We’d like to take this opportunity to express a most sincere “THANK YOU” to every one that has supported Leffot during 2008. We wish you a wonderful 2009 one of Health, Happiness, Prosperity and Fabulous Footwear.

One of my favorite styles in the store is the Gaziano & Girling Mitchell, I wear it in Vintage Maple but it’s also one of my favorite shoes in black.

I love the way the wingtip is achieved by stitching into the upper creating a lighter more contemporary version of this most classic of styles; combine that with the medallion on the toe and the TG73 last and you have a black shoe that is both modern and classic at the same time.

The new January/February issue of Gotham Magazine is out and they’ve included Leffot as one of their “Headline Makers”. Thank you Gotham we really appreciate being on your radar.

May you and your loved ones enjoy this Holiday for all it is worth. We wish you peace, health, and happiness, and may the joy in your heart and the shoes on your feet have you “Walking in the Air”.

I was more than a little surprised when Santa Claus pulled up in front of the store today to deliver this pair of Edward Green MTO’s for Joe S. He’s a lucky man since he just had a pair of Arca’s delivered to him by Pierre Corthay earlier this month.

Joe placed this order for the Newmarket on October 28, quite good delivery on EG’s part. These are in black calf on the 888 last. A classic Chelsea boot if ever there was one.

Last week the New York Times invited me to write a guest post on “The Moment Blog” about the shoe throwing incident involving President Bush and an Iraqi journalist.

Now the Times reports that a shoemaker in Istanbul; Ramazan Baydan claims “he” made the shoes that journalist Muntader al-Zaidi threw at the President. You can read the complete article here.

Unfortunately there are no pictures of the shoes themselves, which would have been nice. I remain somewhat skepitcal…

In case you want a pair and can’t wait for the US arrival you might want to have a look at these.

Some treat themselves and some buy for others, either way it’s a great gift. Here are a few shoes that were purchased as Christmas treats.

The Aubercy wholecut is one of the most elegant shoes in our collection. For some reason it seems to draw strong attention from women when they are in the store. This is a very chic shoe and would do very well in a formal setting. In fact one of our clients recently purchased a pair to wear with his tuxedo.

I chose the red lining because of the nostalgic feeling I get when I think of black tuxedos lined in red Ala the Rat Pack, although I’m pretty sure they wore pumps with bows. Regardless, that was the inspiration.

I also like the hand-punched lines that create a very sleek and graceful look. It adds another level of interest that a plain wholecut lacks.

We’ve received two extraordinary “Groom Kits” (that’s groom as in shoe cleaning) produced in France by La Cordonnerie Anglaise.

The woods are beautiful, one in Beechwood with leather corners, the other in Ebony. Each include 6 brushes, 1 shoehorn, 1 renovator, 1 Shampoo, 2 waxes, and 1 chamoisine; and measure 22.5x19x15 cm.

Both make a very handsome and wonderful gift for the man that enjoys taking care of his shoes himself.

It’s not everyday I get asked to write a “guest” blog post. So when the New York Times asked me to write a post for “The Moment Blog“ about the Iraqi journalist Muntader al-Zaidi who hurled his shoes at President Bush the other day I though “Why not?” I was considering writing a post about the incident for this blog anyway.

I really enjoyed the opportunity to contribute this post to the “Times”, thanks for thinking of me JP.

Link to the post here.

Men’s footwear history in the making. (AP)