How to wear the best styles from the traditional shoemaker – available now on MR PORTER.

Things have come on a long way, really, since the 19th century. Children no longer have to work in factories. London isn’t more or less permanently covered in ashy fog. We’ve stopped routinely smoking opium and started believing in the the theory of evolution (well, mostly). But then again, there are some fruits of the era that have proven themselves just too good to consign to history – a prominent example being the English shoemaker Tricker’s, founded by its namesake Mr Joseph Tricker in 1829, which launches on MR PORTER today. In 2016, the brand has much the same appeal as it would have done over a century ago – that is, its products are handmade in Northampton to impeccably high standards out of thick, sturdy leathers (what Tricker’s describes as “honest materials”). Known in particular for its country boot – a robust style that has changed little since its first proper incarnation in 1926, the brand offers a range of timeless Derbies, brogues and boots, with each individual item painstakingly created via 250 operations. As any longtime Tricker’s devotee will tell you (and there are many of those out there), these are shoes that have a reassuring heft to them – smart enough to add a sartorial edge to any outfit, but hardwearing enough to wear every day. Scroll down for the MR PORTER guide on how to do so.

The Tricker’s classic black Derby could be considered the paradigm of the style – its minimal detailing and pleasing, rounded toe shape make it an incredibly versatile shoe that will work with tailoring, denim and pretty much anything else you choose to throw at it. We particularly like the idea, however, of pairing this traditional shoe with some very non-traditional tailoring, in the form of a Burberry shell blazer. Keeping to a black colour palette will help you to pull off this past-future mix-up with the utmost ease.

Investing in a pair of suede brogues is a great way to smarten up your casualwear, as well as to ensure yourself a well-dressed future (they’re highly unlikely to ever go out of style). This particular pair comes with Dainite rubber soles, which also means you don’t need to desperately hop around puddles as you take them for a walk around town. Wear them with some selvedge denim jeans with the cuffs rolled up, and bask in the knowledge that your downtime has taken something of an upward turn.

The Tricker’s country boot has a lineage that can be traced back to a shoe made by Mr Joseph Tricker’s son-in-law, Mr Walter James Barltrop, in 1840 (at the tender age of seven), though it arrived in its modern form in the early 1920s. Back then, it was intended for landed-gentry types, for the purposes of stomping around England’s gloriously muddy countryside. Now, we wouldn’t quite recommend treating your boots this way, especially if you want them to retain their hand-buffed shine, but you can certainly dress the part of the squire by adding a waxed cotton field jacket from Belstaff – another brand that has reacted ingeniously to the vicissitudes of the Great British outdoors.