Advice on shoes and outfit coordination?

[FH93]

Hi everyone, new here, but trying to become reasonly fashionable with the knowledge I gleaned several years back before I fell into the habit of tank top and shorts daily.

I'm 28, pretty muscular, but fairly lean too. I'm trying to dress nicer in general, and I'll list my current clothing that I own that meets those standards.

Currently I own 4 shirts (White - Charles Tyrwhitt weekend, Blue, checkered red/black, and pink), one off white coloured Henley, one black polo shirt, one pair of jeans, and two pairs of stretch straight fit chinos (one black, one dark blue). In shoes I own a pair of Loake Bedales in Tan, a pair of Beckman Heritage 1911, and just purchased a pair of normal brogued shoes in Tan. I am also going to buy a burgundy shirt that's a muscle fit when they're in stock as well. (The attached file is the shirt in question)

I had three questions.

1. I'm after a pair of more casual footwear that can look good with many of these clothings and combinations, and was thinking of some basic white trainers, but not sure, especially in this time of year.

2. With the burgundy shirt, what would look best with it, as I'm planning on wearing it to an event. Maybe black chinos with the brogued shoes, or with the blue chinos?

3. Where's the best place to look to get a better idea of what works well with different outfits?

Thanks for the advice in advance.

 

[johng70]

For your questions:
1. I'm not a fan of trainers unless you're doing something athletic - once you get to button down shirts or polos, skip the trainers. The big problem is the black pants - with black pants, you really want black or maybe deep burgundy (like color 8 ). Black shoes will also look fine with dark blue chinos. I like chukka boots for casual - BUT, if you're wearing slim pants with a snug ankle I think those look poor with boots so I would stick to shoes. A black derby would fit the bill. Even with navy, mid to dark brown looks a bit better with tan - tan works well with lighter blues, taupes, tans. Darker shades work better with mid to dark brown. So a mid to dark brown shoe would be the 2nd pick on shoes.

2. The burgundy works with either black or dark blue pants. But with black you're going to want those black shoes and even with navy chinos you'll want a darker brown shoe.

3. I'll leave to others to provide advice. The most important aspect is going to be fit on you. Aside from that, it's getting a sense of color combinations that work (and don't work) - those are the 2 biggest aspects.

 

[rjc149]

To dress timelessly well as a man, avoid clothing intended to flaunt your body. I would skip the muscle shirt. If you’re muscular, a well-fitting shirt will be more flattering. Always leave something for the imagination. The other issue is that if you’re as swole as this guy, you’re likely taking gear, which causes gynecomastia, and you don’t want to flaunt your nipples.

You’re a younger man so you can more safely follow trends. You could pull off the white minimalist Stan Smith clone with a variety of casual to semi-casual outfits. Personally, I opt for brown derby shoes or chukkas with any chino outfit, and only wear sneakers with ultra-casual outfits or at the gym. I also cannot make any of the Stan Smith clones work for my wide feet so I simply stick with New Balance, which I don’t think look good with chinos or above.

I think a darker brown brogue derby would be a good next shoe in your repertoire. I get a lot of wear from mine.

 

[FH93]

with black pants, you really want black or maybe deep burgundy (like color 8 ). Black shoes will also look fine with dark blue chinos. I like chukka boots for casual - BUT, if you're wearing slim pants with a snug ankle I think those look poor with boots so I would stick to shoes. A black derby would fit the bill. Even with navy, mid to dark brown looks a bit better with tan - tan works well with lighter blues, taupes, tans. Darker shades work better with mid to dark brown. So a mid to dark brown shoe would be the 2nd pick on shoes.

I do own a pair of black Oxfords, but they're fairly best up from years of wear so I didn't include them, but I may take another look to see if they're as bad as I think. I have my Beckman Heritage 1911 which are a deep reddish colour, and the chinos I have are straight not slim cut so I'll have a look and see how it fits with them. I guess I just need to buy a couple pairs more chinos in lighter colours. I had found a nice light beige pair but they were too tight on my legs since they were slim fit so I didn't buy them and they had no others.

To dress timelessly well as a man, avoid clothing intended to flaunt your body. I would skip the muscle shirt. If you’re muscular, a well-fitting shirt will be more flattering. Always leave something for the imagination. The other issue is that if you’re as swole as this guy, you’re likely taking gear, which causes gynecomastia, and you don’t want to flaunt your nipples.

You’re a younger man so you can more safely follow trends. You could pull off the white minimalist Stan Smith clone with a variety of casual to semi-casual outfits. Personally, I opt for brown derby shoes or chukkas with any chino outfit, and only wear sneakers with ultra-casual outfits or at the gym. I also cannot make any of the Stan Smith clones work for my wide feet so I simply stick with New Balance, which I don’t think look good with chinos or above.

I think a darker brown brogue derby would be a good next shoe in your repertoire. I get a lot of wear from mine.

Thanks for the advice. I actually chose the tan brogues over the darker colours because I thought it'd be more versatile but it looks like I was mistaken. Like I said above I just need to get some lighter chinos, but they most likely wouldn't work with my new shirt, so I'll have to rustle something up and maybe see how bad my black Oxfords are.

 

[msimon]

Don't know about the shoes but that burgundy colour is not right on you. Maybe it's your skin colour.

Never mind, not you in picture is it?

 

[rjc149]

Thanks for the advice. I actually chose the tan brogues over the darker colours because I thought it'd be more versatile but it looks like I was mistaken. Like I said above I just need to get some lighter chinos, but they most likely wouldn't work with my new shirt, so I'll have to rustle something up and maybe see how bad my black Oxfords are.

Generally speaking, black shoes are more formal and are more appropriate with suits. That doesn't mean you can't wear them with chinos, but brown shoes will be more versatile and in my opinion, just look better.

The issue with tan shoes is that they don't work as well with dark colored pants, whereas a darker brown will work with both light and dark pants. For versatility, I would recommend a darker brown.

 

[FH93]

Generally speaking, black shoes are more formal and are more appropriate with suits. That doesn't mean you can't wear them with chinos, but brown shoes will be more versatile and in my opinion, just look better.

The issue with tan shoes is that they don't work as well with dark colored pants, whereas a darker brown will work with both light and dark pants. For versatility, I would recommend a darker brown.

Okay, I may return the lighter browns and get a darker one. The top one in the image is the one I got, in part because it's a wide fit and I have wider feet. The other two are two different darker colours. Which would you recommend, if any? I don't mind finding something from somewhere else but I'm not sure where to go and I don't have a crazy budget. These were around £72.

Don't know about the shoes but that burgundy colour is not right on you. Maybe it's your skin colour.

Never mind, not you in picture is it?

No, not me, although I am currently that skin colour, but I'm am tanning so I'll have a little darker skin tone.

 

[rjc149]

Okay, I may return the lighter browns and get a darker one. The top one in the image is the one I got, in part because it's a wide fit and I have wider feet. The other two are two different darker colours. Which would you recommend, if any? I don't mind finding something from somewhere else but I'm not sure where to go and I don't have a crazy budget. These were around £72.

I would personally lean toward the darker brown, that's my preference, although the middle one would be pretty versatile too. I'm not the biggest fan of the contrast soles on these examples, but again, personal preference.

I'm not sure what the best sub-$100 options are in the UK (where I'm assuming you are), a fellow Brit could assist you with that. In the US, popular brands for shoes in this price range are Cole Haan, Kenneth Cole, Johnston and Murphy, Florsheim, Ecco, Joseph Abboud and Rockport.

I would advise that if you're going to wear these shoes a lot, cheap shoes are a waste of money since you'll need to keep replacing them. I would invest in a good pair of stitch-welted shoes if you're committing to dressing well. Quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten.

 

[FH93]

I would advise that if you're going to wear these shoes a lot, cheap shoes are a waste of money since you'll need to keep replacing them. I would invest in a good pair of stitch-welted shoes if you're committing to dressing well. Quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten.

Yeah, I bought a really good pair of Loake Bedales in Tan years ago when I had money to burn for £190 (although they're £290 now). I rarely wear them though which is the shame, but I think since I've got them in town I should probably get brogues in a dark brown anyway instead of having two pairs of tan brogues.

 

[rjc149]

Yeah, I bought a really good pair of Loake Bedales in Tan years ago when I had money to burn for £190 (although they're £290 now). I rarely wear them though which is the shame, but I think since I've got them in town I should probably get brogues in a dark brown anyway instead of having two pairs of tan brogues.

Maybe you could switch it up, go for a different style like split-toes or cap toes. I personally also like broguing and wingtips, however, especially on a shoe that won't be worn formally.

Have you considered selling the boots, since they don't get a lot of wear, and using those proceeds to help get a good pair of dark brown shoes?

 

[FH93]

Have you considered selling the boots, since they don't get a lot of wear, and using those proceeds to help get a good pair of dark brown shoes?

I've got a pair of brat up black cap toed shoes, but as I said, they're beat up. Could do with a new pair really.

I hadn't considered that actually. They're in pretty good condition. Do you know whereas best to sell them?

 

[rjc149]

I've got a pair of brat up black cap toed shoes, but as I said, they're beat up. Could do with a new pair really.

I hadn't considered that actually. They're in pretty good condition. Do you know whereas best to sell them?

I would put them up on Ebay and Poshmark. I sold a pair of Allen Edmonds on Ebay for a surprisingly decent price.

 

[FH93]

I would put them up on Ebay and Poshmark. I sold a pair of Allen Edmonds on Ebay for a surprisingly decent price.

Okay, thank you very much. Hopefully I get a very good price for them. I'll see if I've still got the polish and polish them up beforehand

 

[KOz]

Some general observations:

I think it'd help for you to define what style you're aiming for.

If you're going to go with a classic menswear style, then avoid muscle fit shirts (or anything for that matter). Get a shirt that fits in the shoulders and chest, then get it tailored. Don't rely on elastane. Also go for light colours, primarily focusing on light blue and maybe white.

You also want to think of a jacket, without which the outfit will be out of balance. Instead of thinking "what goes with this shirt", think what combination of jacket, trousers and shirt will work together.

As for shoes, don't lean so hard into tan - it's not a versatile colour. Go for brown or dark brown. Different derby variants are a good place to start. Consider suede.