Hand Welted Shoes For Under $600! | Yeossal Shoe Review | Kirby Allison

Hi i’m kirby allison and welcome to our Youtube channel In today’s video i’m very excited to Review this new pair of shoes out of Singapore From a brand called usol i’m kirby Allison And i love helping the well-dressed Acquire and care for their wardrobes Join me as we explore the world of Quality craftsmanship And tradition [Music] Usol is an exclusive luxury menswear Boutique based in singapore Offering a curated collection of Menswear products They’ve built out a niche working with Leading manufacturers and menswear Brands As well as offering apparel and footwill They design and have made themselves Their brand of usol shoes are part of a New category Of made in china hand-welted shoes it’s A fascinating development in the space Of shoemaking Not all that different to what happened To tailoring in the last 15 to 20 years Although lacking the provenance and Experience of english shoemakers The chinese can no doubt copy and Reproduce products quite effectively For a fraction of the price of similar

Products made in western countries For those that appreciate the quality And craftsmanship of fine footwear But might not have the budget to splurge On anything bespoke or made in england Brands like eurosol represent an Interesting option For around 600 dollars you can acquire a Pretty well made pair of hand welted Shoes These shoes were actually ordered by our Resident shoe shiner caleb malinowski So these are an actual pair of customer Shoes not Samples like most brands send us and Were purchased So in today’s video i’ll walk you Through unboxing these beautiful Shoes and telling you what i think so First uso was Very nice to send me one of their knit Polos You can see this here again these friday Polos i really enjoy these because it’s Great for the weekend you can even wear Them under a jacket So an interesting characteristic of this Polo is the cooper collar Which is a one piece collar it’s very Difficult to make if it’s not done Properly it’s going to be totally Scrapped and remade what i love about This is the seamless Continuous line kind of on the inside of

The collar as this rolls up And around another interesting feature Here is the hidden button It’s done with a piece of elastic and Again one of the challenges with most Polo knits again is the control of the Collar Since it’s not being controlled with a Tie typically they’re worn open not Buttoned Often times it produces a difficult to Control collar that can be flopping all Over the place So this actually fits down nice quite Nicely with that button down And then just looking at it looks like It has a nice roll i haven’t put this on Yet but i’m interested to try it out This weekend beautiful mother of pearl Buttons and kind of an Izaya-esque button pattern here and how That’s sewn So anyway thank you guys i appreciate This now let’s get on to the exciting Part the shoes Now you can see the packaging from usol Is very nice i mean this is a hefty Shoe box very sturdy very well made And you know for those that don’t have Shelves in their closets to store their Shoes This is actually a pretty handy feature In that This can be stacked and then pulled out

Quite easily so let’s take a look at These shoes and see what we have Jar of saphir medaille d’or always a Great accessory for your shoes of course Those Here in the united states and remember That you can buy all of your saphir Medaille d’or from us here at kirby Allison So very nice packaging nice kind of soft Shoe bags A nice touch again with us all kind of Printed on this But let’s take a look at the shoes so First i mean very interesting you can See That the shoes are delivered with a Round waxed Laces but a nice little touch is that They include a pair of flat waxed laces Also And these are pretty narrow which is Actually something that i like We’ve spent a lot of work developing our Own collection of wellington shoelaces And we have a narrow flat waxed lace That in many ways i think is In fact more formal than a round waxed Lace so it’s a nice touch I would probably put the narrow flat Waxed Laces on these shoes and it’s nice to Have both options Usol’s mto program offers quite a bit of

Customization options to the customer Unlike most brand mto programs which Offer a standard make and style Normally unique to the house but only The option to customize the leather and Finishing details Usol basically allows almost anything About the shoe to be customized during The mto process You of course can choose the leather and The finish but in addition to that You can choose the waist design whether It’s fiddleback or beveled The sole shape whether or not it’s a Standard silhouette or Spade and the heel taper whether or not It is tapered which means that it comes In Slightly at a pitch or straight these Particular thompson shoes were made with The beveled waist Standard silhouette outsole shape and Tapered heel So the thompson is a traditional split Toe derby which is a more casual shoe It’s a split toe you can see it right Here and what i like about this split Toe is it’s an invisible seam Which still has the subtle visual Aesthetic of a split toe But doesn’t have the stronger kind of Separation if this was sewn together the Same way the apron is Another characteristic of this

Particular shoe of course is the hand Sewn apron Which is one of those more nuanced Details that just gives more Visual texture and characteristic to the Apron itself It’s a derby which means that it has Open lacing which is characteristic of a More casual shoe Versus an oxford with this closed lacing Now this is Something that simply just allows the Shoe to accommodate Really a greater variety of sock Thicknesses Now the stitching and everything about How these shoes are made Is really very well executed from of Course the hand stitched apron The split toe you know the beautiful Kind of high Density stitching here along the neck of The shoe Even the last shape you can see there’s Quite a bit of shape in the last itself It’s a very beautiful design it’s very Well made and this particular finish Again is very nice i like the hatch Grain again for visual texture for a More casual shoe I think it’s a great characteristic this Same shoe and a suede would look Exceptional But then also looking at the bottom

Finishing you really see kind of the Characteristics of that hand welted shoe Come out So first it’s a beautifully finished Outsole nice kind of bevel here Great kind of narrow tight waist and Shape beautiful heel stack The only kind of criticism i would have Here is that the pitch is a little too High this almost looks like a cuban heel Or a cowboy Heel i like the pitch detail you see This on a bunch of bespoke shoes and Anthony cleverly Gives a little bit of shape as the heel Pitches in But i’d say that the pitch here you know Looks to be almost Half a centimeter so that’s a little bit Too much i’d probably fix that during a Resoling Or if i was ordering these uh order it Without the pitch a more standard kind Of traditional heel shape Now you can see here the outsoles again Are very well finished with invisible Channel stitching It’s one of those more nuanced Characteristics of shoemaking That i particularly enjoy because what It leaves you is just a very well Finished And really beautifully finished outsole It’s something that really nobody sees

But whenever you handle a pair of shoes You turn them upside down And you see that beautiful finishing to Me this is something i love about a Well-made pair of shoes Now one of the other characteristics Very unique to us all and really one of Their primary selling Points is the fact that all of their Shoes are hand lasted And hand welted now what does that mean Well let’s first start at kind of the Hand welting Now most traditional dress shoes are Goodyear welted And that is a machine made process that Basically Has a linen rib that attaches to the Insole To which the welt is then sewn by a very Special goodyear welting machine and It’s that rib That welt that really forms the you know The spine of the entire shoe It’s what holds together all the Different layers of material that are Used to make it Now in the hand welting process what is Done is basically a channel is carved Into the insole so instead of having That linen rib that Is glued instead someone by hand is kind Of carving out the leather Of the insole through which that welt is

Then sewn by hand Now traditionally this is a hallmark of A pair of bespoke shoes Very rarely do you see anything hand Welted made to order Or ready to wear just because it’s a Cost prohibitive Has to be done by hand it’s the only way It can be done And so therefore it’s really been that Mark of quality That is always separated bespoke for Most Factory made and ready to wear shoes It’s the moat if you will Now with these very interesting brands That have begun to kind of pop up You see that that moat is really being Bridged and now For as little as six hundred dollars you Can access at hand welting craftsmanship Without having to spend several thousand Dollars Now what does hand welting get you well It’s a very nuanced characteristic and It really kind of comes down Probably to the craftsmanship more than Anyone else but as someone that owns Several pairs of bespoke shoes I can tell you that there definitely is A difference in the comfort of a hand Welted pair of shoes Versus a goodyear welted pair now it’s Not to say

That it’s night or day it really exists Kind of on the margin And is very very nuanced if you will But i find that a hand welted pair of Shoes sits lower to the ground There’s less room in between the insole And the outsole To do that welt stitching and that makes A shoe that really just is more Responsive You sit lower to the ground it’s more Flexible And at the end of the day more Comfortable now a shoemaker will tell You That also there’s a greater degree of Durability because instead of having That ribbing glued to the insole which Presumably After years or decades of wear and Exposure to water could come unglued With hand welting it’s totally sewn by Hand with a lock stitch So even if one stitch of that hand welt Were to break The entire kind of chain of stitching Wouldn’t unravel So it’s an interesting characteristic It’s something that of course as you’re Wearing these shoes Nobody else is going to know about but If you’re someone that really Appreciates that nuanced Kind of elements of quality and

Craftsmanship that separate really well Made Shoes from the rest is certainly Something to consider Now on this particular pair of shoes the Hatch grain leather is actually from Horween And so usol again is really acquiring Their upper leather from some of the Finest leather tanneries available in The world so This particular is from horween it’s not Cordovan but horween does Other leathers and then cordovan and Then they also source A lot of their uppers from kind of the Standard french And even italian tanneries so the Finishing really is exceptional here I mean there’s a very high stitch Density here and so after that welt Is sewn on to the shoe that’s holding Really all the uppers together The stitch density or how many stitches Per inch that’s being used To sew that outsole to the welt is again One of those Nuanced elements of finish you know a Pair of allen edmonds Might have four stitches per inch so They’re pretty large stitches And then a shoe like this it could be Pushing eight to ten stitches per inch The higher the stitch density just the

Higher degree of kind of visual Finishing you have to the shoe itself The welt is trimmed in very nicely It’s got a great shape and the shoe Itself Really has exceptional last definition And that comes down To the hand lasting which is another Characteristic that for this price point Really separates these shoes apart from Other shoes The hand lasting is the process by which Once all of the upper is sewn together You’ve got the last insert inserted into The shoe All of those layers are kind of pulled Back and nailed to that outsole Now that’s important because it gives All this definition that kind of Three-dimensional shape to the shoe Itself And so one of the things i like to do is Something called the pencil test right And again if you take the pencil and Just drop it down kind of right here At the arch you can see how much shape Is worked into the shoe i mean there’s Easily over a centimeter of separation Here And so not only is that by virtue of a Very narrow waist Right and so by that i mean this kind of Tapers in quite nicely But it’s also a function of that last

Definition how well that leather is Really pulled Around and under that last to give it Its shape So you can see these shoes really have Excellent shape and i’d say that you Know for six hundred dollars it’s a Very excellently made shoe my only Criticism of this particular shoe Would just be the pitch of the heel and This is really Kind of a technical characteristic that Should be fixed by usol I mean again this is more of a cuban Heel and doesn’t have That you know one to two millimeter Pitch that you really find On a properly pitched kind of bespoke Heel one of the other characteristics is That for 600 It comes with a fully lasted pair of Shoe trees that means that the shape of The shoe tree Is actually modeled after the shape of The last around which the shoe is built It’s not a generic shape it is specific To this particular Last style the shape of the shoe the toe Shape And also the size and so again You know typically uh you know if you Were to buy a pair of lasted pair of Shoe trees from an english manufacturer You know you’re looking at easily a

Hundred fifty two hundred dollars Uh and so for six hundred dollars to Have a um A shoe made uh to this standard a hand Welted Hand last with a fully lasted pair of Shoe trees Really is an exceptional deal so it’s an Interesting kind of new entrant Into the world of shoemaking again this Really kind of represents a whole New category of shoes i mean of course We all know English made shoes even the factory made Goodyear welted shoes exceptional Quality From 100 plus year old firms incredible Provenance And and heritage and really just Accumulated knowledge Of course we’ve seen shoes you know go To italy a little bit of a different Style Slightly more casual blake stitched not Goodyear welted a lot of cementing But again exceptional may shoes and a Style that is very particular And very unique to italy and then we’ve Seen a lot of shoes done Out of portugal out of spain out of Mallorca That brought kind of that factory made Goodyear welted Level of craftsmanship and brought it

Down in price point From something uh from 1200 to 1600 like What you’d buy from an edward green or Gaziano and girling To really the 4 to 600 range which again Is a fantastic value For the quality of shoe that you’re Getting and now just like with tailoring We’ve seen these processes shipped Offshore To the eastern countries china to be Particular where they’ve been able to Really reverse engineer And learn those techniques and bring Them down market if you will in terms of A price point to something that is Really accessible by so many More people so usol is actually the First pair of shoes that i’ve seen Again kind of made in china but Hand welted and i actually have another Pair of shoes that are being made right Now and sampled That we’ll be reviewing for you Hopefully not before long on this Channel Now usol shoes can be purchased from Usol’s website You can see the link to their website in The description of this video They have a very straightforward process For commissioning a pair of made to Order shoes I think they require just a 50 deposit

And then the shoes are ready in about Three to four months If you have any questions or comments About these shoes let me know in the Comments section below And also i’d be very interested to hear What you think about this new trend in Shoemaking Where you find that these english Shoemaking techniques are kind of being Transplanted to china And are being done in china for a Fraction of the cost of what it would Cost to have that same pair of shoes Made in england So let’s talk a little bit about how These shoes can be worn Again what i love about a nice brown Pair of split toe derbies is that This really is a a casual shoe Now it’s on the formal end of casual Right it’s a hatch grain Leather i guess a suede might be even More casual but if you just want to look At it from a high level perspective it’s A lot more formal Even on the casual side than say a pair Of sneakers so if you’re looking to Dress casually but still want to look Smart A pair of split toe derbies are an Excellent pair of shoes to add your Wardrobe Now there’s a few different ways that

You can wear this and we’ve got some Photographs of caleb Kind of modeling these shoes a few Different ways you can see that We actually have a jacket here this was Made by David and joe hemrajani out of a Beautiful Houndstooth that has great visual Texture patch pockets And again this jacket with either a polo Like the one That you saw sent or even a button-up Shirt with no tie A pair of odd trousers really would look Exceptional And a outfit like this really looks best With a casual pair of shoes Now you could get away with the brown Pair of oxfords but Again a brown hat grain pair of split Toe derbies Is really such a beautiful and elegant Shoe for a casual outfit like this And you don’t even have to wear a pair Of shoes like this with a tailored Jacket You can even get away with a pair of Jeans no jacket at all Or a nice casual kind of suede bomber Like this photograph of caleb right here One of the other things i like about a Pair of dark brown shoes Is the versatility and that you can wear

Them slightly Less formally as we just described but You can also wear this with a jacket and Tie These dark brown shoes would look great With a pair of gray trousers White shirt and navy hop sack jacket and A tie So again a pair of shoes like this can Just as easily be worn Into the office slightly more casually Than a black or a dark brown pair of cap Toe oxfords But can certainly be pulled off so great Shoes fun to take a look at these thank You to caleb For letting us review these before he Wore them of course check out usol’s Website You can google them or click the link in The description of this video of course They have a great instagram page that You can follow also If this is your first time to the Channel make sure you hit that red Subscribe button So that you can learn whenever we Publish new videos and here on this Channel you’ll find fantastic tutorials On how to care for your garments How to shine your shoes but also travel Videos as we Explore the world in search of some of The best craftsmanship anywhere in the

World I’m kirby allison and i love to help the Well-dressed acquire and care for their Wardrobes While exploring the world of quality Craftsmanship and tradition Thanks for watching