Help wean me off black shoes

[kmdsimpson]

I need some help in determining which color shoes I should be wearing with different suits. My rule of thumb has been that for suits in black, grey, and blue shades (i.e.: most business suits) I should be wearing black shoes. And then reddish or brown shoes with only brown shades of suits. Even with sportcoats and slacks, I have been applying the same color combinations

After reading many of the threads on here, I feel like I've been horribly wrong. It sounds like the black shoes should be worn only sparingly.

Can you tell me what you think is the best time to wear black vs. brown/red shoes? For instance, I have a new navy suit - does that go with black or cordovan?

I have always assumed that black shoes are not good for casual wear - but even there I have a couple pairs of black casual shoes that I hardly wear.

 

[Xiaogou]

I am in the same boat as you. Growing up, I could have any non-athletic shoe I wanted as long as it was a black wingtip.

Get a pair of non-black cordovan shoes. They will go well with navy and grey shades of suits.

 

[minnesotamoon]

I would definitely wear brown with a navy suit. I am in somewhat of a similar situation. I was under the thought that black shoes were the way to go in most instances. Now I have a pair of black AE's that never see any use because I'm always wearing brown shoes. Live and learn......

 

[petr]

You're not alone. What compounds this issue (for me) is "seasonal" shades of brown. At least a salesman recently confused me with this idea. For example, an Alden Walnut captoe.

I try to use brown more and more. However, now only w/ navy and a nicer tan pant.

 

[antirabbit]

Jump in the deep end and get you some green shoes.

 

[Dewey]

go for shoes that are darker than your pants. so maybe get yourself a dark brown or dark burgundy shoe -- the shell suggestion is good or maybe get a dark brown suede -- make sure they are your best-fitting shoes so you have no other reason to feel awkward in them. and wear them with trousers that are lighter in color. if all of your suits are very dark, you might be better off with black shoes. it can look real dandy to pair a dark dark navy suit with cognac shoes. this is a good thing, but the not the way to ease out of black shoes.

light browns look best & work easiest with even lighter pants. white pants, stone pants, light tan pants, etc., look easily right with lighter brown pants.

 

[JayJay]

Black shoes still have a prominent place in my wardrobe for formal business meetings and events. I wear them several times a week. An alternative to black for me is burgundy. I reserve brown for less formal occasions.

 

[DocHolliday]

Generally, the darker the shoe, the more versatile, especially with suits. For more casual wear, it often comes down to how you balance the colors that compose your outfit. I'd suggest checking out the WAYW thread to see how people integrate various shoe colors. Then you can decide for yourself what you think looks good and what you'd feel comfortable wearing.

 

[otc]

Luckily I have never really liked black shoes prior to wearing more dress shoes so it was easy to wean me off.

I don't know why but I have never found black on shoes in more casual wear to be appealing. The people who wear black dress-type shoes with jeans always confuse me (even when they ARENT wearing square-toed kenneth coles) because it just doesn't look right to me. I have a pair of shoes that I actually like a lot but are a mix of white nylon, orange suede and stitching and some black leather...I think the black frequently makes me not want to wear them though so they get little use.

I still associated black with dress shoes and stuff (though I had once suit that I always thought looked particularly bad with black shoes and could never figure out what to do) but after getting differing advice it just sort of "clicked" that other colors were ok.

So my advice would be to think about what you wear casually with jeans and stuff...it looks ok to wear a lot of brown then right?

 

[whiteslashasian]

Some of the guidelines such as wearing shoes that are darker than your pants are usually true. It's a good way to play it safe.

However I've been experimenting with wearing medium gray pants with tan shoes and I really like the look. It's great on Fridays at work and during the day on weekends. I've also been wearing navy pants with medium brown shoes and I think it's a sharp look as well.

Burgundy shoes go well with pretty much anything. Another great part about the burgundy shoes is that not too many people have the color and it really catches the eye. I've received many compliments on my fairly worn in burgundy wing tips, probably the most out of any of my shoes.

Brown Suede goes great with jeans for an easy casual look.

 

[kmdsimpson]

Really great advice here. I do have a pair of dress oxfords in burgundy; I've just always limited their use. I'll try those more with suits. I might look into finding something slightly less dressy, as well.

I really like the idea of brown suedes. Anyone have an opinion on something like the AE BelAir vs. the Peals sold at Brooks Brothers?

http://www.shoes.com/Shopping/Produc...258&pg=5083127

http://www.brooksbrothers.com/IWCatP...lt_color=Brown

And would you consider these dress or casual? I'm leaning towards more casual on these.

 

[JayJay]

Originally Posted by kmdsimpson

Really great advice here. I do have a pair of dress oxfords in burgundy; I've just always limited their use. I'll try those more with suits. I might look into finding something slightly less dressy, as well.

I really like the idea of brown suedes. Anyone have an opinion on something like the AE BelAir vs. the Peals sold at Brooks Brothers?

http://www.shoes.com/Shopping/Produc...258&pg=5083127

http://www.brooksbrothers.com/IWCatP...lt_color=Brown

And would you consider these dress or casual? I'm leaning towards more casual on these.
I like the Peal suede shoes, and would consider them for either dress or casual.

 

[bc78]

Originally Posted by kmdsimpson

Really great advice here. I do have a pair of dress oxfords in burgundy; I've just always limited their use. I'll try those more with suits. I might look into finding something slightly less dressy, as well. I really like the idea of brown suedes. Anyone have an opinion on something like the AE BelAir vs. the Peals sold at Brooks Brothers? http://www.shoes.com/Shopping/Produc...258&pg=5083127 http://www.brooksbrothers.com/IWCatP...lt_color=Brown And would you consider these dress or casual? I'm leaning towards more casual on these.
I like the Peals better. They'd be fine for dress or casual. A bit out of my price range though so I just picked up a pair of suede bel airs. I plan on mostly wearing them casually but I might break the rules and wear them with a suit this summer.

 

[whiteslashasian]

I actually prefer the look of the Bel Airs. For some reason suede wing tips just seem to work better than a suede half brogue to me...

 

[kmdsimpson]

I think if these were all suede, I might like them (BTW - Peals were half off at BB a couple days ago).

http://www.brooksbrothers.com/IWCatP...Parent_Id=522#