Unboxing Elgar from Mattina

Mattina is the hottest Goodyear welted shoes brand in China, in the circle of people who know shoes, this brand is the glory of domestic shoes.

In the article Domestic Dress Shoes Are Worth Buying. I recommended three brands, namely Mattina, TGC and Jimjun

Many people asked me which one is the most worth buying.

Except for the absolutely subjective aesthetics, I will say, Mattina. Don’t get me wrong, I have a good relationship with TGC’s boss and proprietress. I help them promote and explore the international market wholeheartedly, but for those who just want to buy Goodyear shoes, I still think it is fair to recommend Mattina.

TGC, in my opinion, the biggest problem, or advantage, is that the product is not finalized, at best, it is highly customized. Not only refers to the style and last, but also the craftsmanship. This customization is interesting for very seasoned connoisseurs, but it is a burden for beginners. Moreover, I think that too many craftsmanship levels will make the products not be optimized carefully at each level.

And Jimjun, the price suddenly rushed from 1800 to 4250 RMB, which made many people very unhappy. I’m not saying that he is not worth the money, but for those who need my recommendation, Mattina is obviously more friendly at the price of 2000 RMB.

From the product itself, Mattina has several advantages, modern factory, accessibility and price of leather, and stable products.

The first time I saw Mattina, I felt it was Crockett & Jones in China.

Later, I learned that mattina originated from the Italian meaning of early morning, and the horn of logo stands for classical music, shoes/music, which mattina thinks is the most indispensable part to start an elegant life, so this combination has come into being.

I chose the Elgar.

The two most famous works by Edward Elgar, a British composer, are probably the well-known Salut d’Amore and Pomp and Circumstance Marches (the second national anthem of Britain). The themes of “Love” and “Majestic” in the two works also fit the two most widely used occasions of this cap toe Oxford, weddings and ceremonies.

This classic cap toe Oxford is named after such a composer.

Unboxing

The colour of shoebox is a little green in blue.

The blue shoe box is relatively easy to reflect the texture. The colour of this shoe box, viewed separately, is fine, but there is a problem behind it.

The shoebox is opened, and there is a shoehorn and shoe bags inside.

The problem is the colour difference between shoe bag and shoe box.

I’m not saying that the colour of the shoe bag must be the same as that of the shoe box. On the contrary, most brands have different colours on two objects. It’s just that this collocation of the same color and different shade is difficult, the so-called Tone on Tone.

Let’s look at this. I think it’s not harmonious.

Wooden shoehorn, I dare not say how high-end the texture is at first sight, but it is the best material choice for me at present.

Shoe bags made of suede are wonderful in terms of color, thickness, texture, hand feeling and matching with gold trademarks.

I said Mattina is Crockett & Jones of China, and the color of this shoe bag should be Handgrade.

Last/Upper

A pair of simple Cap Toe Oxford without Brogue.

Because it is the most unpretentious Oxford style, there is not much to say about the upper design, and the most eye-catching one is definitely the last.

At present, Mattina has introduced two lasts, C last is a small round toe, but because Mattina makes it wider for Chinese people, this round toe seems a little sharp to me. N last is this small square head. Personally, I don’t think the toe is sharp, so I chose this one.

The instep is quite high, so this shoe is sufficient in the friendliness of most people’s feet. Tall and wide. There are basically no people who can’t wear it.

From this picture, another point is the radian of the forefoot touching the ground. With this slight curvature, it will be more comfortable to step and walk.

Leather

Leather is Mattina’s advantage as a big factory. Just look at the fineness, and there will be evaluation articles later.

Outsole

I think Mattina’s soles are highly finished and beautiful, but there is still room for improvement.

This sole is standard on the John Lobb Prestige line, and I have seen it on some Edward Green. Crockett & Jones Handgrade has the same color scheme, but the direction of the arc is opposite.

Heel is where I think there is room for improvement.

First of all, where leather and rubber are combined, there is a small lace decoration.

Secondly, I think punching copper nails in leather area is a better decoration than piping, and in the long run, it is more recognizable. Then the rubber area is marked with Logo, which I think is also one aspect to improve the brand recognition of products.

It’s good to hit the trademark in the middle of the sole, and even it may be better to go a little further in the direction of the heel, because it won’t be worn when walking, and it can be kept for a long time.

Details

The logo of shoes, this small circle, is also Edward Green’s way, and so will some shoe factories in the United States and Japan. I think this small circle is better and the logo is less prone to wear than writing directly on the lining leather.

It says the style name Elgar, last N, size 38. It’s already great. If it is more perfect in the future, it is the serial number. You can tell which year and month it was made by the serial number.

There are two other details that I think can be discussed with you by taking this shoe as an example.

The first is the stitching of leather in the shoelace area.

This pair of shoes gives me a particularly obvious feeling of seams. One reason may be that the leather is thick, and the other may be that the edge of the leather is not waxed well, and the grayness is more obvious on black.

It’s not that I found fault with it, but that I noticed it at first sight.

The second point is the insole, the mainstream ones, including Gaziano & Girling, John Lobb and Edward Green, are all half socking.

Shoe Tree

This pair of shoes has a lasted shoe tree, which is in line with the original last of the shoes.

The official store sells at 280 RMB, which is not expensive. I always recommend lasted shoe tree which can keep your shoes in shape for a long time.

As can be seen from the shoe support, the width is sufficient.

Summary

ZHAO Ruoda is responsible for the design and production of Mattina shoes, which is the absolute top level in China, both in aesthetics and in craftsmanship.

In brand building, music and shoes is the best one ever.