A shoe care enthusiast specializing in custom patinas and mirror shines, shoe reviews and unboxing videos.
To see more of my work check me out at mbshoedoc on Instagram instagram.com/mbshoedoc/ And check out my own brand of Italian patina dress shoes: www.michaeldarrenshoes.com
@@cuauhtemocbolanos6100 To me yes. Carmina costs more and has less refined construction and details. Carmina does use Horween shell which many claim to be the best but I haven't found any real difference between the shell tanneries.
Wow, just amazing! You brought these shoes back to life. Deep color, beautiful and shiny. Can you please write down which materials you used, and is there a difference according to the color of the skin?
I'm glad you liked it. I think I go over all the materials during the course of the video. I always use Acetone to strip the shoes. As far as dye colors that can vary but I generally use Fiebings buckskin as a base color then use darker colors like walnut or dark brown to add burnishing. For shining I use Saphir mirrorgloss in neutral on everything and then like to use some saphir dark brown just on the toe tip. I would have to re-watch the video myself to see what colors were used but I generally say or show it as I go along.
I'm glad you liked the video. I really wouldn't be able to give advice on sizing. It would be best to reach out to them directly. I'm not sure what may have changed in their sizing or last shapes since I got this pair over 2 years ago and no longer have the shoes.
@@ammartinezguzman Really that's true for all leathers I think. The creases came back some as expected but with the steam shrinking they came back much less and in a more visually pleasing way.
Horrible company; shoes have poor finish and their customer service is terrible. Also, they take down all negative reviews from their website, which is why all their products seem to be so well liked. Avoid like the plague!
@@SundownCity Yeah I didn't love the Patina and the leather quality was not the best and they squeaked like crazy when I walked. I think I included the squeaking in the video.
@@gerryaustin8687 Self taught. I discovered patina probably 6 or so years ago. I was already shining shoes and doing minor restorations and ran across a random patina video and I thought....ooo that looks fun, I think I could do that. So I got some dyes, acetone and craft brushes and went at it. I started with thrift store and eBay shoes until I felt comfortable to work on new shoes.
@@mbshoedoc Thanks for the answer. I have watched a number of your videos and bought a $25 pair of Allen Edmonds brown oxfords off Ebay with the hope of stripping them and dyeing them a deep Navy blue. Thanks for the answer and inspiration
@@gerryaustin8687 I have a few navy blue patina videos posted that may help. Blue can be tricky. You go too light and the first layers lean green but then it quickly can get too dark and look almost black.
@@yaakovhassoun8965 You don't want to use paint which is acrylic. Angelus sells paint but they are mostly used on athletic shoes. For leather dress shoes you want to use leather Dye from Fiebings, Angelus or Saphir. They all work equally well for me.
@@mbshoedoc thank you sir. you make it look so nice and approachable to get great results. I was thinking of trying on a pair of shoes that are close to the end of their life, I know you said to use high quality shoes because the better quality leather is easier to work with, but when they're heading to the trash soon anyways it will be a good place to experiment
Hello Mb Shoedoc. I need your help with a pair of shoes. They are supposed to be similar to the restored shoe on this video but I messed them up while polishing them. How can I get them to you for restoration? I really need to restore them, but I don't trust myself to do a good job. Yours, Joel Kambai Duwai
I've always seen complaints about Blkbrd QA and communications on the Goodyear Welt subreddit, but these are fantastic. Didn't realize they were the real deal over there!
Wow. This is my first time to see the hand painting of crust leather in action. The process seems deceptively simple but obviously very detail-oriented. And the results speak for themselves. There's none of the plastickiness or crustiness that I thought were necessarily part of a surface-level hand dye job. Beautiful. How do shoes like these hold up to fairly hard use? Personally, my feet can't help themselves but find and crash against every step, furniture leg, and threshold that comes within half a mile of them.
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. Most of the shoes I own now are all hand dyed patinas and I haven't had any trouble with them holding up over time. You treat scuffs and scrapes the same way you would a factory dyed shoe with colored cream and polish. Its really no different for hand dyed crust leather.
@@mbshoedoc Could a shoe be done all over with the 50/50 black with blue mixture? Im buying a used pair and considering trying it for a deep blue almost black color
@@gerryaustin8687 Yes that could be done but I would go much less black. Try it on the toe or tongue or heel first to test the color. A 50/50 would basically come out black with no visible blue I think.
You applied mirror gloss to the toe and heel but did not appear to add any sort of conditioner to the rest of the shoe. After all that acetone, how did you manage to achieve such a deep all over shine?
@@michaelalbert9299 I always condition the shoes with bick 4 during and after dye work. I may not have filmed that part this time. I also go over the entire shoe lightly with neutral wax once or twice for a good overall shine 👍
@@coffeeortea547 Sorry but I don't know for sure and wouldn't want to risk it on a nice shoe. You would need to get something that is unwearably wrecked to experiment on...or at least I would have to. I expect it would work but would also strip the finish. You would need to be prepared to completely re dye the shoe too.
@@mbshoedoc Thanks for your reply! I do have a pair that I bought on eBay that way more severely rolled than in pictures. My main hesitation is that I don't have the skill and experience that you have but I'll come back here to let you know if the results of I end up trying it!
They are quite similar in price and quality. I would say you can't go wrong with either brand. CS has Patinas where TLB doesn't. TLB has museum calf where CS doesn't. They each have a few unique models the other doesn't carry as well. Both are solid brands.
Mixing brands is no problem. Sometimes it's just what I have on hand and sometimes I prefer a color of on brand over another. For instance the Angelus dark brown is darker and preferable to the Fiebings. The Fiebings dark brown is too close to their mid brown. But I like the Fiebings navy blue better. Things like that sometimes will require some mixing.
No, I have not found crust leather to crease badly and this brand in particular does very well on creasing. Wholecuts will crease more noticeable compared to a cap toe though.
TLB is a significant improvement over BS. I was never fully satisfied with the Beckett leather after wearing them for a week. They crease heavily. The TLB is nicer in every way. Better construction better leather and better fit and details. No contest. But TLB costs a fair bit more. Beckett is a fine entry level shoe for the price but TLb is more of a solid mid tier. Hope that helps.
Thanks for your reply. I would have to agree with you. However, I believe they’re using a different tannery in Italy vs the Argentinian leather. I have multiple pairs of both BS and TLB. My BS hasn’t crease more than normal, but still as you say and I agree TLB is the better quality shoe all around the fit is incredible, and the leather is outstanding. I’m enjoying my BS, but I love my TLB shoes.
I think the Yearn is higher quality leather and the fit and finish details are nicer as well but at around $150 more. Elegal is the better bang for buck with Yearn being a little nicer overall. Can't go wrong with either 👍.
