****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
I'll be the first to admit, Amazon didn't make me a certifiable shoe aficionado (freak) - though they have contributed significantly to my absurdly vast (I now own in excess of 90 pairs of quality shoes) but they have contributed mightily, due to their great selection, seductive pricing, splendid return policy and attractive presentation, to over 90% of my ongoing growth in my footwear collection. Almost to the exclusion of brick and mortar shoe stores and other online competitors (and I only shop for shoes online at Amazon.com). My most recent addition, Clarke's Men's Leather Desert London Oxford, size 9.5D in leaf is another great example of why I now, with the advantage of previous Amazon.com buying experiences, consider myself a True Amazonian Shoe Power Collector. With my most recent addition, the Clarke's Desert London Oxford (color: Leaf), being a fine example of my average Amazon.com shoe purchase experience - at the very attractive price-point of $40.99 - being a fine example of quality footwear done right. The Desert London Oxford is another instance of a well fitting, durably constructed, stylishly attractive men's casual shoe that is bound to delight. One small note of caution the photo of the shoe in "Leaf" is a bit misleading. The example I received was considerably darker than the posted photo and describing the color as "Leaf" is an inaccuracy - Loden would be more accurate - that is not easily explicable. A 5 out of 5 rating would usually be a well deserved rating but the color issue drops it down to a 4 out of 5. I still highly recommend this fine product as an easy, SLAM-DUNK winner and at $40.99...get serious!!! Hands down "winner-winner, chicken diner!"I'm happy with them, and they look good with most of my work clothes I guess. They're not terribly uncomfortable, but not all that comfy either. Lol. Toe box is kind of tight and the width sometimes feels too narrow on my feet, which are fairly narrow. I usually wear an 8-8.5 depending on the shoe, and I bought these in an 8. I probably should've gotten a half size bigger, but my hope is that they'll stretch out with more wear.I've worn 10.5 sized Clarks before (Unstructureds), and after wearing the Desert London Oxfords for a week, I'm pretty sure 10.5 was the right size. This however this didn't stop them from wearing the skin off the backs of my heels (on the Achilles tendon) on the first day I wore them outside. After a brisk 10 minute walk to work, they drew blood. I had walked around in them indoors before committing to wearing them outdoors, but had no indication of the pain they would inflict. I've worn shoes without padded rear sections before without a problem, but something about the way these shoes are shaped rubbed my feet the wrong way. After wearing them outside, they were no longer in any condition to return, so instead, I spent a couple hours working the leather manually and rubbing Obenauf's leather preservative into them. This, and the band-aids I'm wearing over my wounds have made the shoes wearable. There are no removable insoles in these shoes, nor is there any room for them. You're stuck with the slim bit of padding included under the heel, and the slight bit of cushioning the softer Crepe sole provides. I can feel more of the ground than I am used to through these shoes, but don't necessarily consider that a bad thing. I like the minimalist style of the shoes, but wish the minimalism didn't extend to the cushioning and comfort as well.Not everyone will have the same experience I did, you may not need to break them in as much before being able to wear them.These are the low-top version of the Desert Boots, and I prefer them because the heels fit better and don't slip. The boots don't cup your heels, but these do.The sizing on these is a little off. I have a 9UK/10US, which is actually a little closer to a 9.5US. However, the size is also provided in millimeters, and the 9UK/10US is for a foot that is 265mm long, which is just under 10.5 inches. I think the sizes are in increments of 5mm. For example, an 8.5UK/9.5US should be for a 260mm foot, and a 9.5UK/10.5US should be for a 270mm foot. So, measure your feet!I should also add that these stretch a lot, just like the boots. I have normal-width feet, and these shoes were almost painfully narrow the first time I put them on. They stretched to a normal width after I wore them for a few hours. They may stretch even more, if my past experience is accurate.These are great. They are my go-to office shoes for daily wear. I have a pair of Desert Trekkers and love them because of their crepe soles and how comfortable they are but I wanted that same sole and comfort in something a bit dressier. I bought the model with the beeswax brown leather uppers. They are still "casual" and look good with jeans or khakis but I've worn them with a pair of navy dress pants, dress shirt, and tie, and it made for a great combo as well. I threw a pair of Dr Scholl's gel insoles in them to increase the cushion from the already soft crepe sole and they're the perfect, most comfortable daily wear shoe I have. I went to a Clark's retail store to try a pair on before I ordered them and I recommend this. A lot of people said order a size or half size down but I actually had to go the other way and order a full size up from my normal shoe size, even without the insoles. All in all a great pair of shoes, I love them.I like the shape, color and everything about Clarks desert london excepting of it’s leather.It hurt my foot a lot.I just took it outside for around 3 hours (30 mins walking) but my foot even had some blisters (upper foot)What a pity! I have to return it. I really like It but what to do if it hurts you.P/s: the size fit mine. The problem is when I walk, the leather is rigid.I ordered an 11 and usually wear an 11.5 or 12 and they fit just about right. The leather is good quality and the shoe is fairly comfortable, still in the 'wearing in' phase though. The only thing I would say is that while the ones I bought were advertised as nut brown, they definitely have a bit of a purplish hue. While this is not a bad thing, if you're looking for a classic dark brown, this probably isn't the shoe for you.una delle due ha perso un po di colore quasi subito, ma con una bomboletta per camoscio nera è tornata come qunado era arrivataMolto rigida la tomaia e un po' di fastidio in punta e sulla dita, per il resto non maleProdotto bello è davvero comodo.
