The Butterfly, Men's Brown Suede Penny Loafers

Men's brown suede penny loafers, the Butterfly, Goodyear welted on a leather sole and made to order in your size and width. The name comes from the shape of the saddle across the vamp, which is cut and stitched as a wing form rather than a straight band, and that one change is what the page is mostly about.

What the butterfly saddle changes

On a standard penny loafer the saddle is a straight strap running across the vamp with a slot cut through the middle. Functional, symmetrical, unremarkable, which is the point of a classic.

A butterfly saddle takes the same piece and shapes it: the strap widens and sweeps outward toward each side, so from above it reads as two wings meeting at the center rather than one band. The slot sits where the two meet.

Two consequences worth knowing:

• More stitching, more tension points. A shaped saddle has a longer stitch line and more places where the leather changes direction, and every direction change is a place a poorly made shoe pulls away from the vamp. It is a harder piece to lay flat.
• It reads less formal than a straight saddle. Shaping is decoration, and decoration always costs a step on the formality scale. This is a smart casual loafer, not a business one.

The three checks that apply to any penny loafer

• The saddle should be a separate piece of leather stitched down at both ends, not glued or stamped into the vamp. Those stitch points take every bit of tension the strap ever sees, and on a shaped saddle there are more of them, so a glued version fails sooner here than on a straight one.
• The beef rolls, the raised stitched swellings where the saddle meets the sides of the shoe, should be genuine rolls of leather rather than a decorative seam.
• The slot edges should be finished and turned, not raw cut. A raw edge is where the leather begins to stretch, and a stretched slot goes from a neat shape to a slack opening within a couple of years.

Why suede on this shape

A shaped saddle is a visual detail, and visual details need a surface that shows them.

On smooth calf the saddle is read by its edge: a hard line where the piece sits on the vamp, plus whatever shadow the thickness of the leather casts. On suede the nap does something better. The pile lies in slightly different directions on the saddle and the vamp because they are separate pieces set at different angles, so the two panels return light differently and the saddle reads as its own surface rather than as an outline.

That is why a shaped saddle is worth more in suede than in calf, and it is also the quickest way to check a suede loafer is properly made: brush the saddle and the vamp and see whether they take the nap independently. On a shoe where the saddle was stamped rather than applied, they will not.

Brown suede is also the most useful loafer color there is, because it sits between formal and casual without committing to either.

Suede, nubuck and split suede

On a loafer the flex point is the throat, which is also the most visible part of the shoe, so split suede fails exactly where you can see it. The test: press your thumb across the surface. Real suede and nubuck take a directional mark and recover when brushed back. Split suede either does not mark or marks and stays marked.

"Loafers always slip at my heel"

This is the most common complaint about loafers and it is almost always a length problem rather than a loafer problem.

A loafer has no lacing, so only the throat line and the heel counter hold your foot. If the shoe is even slightly too long your foot slides forward as you step and the heel lifts out. No amount of breaking in fixes it, because nothing about the shoe changes its length.

• Loafers run large relative to lace ups on the same last, so most people take less than their lace up size.
• If it is comfortable the first time you put it on, it is too big. A correctly fitted loafer feels firm on day one and eases as the cork bed compresses to your foot.
• Suede compounds it slightly, because the nap gives a little more than smooth calf over the first few wears. Err firm rather than roomy.

How these are built

Goodyear welted and hand stitched. A leather welt runs around the upper and insole and the outsole is stitched to that welt rather than glued to the upper, so the shoe resoles repeatedly without disturbing the suede above it. Cork between insole and outsole compresses to your foot over the first month.

Calf suede upper, shaped butterfly saddle stitched down with beef rolls and finished slot edges, firm heel counter, leather lining, leather sole, stacked leather heel. Width cut to your measurement in D, E, EE or EEE through our made to order service. See the rest of the range in men's leather loafers.

Fit and sizing

Made to order in US sizes 5 to 16.5 with widths D through EEE.

Order your true length and specify the width separately rather than sizing up to gain room across the ball, because sizing up makes the shoe long and a long loafer slips permanently. Measure against the men's shoe size guide and tell us before you order if you are between widths, have a low instep or get heel slip in loafers generally.

What to wear them with

• Strongest: stone, cream and tan chinos, which is where a brown suede loafer does most of its work.
• Works: gray flannel, navy, dark denim, linen in summer.
• Avoid: a formal business suit in smooth worsted, where a shaped saddle in suede is two steps too relaxed, and black tailoring, which fights brown at every depth.

Match your belt to the depth of the suede rather than the texture, since a suede belt with a suede shoe is a match too far. Also in the range: the brown suede Belgian loafer and the black penny loafers.

Care

• No cream, no wax, ever. Both fill the nap, flatten it and leave a shiny patch that does not come back.
• Brush after every wear with a crepe or rubber suede brush, one direction only. Brush the saddle and the vamp separately and in the direction each panel's nap lies, because brushing across the join flattens the edge that makes the shape read.
• Pay attention to the throat, which is where a loafer flexes and goes shiny first.
• Protector spray before the first wear and every couple of months after.
• Never kick loafers off with your other foot, which creases the heel counter permanently. Use a shoe horn.
• If soaked: stuff with paper, dry naturally away from heat, brush the nap up only once completely dry.

Cedar trees between wearings and a day of rest between wears.

What to expect when you order

Cut and lasted after you order in your size and width. Suede varies in depth of tone hide to hide, so yours will be close to the photographs rather than identical. Production is 10 to 14 days, then shipping.

Questions we get asked

What is a butterfly saddle on a loafer?
A shaped version of the strap that crosses the vamp. Instead of a straight band, it widens and sweeps outward toward each side, so from above it reads as two wings meeting at the center, with the penny slot where they meet.

Does a butterfly saddle make the shoe less formal?
Yes. Shaping is decoration and decoration always costs a step on the formality scale, so this is a smart casual loafer rather than a business one.

Is a shaped saddle harder to make?
Yes. It has a longer stitch line and more places where the leather changes direction, and every direction change is somewhere a poorly made shoe pulls away from the vamp. A glued saddle fails sooner on this shape than on a straight one.

Why does a shaped saddle work better in suede?
Because the nap lies in slightly different directions on the saddle and the vamp, since they are separate pieces set at different angles. The two panels return light differently and the saddle reads as its own surface rather than as an outline.

How can I check a suede loafer's saddle is properly applied?
Brush the saddle and the vamp and see whether they take the nap independently. On a shoe where the saddle was stamped into the vamp rather than applied as a separate piece, they will not.

What else should I check on a penny loafer?
That the saddle is stitched down at both ends rather than glued, that the beef rolls are genuine rolls of leather rather than a decorative seam, and that the slot edges are finished and turned rather than raw cut.

Why do my loafers slip at the heel?
Almost always because they are too long. With no lacing, only the throat line and the heel counter hold your foot, so a shoe even slightly too long lets your foot slide forward and the heel lift. Breaking in does not change length.

Do loafers run large?
Yes, relative to lace ups on the same last, so most people take less than their lace up size. Suede compounds it slightly since the nap gives more than smooth calf. Err firm rather than roomy.

What is the difference between suede, nubuck and split suede?
Suede is the flesh side of a full thickness hide, napped. Nubuck is the grain side lightly sanded, finer and harder wearing. Split suede is the leftover layer after the grain has been taken off, and on a loafer it goes shiny at the throat, which is the most visible part of the shoe.

How should I brush a shaped saddle?
Brush the saddle and the vamp separately, in the direction each panel's nap lies. Brushing across the join flattens the edge that makes the shape read.

Why should I not kick my loafers off?
It creases the heel counter permanently, and a crushed heel counter is what turns a well fitting loafer into one that slips. Use a shoe horn.