# How to get your A/O sperrys to look like this...



## Polo855 (May 24, 2008)

I wish they just sold them like this. Any ideas?


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## OneEyeMan (Aug 23, 2009)

Wear them hard in all kinds of weather, get them dirty, then soak them and use a sponge with a little Dawn and rub all the dirt out of them.
Make sure to rub them hardest in the areas you want to look the most worn.
Let them dry thoroughly and assess if you like their look.
If you overdid the rubbing, use some Pecard's or Obenauf cream to bring back the darker waxy look.
Lenny


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## Memphis88 (Sep 10, 2008)

Wear them. A lot. Preferably, while sailing the ocean blue.


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## chiamdream (Aug 7, 2009)

I dunno - my dark brown/white sole A/Os are a pretty plasticky brush-off leather that doesn't show stress or bends or anything. I can't imagine them ever getting to this point.


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## TradTeacher (Aug 25, 2006)

Salt water and ocean sand help. They've made mine look fantastic.


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## MarkfromMD (Nov 5, 2008)

:crazy:


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## Ron_A (Jun 5, 2007)

Drag them behind your Porsche. :icon_smile_wink:

https://askandyaboutclothes.com/community/showthread.php?t=95966&highlight=Topsiders+porsche


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## Polo855 (May 24, 2008)

chiamdream said:


> I dunno - my dark brown/white sole A/Os are a pretty plasticky brush-off leather that doesn't show stress or bends or anything. I can't imagine them ever getting to this point.


I know! I'm hesitant to buy them due to this. The laces have a weird greenish tint to them as well.


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## Pentheos (Jun 30, 2008)

Ron_A said:


> Drag them behind your Porsche. :icon_smile_wink:
> 
> https://askandyaboutclothes.com/community/showthread.php?t=95966&highlight=Topsiders+porsche


Thanks. It's nice to see that one's humor is appreciated - and remembered!


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## Taliesin (Sep 24, 2004)

Polo855 said:


> I wish they just sold them like this. Any ideas?


Those are some amusingly unused-looking soles on such scuffed up shoes.

My guess would be that you'd have to (1) get a higher quality leather than Sperry puts on most of its shoes, and (2) hire some guy with a piece of sandpaper to go to work putting little abrasions in strategically-located places. Voila.


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## Memphis88 (Sep 10, 2008)

Ron_A said:


> Drag them behind your Porsche. :icon_smile_wink:
> 
> https://askandyaboutclothes.com/community/showthread.php?t=95966&highlight=Topsiders+porsche


Haha, I remember that thread.


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## smujd (Mar 18, 2008)

The whole "how I age my [topsiders, Barbour, #8 shells, etc.]" is rather distressing. 

Items develop character/patina with use. Wear your damn clothes outside on occassion (maybe even for the purpose they were intended), and they'll develop quite nicely.


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## Memphis88 (Sep 10, 2008)

smujd said:


> The whole "how I age my [topsiders, Barbour, #8 shells, etc.]" *is rather distressing*.
> 
> Items develop character/patina with use. Wear your damn clothes outside on occassion (maybe even for the purpose they were intended), and they'll develop quite nicely.


Nice pun. I agree with you. I love the wear on my Bean mocs, for example, and it's largely because the wear has come with solid use over the past year.


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## Jazzer (Jan 21, 2009)

Taliesin said:


> Those are some amusingly unused-looking soles on such scuffed up shoes.
> 
> My guess would be that you'd have to (1) get a higher quality leather than Sperry puts on most of its shoes, and (2) hire some guy with a piece of sandpaper to go to work putting little abrasions in strategically-located places. Voila.


I don't think so. If you wore your boat shoes exclusively when on a sailboat, they would look something like this (re. the relatively unworn soles on broken in shoes), but with caked-in brine and green rust on the metal bits.


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## WouldaShoulda (Aug 5, 2009)

I rub Old Spice on mine!!


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## Thom Browne's Schooldays (Jul 29, 2007)

Given how white the soles of those are, I'm betting they're some kind of pre-distressed sperrys.

I couldn't see a pair of dark brown A/Os ever looking like that, the leather looks different.


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## Reds & Tops (Feb 20, 2009)

Give the stylists at J. Crew a call. They seem to have mastered the A/O distressing process. 

I will chime in that you should distress them yourself, or not even bother.


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## The Continental Fop (Jan 12, 2007)

Speaking of which, I see guys all the time in jeans that look really great -- lighter blue, faded in some areas, nice creasing. How can I get my brand new stiff dark jeans to look like that? Color me stumped.


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## Reds & Tops (Feb 20, 2009)

^ +1. Some mysteries are better left unsolved.


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## MarkfromMD (Nov 5, 2008)

I have a pair of boat shoes that are a different model from Sperry but they are 6 years old and look wonderfully worn. I imagine if they were solid brown leather they would look like the ones in your picture.


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## Cruiser (Jul 21, 2006)

The Continental Fop said:


> Speaking of which, I see guys all the time in jeans that look really great -- lighter blue, faded in some areas, nice creasing. How can I get my brand new stiff dark jeans to look like that? Color me stumped.


While you can't see much of the jeans in this picture, is this what you mean? I bought these jeans when I got out of the service in 1972 and they were as dark as night and stiff as a board. This is what they looked like after being worn almost every day for about a year; or however long it took my hair to go from a military cut to what you see. Real honest to goodness wear will always trump artificial ageing.










Cruiser


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## Thom Browne's Schooldays (Jul 29, 2007)

Cruiser, he was being sarcastic.

I will say: I'm not looking for pre-distressed pair, but I do like how those topsiders are a more natural leather that would probably fade, crease and age in a different way than the normal corrected grain, solid brown A/Os.


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## boatshoe (Oct 30, 2008)

The leather of the brown a/o does kind of bother me. This summer I essentially switched between wearing the brown a/o and the sahara a/o every day, and aside from a noticeably yellowed sole, the brown a/o leather doesn't seem to wear that much. They've gotten soaked a number of times sailing and at the beach, but still show little wear. I've taken to wearing the sahara a/o more often because the leather isn't shiny at all, despite what the somewhat glossy product picture shows on the Sperry website.

An aside: I'd really like Sperry to make a version of the sahara with a white sole. And I'd also like to see them make the brown buc model with a white soul and without the shiny brown leather quater, or whatever you'd call that part of the shoe.


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## Cruiser (Jul 21, 2006)

Thom Browne's Schooldays said:


> Cruiser, he was being sarcastic.


It went right over my head. I hate it when that happens. :icon_smile_big:

Cruiser


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## Taliesin (Sep 24, 2004)

Jazzer said:


> I don't think so. If you wore your boat shoes exclusively when on a sailboat, they would look something like this (re. the relatively unworn soles on broken in shoes), but with caked-in brine and green rust on the metal bits.


No, the sides of the soles would have abrasions, indentations and discolorations. The shoes in the photographs have unworn soles both on the bottoms and on the sides. They are artificially distressed.


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## At Law (Apr 15, 2008)

Ron_A said:


> Drag them behind your Porsche. :icon_smile_wink:
> 
> https://askandyaboutclothes.com/community/showthread.php?t=95966&highlight=Topsiders+porsche


Dragging them behind my Porsche did work. However, now
the soles are completely worn down. :icon_smile_wink:


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## Ron_A (Jun 5, 2007)

At Law said:


> Dragging them behind my Porsche did work. However, now
> the soles are completely worn down. :icon_smile_wink:


Awesome - that was a good thread and you were a good sport about it.

As far as breaking in Sperry A/Os, the best thing to do is to wear them a lot. Mine finally are starting to look halfway decent, after two summers of semi-regular wear. Other than that, you could buy the J. Crew "pre-distressed" version.

I will agree that the leather on the boat shoes in the photo (which I believe is from Sperry's website) does not look very similar to the leather on my A/Os (and, in fact, looks much more desirable).


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## The Continental Fop (Jan 12, 2007)

Seriously, if anyone wants their boat shoes to look like that photo, they need to pony up and buy Quoddy boats in the stock chromexel leather. That's what I have and that's what they look like after a few years of wear. Of course, I paid less than half what Quoddy now charges for these shoes, but if that's what you want, Quoddy's your only choice.

Sperry hasn't made a show that looks like this in a long time. That photo is either of a much older pair than current production, or it's been Photoshopped to look that way. The current Sperry boats will not look like that no matter what "distressing" you treat them to, natural or otherwise. That's why Quoddy is able to ask what they ask for theirs. If Sperrys still looked like that, the Japanese and I wouldn't give Quoddy a second thought.

Honestly, that ad is like Ford doing ads for the new Mustangs using pics of the old '50s and '60s Mustangs. Nice try. Well, they did hook one fish.


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## Thom Browne's Schooldays (Jul 29, 2007)

At Law said:


> Dragging them behind my Porsche did work. However, now
> the soles are completely worn down. :icon_smile_wink:


I hope you weren't wearing them the time .


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

The Continental Fop said:


> Seriously, if anyone wants their boat shoes to look like that photo, they need to pony up and buy Quoddy boats in the stock chromexel leather. That's what I have and that's what they look like after a few years of wear. Of course, I paid less than half what Quoddy now charges for these shoes, but if that's what you want, Quoddy's your only choice.
> 
> Sperry hasn't made a show that looks like this in a long time. That photo is either of a much older pair than current production, or it's been Photoshopped to look that way. The current Sperry boats will not look like that no matter what "distressing" you treat them to, natural or otherwise. That's why Quoddy is able to ask what they ask for theirs. If Sperrys still looked like that, the Japanese and I wouldn't give Quoddy a second thought.
> 
> Honestly, that ad is like Ford doing ads for the new Mustangs using pics of the old '50s and '60s Mustangs. Nice try. Well, they did hook one fish.


...and while they may be a tad more pricey than any of us would prefer, the Quoddy Trail boats/camp mocs do have an aspect of longevity that far exceeds that of our beloved Topsider Originals! Do the additional years of wear for the Quoddys equate to better value, after all?


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## Doctor Damage (Feb 18, 2005)

eagle2250 said:


> ...and while they may be a tad more pricey than any of us would prefer, the Quoddy Trail boats/camp mocs do have an aspect of longevity that far exceeds that of our beloved Topsider Originals! Do the additional years of wear for the Quoddys equate to better value, after all?


Has this really been proven? It's the same argument used to justify the 40% markup for shell cordovan, but high-quality calfskin dress shoes will last for 10-20 years as well and I'm willing to be that a pair of Sperry's will be servicable almost as long as a pair of Quoddy's. Of course, that hasn't been proven either.


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## The Continental Fop (Jan 12, 2007)

I don't know about the long-term reliability of Quoddys. I have a pair each of the boats, the now-seemingly-discontinued unlined slippers, and a custom pair of suede loafers with camp soles. The boats get a lot of wear and they look great (as in, naturally weathered and dulled), but I don't know that they're any more or less hardy than the Sperrys of my youth. Those boats lasted years and hung tough.

It's important to note here for those who don't own Quoddys that these are not magic totem shoes. There's nothing to them that's special or artisinal. They're just simple hand-stitched boat shoes like the company used to make for LL Bean before Bean sent the contract offshore. The only reason Quoddy is so revered here, and why they're able to charge insane prices and get it from Japanese hipsters (who probably keep them perfectly polished and conditioned so they can stroll by the seaside oblivious to the tuna fishermen wearing old beat-up rubber boots with rags stuffed in the toes) is because everyone else making this kind of shoe has lost the thread and no longer makes a quality product. There are undoubtedly good and sound reasons why nobody but Quoddy puts their shoulder into this market anymore, just as there are good and sound reasons why non-iron shirts are the future and those of us whining about the death of the must-iron shirt are doomed idiots clinging to the familiar against all logic and reason.



eagle2250 said:


> ...and while they may be a tad more pricey than any of us would prefer, the Quoddy Trail boats/camp mocs do have an aspect of longevity that far exceeds that of our beloved Topsider Originals! Do the additional years of wear for the Quoddys equate to better value, after all?


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## chiamdream (Aug 7, 2009)

If it's patina you're after, the Quoddy premium may be justifiable - I don't think that anyone will resole Top-Siders, whereas Quoddy will do a resole for some trivial amount ($10 is the price quoted here). Are Quoddys 350% better than Top-Siders? No, but they're nice shoes, and I preferred to spend $250 on shoes I really liked rather than $80 the sad modern-day Bean bluchers.


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

Doctor Damage said:


> Has this really been proven? It's the same argument used to justify the 40% markup for shell cordovan, but high-quality calfskin dress shoes will last for 10-20 years as well and I'm willing to be that a pair of Sperry's will be servicable almost as long as a pair of Quoddy's. Of course, that hasn't been proven either.


While I cannot claim it is a conclusive product review, I purchased pairs of Topsider Originals and unlined and lined pairs of Quoddy boat shoes at about the same time. With a bit more than two years of use and equalized wear time, I can say the following:

1. The Quoddy's feature a much more supportive insole and are constructed of much more supple leather. Today's Topsiders are constructed of leather that seems a second cousin to cardboard. The stitching on the Quoddy's seems to have been done using a heavier, more durable thread that that used in the Topsiders. The thread in the Topsiders has frayed and had to be restitched in the toe of my right shoe but, such has not happened with the Qouddy's.

2. The Quoddy's are far more supportive of the feet, if you are going to be doing a lot of walking. I have taken five and six mile walks in the Quoddy's but, would not even try to do so in the Topsiders. The Topsiders (after they are broken in) are comfortable for general wear around the house but, not for any extended walking.

3. The Topsiders have deterioriated to the point that they have been relegated to 'around the house' use and as painting shoes!  The unlined Quoddy's have developed a decidedly worn down appearance but, have not developed any structural flaws or failed in any manner. The lined Quoddy's are certainly showing some evidence of wear, scuffing, wearing down a bit at the back of the heel, etc but, they have yet to develope that really worn-in appearance.

So are the Quoddy's really worth the additional cost? I can't really say but, they certainly overcome some of the shortcomings of the Topsider Originals, being more supportive of the foot and more durable over the long term. As to whethwer they are a better value, that's a call each of us will have to make, individually.  Please don't misunderstand me...I love my Topsiders and will probably always keep a pair around the house but, the Quoddy's are a better made shoe!


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## Thom Browne's Schooldays (Jul 29, 2007)

eagle, not questioning your conclusion (that quoddy > sperry), but wondering what kind of soles you have on each. 
The flimsy, white soles of the A/O topsiders are hard on feet, but I've noticed that Sperry now makes many of their topsiders with a stronger sole (like Bean's 'heavy duty handsewn soles).


Anyways, I figured out an nswer to the original posters question.
Saw a fellow walking around in a pair of "sahara" A/O topsiders today (a local sporting good store had a huge sale on the this summer, so I see lots of Sarah A/Os around).
This guy's were obviously worn in, and they had a nice, darker patina, I bet if you started with that, and worked in some brown polish and or dye over time, you might get a similar look to the picture in the first post.


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## Reds & Tops (Feb 20, 2009)

TBS - that is a very interesting idea. Reminds me in a way of some forum members stripping and redying of Bass Weejuns in brush off.

If I can find a pair on the cheap it might be worth an experiment.


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## anonymouz (May 5, 2008)

The sahara's definitely get worn in a lot faster than the classic brown. The leather is a bit more suede-like


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## CactusMark (Feb 14, 2007)

chiamdream said:


> If it's patina you're after, the Quoddy premium may be justifiable - I don't think that anyone will resole Top-Siders, whereas Quoddy will do a resole for some trivial amount ($10 is the price quoted here). Are Quoddys 350% better than Top-Siders? No, but they're nice shoes, and I preferred to spend $250 on shoes I really liked rather than $80 the sad modern-day Bean bluchers.


It appears that Top Siders can be resoled by this company. It's pricey at $50, but I intend to use their service as I've got a pair of Sperry's that have the sole flapping to the point where it really needs to be duct taped after every few wearings.

It looks like they might do LL Bean Blucher mocs too, although I'm not sure. I know that Bean doesn't do it anymore; I asked when I bought mine a few months ago.

Separately, any tips on getting the white soles on the brown A/Os really white?


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

Thom Browne's Schooldays said:


> eagle, not questioning your conclusion (that quoddy > sperry), but wondering what kind of soles you have on each.
> The flimsy, white soles of the A/O topsiders are hard on feet, but I've noticed that Sperry now makes many of their topsiders with a stronger sole (like Bean's 'heavy duty handsewn soles).
> 
> ....


My current A/O Topsider options include a pair with the white sipped sole and a second pair with a gum rubber colored sipped sole. Quoddy options include a sipped white sole, a gum rubber colored sole and a pair equipped with the dark camp sole (note: the pair with the camp sole was a later purchase and note covered by my earlier comments). The comfort difference I experienced was (I think) driven more by the contoured insole Quoddy Trail uses, rather than the out-sole materials used on either company's shoes. However, I do think the heavier out-sole used by A/O on some of their offerings, could make a noticeable difference in the comfort afforded by the shoes!


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