Amazon.com, YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!

Just last night I was searching for this pair of boots. Ready to buy them in Singapore cos I am not willing to risk the waiting time + possible sizing error (though I guessed my size correctly) by buying them online. Saw it on Amazon.com and used it to read the reviews only. And I went ahead to buy them at a local Timberland store.

And now, on Amazon.com, I see;

Upcoming Deal

Timberland Men's Earthkeepers City ...

Deal starts at 
7:00 AM PST 

Speaking of coincidence -_-

And it is...

Men's Earthkeepers^® City Premium Chelsea Boot

New Boot Purchase!

Finally, the itch has arrived. I am now eyeing a pair of boots. I shall keep it hush hush for now as I have not confirmed on getting it yet. Doing research and looking for reviews. But sadly and apparently, there aren't many people like me around to post up picture of worn boots. :(

Clarks Desert Boots

Somehow I just find this pair of shoes so versatile, that it can be a weekend getaway shoes or a smart casual one to dine in a French restaurant.

Just treated it with Obenauf's LP and brush it down with a horsehair brush.

Amazing ain't it?

(Another) "Ponding"

I am so glad I wore the 9013 today. Didn't expect such a heavy downpour suddenly. Had to roll up my jeans, first time rolling 4 cuffs in order to make it to my car. The water level was just at the tip of the boots.

So its about 6 inches?

Gosh.

Glenroyal Leather Key Holder

I have to admit I was feeling neutral on this key holder when I purchased it, simply because the previous one was too bulky.

But as time goes by, the leather began to develop nice patinas and the color is gradually changing to a nice seasoned tone.

A little brush makes a whole of difference

Just used the horsehair brush to give them some gentle brushing. You will be able to see the difference immediately.

Ponding? No worries!

Just came back from a heavy downpour. The place I went seemed to start ponding on the walkways. Clearly most people will avoid that and take a longer route.

But heck, I know my Beckman can thread through it without worries. Thanks to Obenauf!

One of my EDC item, card holder

Looking GREAT after the oiling! My gosh! Beautiful..

Leather Clutch Bag

And since I was on the floor, with the Leather Oil in hand, might as well just give this beautiful bag a nice coat of oil.

Before Oiling:

During Oiling:

Look at how fast the Obenauf Leather Oil got absorbed.

And a bonus picture for today!!

DIY Card Holder

It's been a while since I've oiled them.

I realised that the front cover looks nice and shiny compared to the rear side. Could it be the rear side is the side that's facing my rear when put in my back pocket?

To better illustrate how I place them in my jeans pocket:


                        |                      |                                         |                                       |

                        |                      |                                         |                                       |
Outside World | Jeans pocket | Front side of card holder | Rear side of card holder | My bum

                        |                      |                                         |                                       |

                        |                      |                                         |                                       |

Oh well, bad illustration, I know. 

Anyway here are the pictures:

Front

Rear; See what I meant?

Obenauf's Leather Oil to the rescue!

Leaving it to dry...

Leather Clutch Folder

On my way to the RCIA class.. Just love this leather piece.

Red Wing + Chino pants

Cleaning my 875

It's the time to clean my 875 again. Except this time round I will be cleaning not only the leather, but also the sides of the crepe soles. Yes, you heard (or read) it correctly. The CREPE SOLES. As odd as it sounds, I am going to clean the sides of the crepe soles today. Yes I once mentioned that I like my 875 looking dirty and worn out. But also at the same time, I like them looking tidy. So, how should I put it, I like them looking dirty in a tidy manner. HAHA. I'm weird. I know.

Starting to notice that the sides of the soles are looking unevenly dirty. With stains from God-knows-where, its starting to irk me.

So I remembered I once read somewhere that toothpaste can clean the crepe soles pretty well. Got my tools ready: A Colgate toothpaste and toothbrush.

And I started to brush a little toothpaste, with a used toothbrush that I'm gonna replace anyway.

Brushing and brushing... 

After rinsing it off...

TA-DA! Looking slightly better. Though I have to admit I was expecting to become sparkling white. Haha. But its alright. Most prob the tougher stains are denim stains.

After the soles are settled, proceeded to clean the leather as usual, with the Obenauf's Leather Cleaner.

See this ugly patch of stain?

Spray the cleaner on it, scrubbing it with a piece of foam.

TA-DA!

All looks well and neat!

Went for In-camp training

And the black boots sees the sunlight again..

Leather A4 Folder / Clutch Bag

Well, I had started to attend RCIA lessons recently. And last week they presented us with a Bible. I am excited about owning a true physical Bible for the first time (physical, cos I do download those Bible Apps in App Store before). 

But something came to my mind, how am I suppose to go to class with the Bible. I don’t want to look like a preacher, walking to the lobby with a Bible in hand. Yet I don’t want to put it in my other canvas bags; they are either too big or too shabby for a purpose like this. 

And so I went to search for a proper bag to carry the Bible and perhaps some other notes that they gave out.

What are my searching criteria?

• MUST be Leather (nuff said)
• Be able to hold the Bible of 2” thickness
• Be able to hold A4 size notes
• Not looking like a schoolboy or working bag

With that in mind I went to search for the dream bag. The only “type” of bag that matches my criteria above was to get a clutch bag. Something I can hold it in hand and don’t need a sling to carry around.

Searching on the Internet is one of the most challenging things in life. They can present you with everything that sounds vaguely the same to totally different. -_-“

In the end I remembered I know of this business contact of mine, which does leather belts and stuff. So I decided to check out their website, Aquila Fashions

The first (and only) product that caught my attention was this:

Felt it pretty much suits my criteria and best of all, MY FAVORITE COLOR! So I contacted the owner’s son on my request. The initial reply was disappointing as he mentioned this folder will not be able to hold the Bible’s thickness of 2” (50mm). But I held on. I went to their office to discuss if the thickness can be altered in such a way it can accommodate the Bible’s thickness. Went through a casual talk with the owner and he agreed to customize one for me. 

I dropped by one fine day to see the progress, and saw the owner’s son was doing my order personally. 

And today, I received the message from him that its done! 

Chose a different leather color from the strap

I love these imperfections of leather. This is what makes it PERFECT!

Just look at the color and tone. Totally blew me off!

A closer look on the grains. Color seemed to have changed in this picture, camera settings fault.

Looking Goody!!!

Will be giving them a thin layer of Obenauf’s Leather Oil before I bring them out tomorrow. 

Red Wing Beckman 9013, Resoled!

Finally, here are the pictures after the 9013 was sent for resoling.

A brief recap, the front portion of the sole was coming off, and the rubbers were seemed to be cracking.

Sent it to resole, and the cobbler is none other than Shukey @ Far East Plaza. Singaporeans should know about this shoe repair shop pretty well. They are one of the most reliable names here.

Collected them after 1 week plus of wait. Was anxious and excited to see how are they gonna stitch the soles back to the boots. So here it is:

See any difference?

Here they are!

The black stitches are done by them.

Can’t see the black stitches from here?

The stitches are hidden INSIDE the soles! 

Gonna clean them with the Obenauf’s Leather Cleaner and give them a nice LP application before putting them to the test. In the meantime, gonna keep alternating my 875 and DBs for now!