Black brogueing is a quiet argument with itself. Punch a hundred holes into a black shoe and from three paces you see texture rather than pattern, which is exactly what makes a black brogue easier to live with than a plain black Oxford. The Duke is the full-brogue version, a winged toe cap with a medallion punched into it and perforation down every seam, so it is formal enough for a Monday and has just enough happening to survive a Saturday. The closed lacing keeps the line clean and the punching does the rest.
It sits under charcoal, navy and mid-grey, and it will carry a dark suit at a wedding without looking funereal. For a genuinely sombre occasion, an unperforated cap is still the better answer.
The run is short and it starts high: UK 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12, whole sizes only. There are no half sizes anywhere and nothing below an 8, so a 7.5 foot has nowhere to go here. F is the standard fitting across John White's range, so an 8 elsewhere is an 8 in this.
During the Second World War the firm supplied eight million pairs to the British forces, something close to one pair in every nine. It is a startling figure for a business that had only existed since 1919. The shoes are designed in Northamptonshire still and made now by partner factories. What John White publish for the Duke is a classic black calf upper over a cushioned inner sole and a rubber sole, and no construction type, so we claim none: only the Foster, Sergeant and Turner carry a welt we can verify. The Duke in brown is down to its last two sizes.
Care: Wax the cap and the heel in thin layers and let each one dry properly before the next. Brush the punching out every time, since wax that sets in the holes turns the pattern into a smudge. Trees after every wear and forty-eight hours between outings if you can manage it.
You can ask any question about this product.
Our specialists will answer you shortly!
Black brogueing is a quiet argument with itself. Punch a hundred holes into a black shoe and from three paces you see texture rather than pattern, which is exactly what makes a black brogue easier to live with than a plain black Oxford. The Duke is the full-brogue version, a winged toe cap with a medallion punched into it and perforation down every seam, so it is formal enough for a Monday and has just enough happening to survive a Saturday. The closed lacing keeps the line clean and the punching does the rest.
It sits under charcoal, navy and mid-grey, and it will carry a dark suit at a wedding without looking funereal. For a genuinely sombre occasion, an unperforated cap is still the better answer.
The run is short and it starts high: UK 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12, whole sizes only. There are no half sizes anywhere and nothing below an 8, so a 7.5 foot has nowhere to go here. F is the standard fitting across John White's range, so an 8 elsewhere is an 8 in this.
During the Second World War the firm supplied eight million pairs to the British forces, something close to one pair in every nine. It is a startling figure for a business that had only existed since 1919. The shoes are designed in Northamptonshire still and made now by partner factories. What John White publish for the Duke is a classic black calf upper over a cushioned inner sole and a rubber sole, and no construction type, so we claim none: only the Foster, Sergeant and Turner carry a welt we can verify. The Duke in brown is down to its last two sizes.
Care: Wax the cap and the heel in thin layers and let each one dry properly before the next. Brush the punching out every time, since wax that sets in the holes turns the pattern into a smudge. Trees after every wear and forty-eight hours between outings if you can manage it.
You can ask any question about this product.
Our specialists will answer you shortly!
