The nearest I am likely to approach to Heaven in this life is the acquisition of bespoke footwear from George Cleverley & Co. When I go to the shop in The Royal Arcade, just off London’s Bond Street, I go as a pilgrim to a shrine. I seek miracles, for I know others have found them here, and I too have found them at the altar where leather is transformed into Art. Redemption is bestowed by Beauty. So, with such ecclesiastical concepts swirling in my mind, it was appropriate that now I should seek a pair of Pontifical Shoes.
The Church has had two thousand years to perfect its colours. And so it bears witness to the combination which stirs the heart more than any other: red and purple. These are the pontifical colours. The word pontiff derives from the Latin pontifex, bridge-builder, one
who builds the bridge between Heaven and earth. The cassock of a pontiff who is a cardinal is red. That of a pontiff who is a bishop or an archbishop is purple. Seeing them together on grand occasions lifts the spirits of the faithful. A similar effect is what I wanted to achieve by bringing together clerical red and purple in what I would christen my Pontifical Shoes.
I believe Cleverley makes the finest shoes in the world. Its emporium is modest but elegant - number 13 The Royal Arcade. There you will find the two upstanding gentlemen who continue to ‘make’ for some of our planet’s most famous feet. They are George Glasgow and John Carnera. They have the modest courtesy of true craftsmen. I have observed in my travels that such fellows frequently have in their demeanour a quiet patience – born, I suspect, of knowing that the best cannot be achieved by way of the short cut. Mr Glasgow is a Londoner, born in Pimlico to Irish parents. When he is not overseeing the shop, he travels to the United States and Japan, to measure those who are unable to visit London to place their orders. He has acted in films, and wherever I go in London people of all sorts know this genial and amusing fellow. The family of Mr Carnera (who now enjoys a well-earned semi-retirement) has its origins in Northern Italy.
His uncle was Primo Carnera, the world heavyweight boxing champion in 1933 and 1934. (My picture shows Mr Glasgow with your correspondent.)
The great George Cleverley himself is no longer with us – having gone in 1991, full of years and distinction, to the great Boot-maker in the sky. (You can glimpse a framed photograph of him in the shop.) His principles and his style have been carried on by his pupils, Messrs Glasgow and Carnera. This means the use of only the finest materials: the leather for the upper part of each shoe comes from the Freudenburg Company, near Cologne; that for the soles is oak-bark tanned at Baker’s thousand year-old tannery in Colyton, Devon. And it means lightness in the construction and design. For example, the heels of my new shoes are slightly tapered (shown in the photograph). Details like this are not only delightful in themselves: they also impart harmony and delicacy to the overall appearance.
The process for making a pair of bespoke shoes is six-fold. First, feet are measured and the outline of each is drawn in the pattern book. Second, a last is made of beechwood, to the size and shape of each foot. This pair of lasts is unique to each customer, but can be modified – by addition or subtraction – as feet change over the years. The company has several thousand lasts stored carefully. And mine are among them, so the procedure for my new shoes began at this point.
After the uppers had been made around my lasts, there was the fitting. Even with the shoes in this unfinished state, the quality of the workmanship shone through. I had chosen the Adelaide design – semi-brogues, with bevelled waists, close welts, 2 rows of brads at
each toe, toe-caps punched with my own ‘FB’ monogram (shown in the photograph) and the famous Cleverley “hint of chisel” toes. The pontifical colours were red for the body and purple for the toe-caps, the facings and the back counters. The linings would be of baby kidskin in liturgical green (the colour of vestments for the Sundays after Trinity). Three months passed before the fitting, and another three months before the completion of the remaining two stages: the welting of the soles to the upper bodies and the polishing of the completed shoes, and finally the making of the shoe trees.
The call came that my new shoes were ready. And they are - as I hope the pictures show - magnificent. Notice, please, all the details I have listed above. And notice, too, the shaping of the underside of the leather sole. Is it not wondrous?
The response to any miracle should be thanks. And so for my wonderful new Shoes I will sing a solemn Te Deum each time I put them on to my blessed feet. The fit is superb, the workmanship impeccable and the appearance stunning. Of course, I will never join the ranks of real pontiffs. But now I am reminded of their links to Heaven - thanks to my magnificent Pontifical Shoes.
13 The Royal Arcade, 28 Old Bond Street, London W1S 4SL, England.
Telephone +44 (0)207 493 0443 or 1058
Fax +44 (0)207 493 4991
Email: enquiries@georgecleverley.com
georgecleverley.co.uk
Visits are made to Japan and to cities in the United States. Ask for details.
Bespoke shoes will never be cheap. But the quality will be appreciated long after the price is forgotten. Please enquire for the current prices of Cleverley’s bespoke shoes via the contacts above.
