is Nappa Leather that has been coated with a
resin varnish and heated to form a shiny mirror-like finish (modern
patent is often plastic or plastic-coated leather).
--Suede is leather that has been sanded to a nappy finish.
--Nubuck (or Nubuc) refers to leather that has been "bucked"
or brushed to a velvety nap. Similar to suede, but finer, so
that it feels chamois-like on the surface.
Flats
A
Flat is a women's shoe with no heel.
Platform
A
Platform refers to a shoe with a thickened sole that is literally
a plaform under the shoe.
Slingbacks,
Mules & Slides
A
Slingback is a women's shoe with a strap going around the heel.
A Mule is a women's shoe with no back.
A Slide is a Mule that is constructed with just one piece of
fabric going over the foot - open toed.
PARTS
& PROCESSES
Peeptoes,
Cutouts & Cutwork
Peeptoe
refers to a shoe with an open toe, usually cut out rounded or
V-shaped.
Cutouts generally refers to any large openings on the sides of
women's footwear and the edges of cutouts are often finished
with stitching or a "bead" of material.
Cutwork generally refers to stencil-like designs cut into women's
footwear, usually on the front or top side of the shoe.
Suede
vs. Chrome Leather Soles
Leather
for shoes can be preserved through vegetable tanning (often oak,
spruce, mimosa, mangrove or acorns), or can be tanned with Mineral
Salts. Vegetable tanned leather is yellowish or beige in color,
while salt tanned leather is greyish-blue.
The
soles and lining of most leather shoes are made with vegetable
tanned leather, but the bottoms of many dance shoes are finished
with Suede that has been tanned with Chromium Salts, hence the
term "Chrome Leather". This is thought to make the
suede bottoms more durable.
It
is the opinion of the folks at Aris Allen (from years of in-the-field
testing) that there isn't a whole lot of difference, except that
regular suede can pick up and retain more dirt from the floor
and will get almost mirror-like on the bottom, making it easier
to slide and spin while dancing! (we agree).
Suede,
Nubuck, Nappa, Patent
All
finishes used on leather. Suede is vegetable tanned leather that
has a rough nap. Nubuck is similar to suede, but much finer and
velvety. A Nappa finish is shiny, but not too shiny, what one
might call regular shoe leather. Patent is see-your-face-in-it
shiny; a process that originally involved applying a linseed
oil based dressing (we have also heard of using a resin coating
and baking it to a high-gloss finish). Nowadays patent is often
achieved by coating the leather with plastic. Most patent footwear
is actually just plastic.
Bespoke
Like
clothing, most shoes are hand made. Bespoke refers to custom-made
one-at-a-time footwear - often the shoe maker will keep the last
that was custom made for the customer in their shop, expecting
that they will order another pair. The term Bespoke is also used
to describe custom made clothing.
Gimping
The
zig-zag crocodile teeth style of cutting on the edge of some
shoes is called Gimping. It is machine cut, much like a sewing
machine and serves not only as a decoration, but to make weakly
cut edges more palatable. Also called pinking or saw-toothed.
The
Welt
The
Welt is a strip of leather that is sewn to the outside of the
bottom part of the uppers and then bent outward and sewn onto
the top outside of the sole. If the shoe is sewn directly to
the sole, the part of the sole that sticks out around the shoe
can be refered to as the Welt.
It
is very difficult to dance in shoes with a thick or strong welt,
as going up on the toes or leaning to either side will cause
a "dancing on snow shoes" effect that minimizes your
ability to feel the floor. Men's ballroom shoes traditionally
are made with no sole sticking out at all and because of this
can have a rather feminine look.
French
Binding
Describes
the finish on the top (topline) of a shoe made by sewing a strip
of fabric ßalong it. Aris Allen Women's Oxfords have this finish. It is rarely used
on modern shoes.
Shank
Spring
A
steel Spring or Shank is inserted between the insole and the
sole of the shoe and gives the shoe support and keeps the heel
from wobbling. It is not spiral, rather it is flat and has a
ridge in it to give it extra stability.
Aglet
An
Aglet is the protective tip on the end of a shoelace.
The
Last
A
shape or form, usually made of wood (often oak or hornbeam),
that represents the space inside a shoe. It is used (upside down
- heel up) to construct the shoe and give it shape.
A
simplified explanation of footwear construction:
After the upper has been sewn (it often looks like a hat worn
by poker dealers - with a bill & a strap in the back) the
shoe is finished by placing the upper around the last, pulling
it with pliers until it's tight, hammering tacks into the last
to hold it in place (that's why lasts are wood) and then hammering
the upper until it conforms to the shape of the last. The bottom
edges of the shoe are then trimmed (and for welted footwear,
the welt is sewn on) and the sole is glued and sewn to the upper.
After the glue dries, the last is then pulled out so the footbed
(or insole) can be inserted. No matter what fancy designs you
make on the upper, the last determines how good or bad a shoe
will look, much the same way clothes fit... if they fit funny,
it doesn't matter what color or material your shirt or pants
are, they will still just look terrible. And if you have an ugly
last, the shoe can be made of the finest materials and fanciest
design and still be ugly!
Before
the Middle Ages, shoemakers made individual lasts for the left
and right foot. During the Middle Ages, this practice was lost
and most shoes weren't even made on a last. If a last was used
it was usually the same one for both the left and right shoes.
At the beginning of the 1800's the asymmetrical last regained
favor and shoes fit much better than before.
Re-dyeing
shoes
Your
local cobbler can dye existing shoes any color you wish. The
process that's used when done propperly is to strip the existing
color off with acid - right down to the grey leather, then apply
the color you want. After shining, it is virtually impossible
to tell that the new color wasn't the original. We have seen
this done to a black pair of captoes that the owner wanted white.
IM-properly done is when you buy a bottle of shoe dye and apply
it to your shoes and it cracks after it dries when you walk in
them.
Stretching
shoes
Shoes
can be stretched by a cobbler who inserts a shoe stretcher into
the shoe, moistens the upper and turns a screw which opens the
stretcher to widen the shoe. It is stretched for a period between
a few minutes to overnight.
Sizing
shoes
Why
doesn't everybody know their exact shoe size? First, because
there is no standard global system - you can wear one size in
Europe, a different one in Australia, also different number sizes
in Asia, the U.S. and in England. Second, because of a practice
as old as the village shoemaker and his own personal size numbering
system, big companies today (mostly athletic footwear manufacturers)
will inspire customer loyalty by making sure their sizing system
doesn't exactly match anyone else's sizing. Aris Allen is not so proprietary! They strive
to make sure their sizing matches closely to the big dress shoe
manufacturer's system of making sure you fit the same size in
any brand.
Shoemakers
& Cobblers
Shoemakers
make shoes, Cobblers fix them.
Disclaimer
The
author of this little shoe terms compendium has only been in
the shoemaking business since the mid-1990's and is not an expert
in the field and has simplified most of the terms for brevity
and simplicity's sake. It is not meant to be the last word on
the subject.
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Wingtip
Captoe
A Medallion is that
little doohickey on the toe of many fancy dress shoes and is
always symmetrical. It is made by punching small holes in the
shoe.
Brougeing or "Perforations"
refers to the holes in shoes that make an ordinary shoe look
snazzy.
A Balmoral (or "Bal")
refers to the way an Oxford style shoe ties up. See the upside-down
T to the right? The horizontal line on the T is a good representation
of the way a Balmoral is sewn at the bottom of the lace-up area.
See [A] in the photo below. A Bal is far less adjustable than
a Blucher because the bottom of the lace-up part of the shoe
is sewn down, so the part of the shoe around the ball of the
foot can only be one circumference and cannot be adjusted smaller
or larger.
A Blucher refers
to the way a Derby style shoe ties up. See the brackets to the
right? That is a good representation of the way a Blucher acts.
A Blucher is far more adjustable than a Balmoral because the
bottom of the lace-up part of the shoe is not sewn down, so it
can be pulled tight or left more open in the area around the
ball of the foot. See [B] in the photo below.
