I was wondering what y'all thought about the Birckenstock London shoe model as footwear for Renfaire as far as historical aesthetics go:

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Depends on what the rest of the costume will look like, though that shoe would work better with most Ren costumes than Nike running shoes (which I see constantly at my faire :wtf: ). The other very important thing is that it's comfortable; i.e. can you can walk around in them for hours on uneven terrain (like grass, dirt, mud, gravel, or horse 'deposits') in any kind of weather? That shoe certainly looks cool.

I would say no. They look like modern shoes. They don't look at all like historical shoes.

I agree with nathan, they do look very modern, although if you are looking to just go a paytron and not perform as part of the cast or crafters then i say go with what you find most comfortable.. also as a side note if you have a medical condition requiring proper footwear (diabetes, pedal edema, etc) then your health should come first regardless of what as we term it "the costum nazi's" say.

and as always a pommel strike to just about anywhere will clear up any points of confusion :D

Sorry. I was just answering the question as it was asked regarding "historical aesthetics". There are many other factors, but I was trying to limit the scope to the needs he's expressed. I did not consider comfort or medical condition as he did not express those needs. Both of those things, for what it's worth, can be had with properly made historical footwear as well. Historical styling does not necessarily mean an inferior item or something full of compromise. I tried to help best I could...

Thanks for the replies.

I do not have a condition, but that was very polite of you to consider that.

I am looking for a renaissance shoe/low boot. Can anyone point me in that general direction?

I'd look here http://www.revivalclothing.com/. They have two different shoes and a low boot that look pretty good, and their turnshoes and low boot have had good reviews here by two forum members. :)

you could try
www.caboots.com

that is were many of my friends (and myself) get our show boots, they are great to work with (both the personel and the items) we even have a diabetic with foot problems in our group that swears buy them.

also if your just looking for period boots to get you by until you can get higher end boots you can try:

www.renboots.com

they will hold up for a full season of wear with thick socks, and they are economical but

If you could narrow your time frame a bit (give us a particular decade, maybe, plus or minus a couple of years) we might be able to get you some more focused help. From the middle of the 15th century on, as a ballpark figure, fashion quickly accelerated to the dizzying pace of changes in cut and style we endure today. If the Revival stuff mentioned earlier is too "medieval", it sounds like you might be looking for very late renaissance pushing to early colonial footwear?

Renaires are almost always Elizabethan and most are 1580s and 1590s. Tudor (Henry VIII) faires are much less common.

Take a look at these. They're somewhat similar. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ho/08/euwb/hob_...,6_av2.htm. If you're going to go in a 'loosely' historical costume, then I suppose these will work fine, plus I guess you could wear them with normal clothing too. If you're going for authenticity, don't go with them.

You might want to take a look here instead :D This site has a tutorial on how to convert Oxfords & Hushpuppies into Elizabethan/ECW Lachet shoes. I intend to try it out myself. http://www.luckhardt.com/ecwsa53.html

You know, I remember many people buying some Birckenstock shoes years ago that they used for Tudor styled shoes. They had to modify them by removing a strap. I think the model was the "London" model or some similar name. Once the strap was removed, they looked quite reasonable. I'd go the custom route, myself, and did at the time. While people were spending $100 or more on factory-made shoes, I got custom ones made for less than $150 and they were much more accurate. I used a local California-based maker named John Shrader. I suspect his prices are more now but who knows for sure without a quote? I have two pairs of tall riding boots from him.