Pairing oxford shoes with chinos

[TheChihuahua]

Maybe this is another England vs US thing, but I don’t think you can get much more formal than a navy blazer in a fine worsted with grey wool trousers. Most suits are less formal and a worsted suit is only fractionally more formal.

I’m also curious how you can think an outfit would look good with black shoes but is “not really a formal look”. That’s an oxymoron. Black is the most formal colour, and in classic menswear you would never wear black in an informal outfit.

agreeing here

a problem with the YouTube rules makers is they want to create rules That fit their location.

the New England country club scene 20-30 years ago? Similar to what you are talking about. Not suit formal, but definitely decent pants and a blazer, and black winged tip oxfords were somewhat of a staple. That smart casual look that has morphed into Biz Caj Plus that some advocate for.

for some dude from California to say that a staple and traditional New England country club look is against his made up rules, well... (I get it, he’s pushing an agenda and has skin in this discussion, but it’s nonsense)

this was an immensely popular country club shoe in the 1970’s into the 1990’s (the sneaker style shoe for golf becoming more popular in the 1990’s). I had three pairs of footjoy classic leather sole gold shoes. Soooo uncomfortable but it was all about oxfords and nice pressed golf trousers and a blazer at the club (they also sold the spikess version for while in the dining areas)

people didn’t wear suits on the golf course. Yet the nicest golf shoes mass accessible were oxfords. Amd I do think northeast country club style from a quarter to a half century ago falls within the realm classic menswear.

 

[Northants bloke]

Agreeing with both of you. I am sure many of us have similar examples. Here are 2 of my own Cheaneys to illustrate:

Casual soft unlined oxford brogues with natural soles. (I also have them in brown). I wear these in the summer with slim leg jeans or chinos and a polo or casual shirt. At a pinch with a sports jacket and tie (compulsory) for work but never with a suit.

Northampton is hardly the west end of London or Milan but these Derby's (no longer my favourite) are more than smart enough to pair with a suit for any wedding I'm likely to be invited to.

I have plenty more examples. To be honest, most Northampton men seem to wear sportswear.

 

[emptym]

Maybe this is another England vs US thing, but I don’t think you can get much more formal than a navy blazer in a fine worsted with grey wool trousers. Most suits are less formal and a worsted suit is only fractionally more formal.

Could be a US/England thing. I agree that a plain navy blazer is the most formal of sport coats, esp when worn w/ gray pants, but I definitely don't think it's more formal than "most" suits. The way I was raised, navy blazers were almost always more casual than a suit, worn on Fridays, for church, a daytime party. They wouldn't be used much for formal business, when even a seersucker or khaki tropical wool would be appropriate.

I probably wore black captoes with a navy blazer in the 80s/early 90s. But even then I knew something else would have been better. That was high school and college, when my only "dress" shoes would have been plain black captoe oxfords and Bean camp mocs with nothing in between. Now, I might wear burgundy full brogue oxfords with a navy blazer. Long wings or monk straps would be great. But I agree w/ you that loafers (penny or tassel) are ideal.

the New England country club scene 20-30 years ago? Similar to what you are talking about. Not suit formal, but definitely decent pants and a blazer, and black winged tip oxfords were somewhat of a staple. That smart casual look that has morphed into Biz Caj Plus that some advocate for.

This goes against my experience. I was often at The Country Club in Brookline, MA and occasionally at other clubs from DC through CT at that time. Black wing tip oxfords would have been super rare, unless someone was having dinner on the way home from work. They were considered a banker's or a lawyer's shoe. At the Country Club, brown shoes would have been by far the standard, with some white or two-tones mixed in. The Footjoys you posted were saddle shoes, which are more casual than most bluchers. Brogues of various styles would have been common, along with tassles, I guess due to golf's Scottish heritage. But golf style is its own thing. I wouldn't use that to measure any area's or era's standard of dress.

 

[TheChihuahua]

This goes against my experience. I was often at The Country Club in Brookline, MA and occasionally at other clubs from DC through CT at that time. Black wing tip oxfords would have been super rare, unless someone was having dinner on the way home from work. They were considered a banker's or a lawyer's shoe. At the Country Club, brown shoes would have been by far the standard, with some white or two-tones mixed in. The Footjoys you posted were saddle shoes, which are relatively casual. Brogues of various styles would have been common, along with tassles, I guess due to golf's Scottish heritage. But golf style is its own thing. I wouldn't use that to measure any area's or era's standard of dress.

the footjoys I posted are wing tips. They have a bit of a saddle, but are still an Oxford wing tip. They have closed lacing. They have a winged tip cap. This, according to some may ONLY be worn with a suit (and must also have a tie, it’s a rule)

(The other saddle golf shoes are the lesser model (green joys and soft joys were generally saddle.) The wing tip was the classic model with the leather soles. (they also had a classic saddle without the wing tip, but that one was cheesy).

and having spent plenty of time at the country club in Brookline, I disagree. That wing tip look was popular. And yes, a lot of it was a post work style among lawyers and bankers, but nonetheless it was extremely popular, even in the locker room off Clyde street. I lot of the people there (and other clubs) were (and are) bankers and lawyers taking their ties off after work, and tons of them would be wearing Oxford wingtips. You might have been at the club at different times than me I guess, but that doesn’t mean I’m wrong. This was a very common New England country club look in the 80’s into the 1990’s (I can’t speak for the 70’s because I wasn’t around then, and I would say also into the 2000’s however I had left New England by then and things had become more casual anyway

maybe you didn’t see it that much. I’m not calling you a liar. But it certainly was not rare from my experience spending hundreds and hundreds of days and hours at counttry clubs in New England during this time. It was quite common.

and I would consider New England country club attire (the club, not the plaid pants and such on the course) to fall within the realm of classic menswear.I don’t really understand this desire to try to make up rules that don’t exist, but this is a stretch.

 

[TheChihuahua]

Another place where the Oxford not worn with a suit and tie was pretty popular was that downtown New York, financial district area post work scene. 5 pm to 8 pm, down by Bobby van’s, delmonico’s, cipriani’s, stone street area. Generally a suit, lose the tie, still wearing the wing tips (so against the fictional rules).

Great look. Some people might prefer the less formal sports coat and derby look, but that tie-less suit post work with the oxfords is in no way against any made up rules.

 

[TheChihuahua]

I used to love this sockless Oxford/wingtip look in the summer with shorts. Those of us with trained eyes know this is a great look.

 

[BPL Esq]

While my position on the greater issue is not so rigid as some others' views, I can't really get on board with that ^

 

[bicycleradical]

K that's it for this thread. Shorts and oxfords is trolling.

 

[TheChihuahua]

You guys need to train your eyes more!

in all seriousness the shorts and oxfords is a great look. I’m not saying it falls within classic menswear but it’s a great look in a sprezzatora sense.

 

[BPL Esq]

K that's it for this thread. Shorts and oxfords is trolling.

I was 50/50 on whether the post was bait or not. Haha. It's so hard to tell these days.

 

[TheChihuahua]

I was 50/50 on whether the post was bait or not. Haha. It's so hard to tell these days.

i went to Allen Edmonds website today and it was the banner ad for the site. Thought it was very appropriate.

hey, maybe when you noobs train your eyes a bit more you will appreciate the look. LOL

 

[dench127]

I feel like the chuwawa was sufficiently convinced of the error of his ways pages ago and has since then parlayed his position into a troll job to save face.

 

[TheChihuahua]

I feel like the chuwawa was sufficiently convinced of the error of his ways pages ago and has since then parlayed his position into a troll job to save face.

oh, you are a supportor of made up rules and the concept that once one develops a trained eye that orthopedic shoes will look good? Please. Talk about error of one’s way.

the Allen Edmonds photo was done in humor, but no way are you going to convince me that biz caj plus requires orthopedic shoes or loafers or else it’s against some made up rules.

 

[Spinster Jones]

I even have a hard time finding pictures of guys with shorts and oxfords…

To my trained eye it looks quite wrong. The only thing missing is a pantyhose, a bag with tassels and a Starbucks cup.

 

[BPL Esq]

While there are certainly some chunky, ugly derbies out there, I can't tell if the repeated references to "orthopedic shoes" are a meme as well. There are lots of very attractive non-oxford shoes out there that you don't need a club foot to appreciate.