Ghillie Brogues: just for formal wear

[Tobus]

Stevie dig these.
I am a bit of a shoe whore and these are on my list.
BRAEMAR-5597B-A.jpg

I bought a pair of these (Sanders & Sanders "Braemar" brogues) several years ago. They're very good shoes. I wear them with normal trouser-based dress as well as with my kilt. They're appropriate for all levels of daywear. They're not really a formal evening shoe, though. The soles are very thick leather, and very stiff. They take quite a long time to break in. The uppers are pretty thick too, although they have a soft feel. It took a long time for me to get the polish to work, since the upper was a bit "sticky" (for lack of a better term). They definitely aren't made with a glossy finish that readily accepts polish. But after several repetitions with polishing and buffing, and wearing them in between, it finally started to work. The pebble texture tends to smooth out over time, the more you polish and buff the shoe. They will still keep the pebble texture on most of the shoe, but the toe area really starts to smooth out and shine.

I remember well when I went to buy my first pair, back around 1976. The vendor carried Keltic brand ghillies, and explained to me that they came in two styles, a heavy one made of thick leather, and a lighter one made of soft thin leather. The lighter, softer ones were NOT dance ghillies. Both styles had soles and heels like any dress shoe.

Anyhow I bought the lighter softer ones (paid IIRC $70, a lot of money in 1976) and they were just about the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn. I wore them regularly for around 30 years, when, after being resoled a half-dozen times, it was finally time to retire them. I switched to my "new" ghillies, an identical pair of Keltics I purchased in the 1980s. After several resolings these also had to be retired, a few months ago. I wish I could get their like now!

I snagged a vintage pair of Keltics ("The Scottish Shoe") from eBay a while back, and I have to agree. These are wonderful shoes. Mine are the thinner ones like you described. I wish they still made these! I've never worn them with the ghillie-style laces, though. I put on regular shoe laces, and they work fine. I can always lace them ghillie-style later if for some reason I want to (which isn't likely).

Mine were in pretty rough condition when I bought them, all scuffed up and permanently creased on the top. They have that well worn-in look. But you can see below, when comparing to the other shoes I showed above, how much thinner the soles are and the heel is not as tall either. I actually prefer these shoes because they don't feel as "clunky".