Suede Shoes - What Season?

[TomAlso]

Just a curiosity, do you guys wear suede shoes all year round?
Or just during the cold season? Are suede shoes out of place in summer or with warm weather in general?

 

[Joffrey]

I wear mine year round.

 

[curzon]



Are suede shoes out of place in summer or with warm weather in general?

A light beige or taupe will work for ya.

 

[tobiasj]

Doesn't really seem like a seasonal thing to me...

 

[Trompe le Monde]

year round
in fact, im wearing them more and more, and im buying more and more, and im on an arc to wear suede exclusively...
theyre just more interesting to look at

 

[SirGrotius]

I wear my tan suedes more toward summer. I don't necessarily associate suede with a season. I do have a hangup about bad weather and suede but apparently that's an old wive's tale.

 

[ThatGuy]

I wear it whenever it doesn't rain/ snow.

 

[Thanks SF (a new me)]



year round in fact, im wearing them more and more, and im buying more and more...theyre just more interesting to look at

+1...I normally wear darker shades (drk brown/chocolate/Snuff) during F/W and lighter (Beige/Tobacco) during S/S...I could be wrong, but I guess you can pretty much wear any color all year round.

 

[Gdot]

There was a time, long ago and far away, in which suede was a winter material. Summer was 'white or dirty bucks' which is nubuck leather. One would not have worn suede shoes in the summer in general.

Of course in this land of distant memory it also was considered desirable to dress according to the season in general. Meaning in the summer seersucker and light colored suits were the norm, not the exception.

Modern heating and air conditioning has largely diminished the variables of seasonal dressing. Suede seems to be completely acceptable in the summer these days.

I still think it is especially dapper to vary ones shoes with the seasons a bit. I won't wear loafers in the winter, nor heavy dark colored laceups in the summer. I wear dark suede in the winter and tobacco or snuff suede in the summer. These rules are not hard and fast, and there are exceptions taken....but some seasonal variety is good! It only makes sense - if your attire is lighter colored in the summer - as it is for many - won't a lighter colored shoe be more appropriate?

 

[JayJay]

I tend to wear suede mostly in fall/winter with flannels, cords and tweeds.

 

[Michigan Planner]

I ordered a pair of suede longwings and was hoping to wear them most of the winter, unfortunately they keep getting delayed so that didn't happen.

I do have a couple other pair of suede shoes and I wear them all year long. As others have said, the color is more of a determinant of when they are worn than anything else is.

 

[recondite]

'xould be wrong, but one's spectators seem to have white suede as part of their construction and they are summer classics and late affectation. Dirty bucks were standard summer fare as a youth, if not year round wear, and they weren't nu-buck but the real daddy in suede. That was before sailing became my summer occupation and past time, and boat shoes were the de rigor summer footwear uniform regardless of attire.

Clark's desert boots and Wallabies seemed to see plenty of summer use as well when away from town and the water until pursuit of the opposite sex demanded more stylish suede alternatives like chukkas, loafers, and oxfords.

Different views from different experiences. It seems wearing anything other than flip flops or trainers is rather unusual for summer wear in the US at least and suede shoes of any color would be a good place to start.

There was a time, long ago and far away, in which suede was a winter material. Summer was 'white or dirty bucks' which is nubuck leather. One would not have worn suede shoes in the summer in general.
Of course in this land of distant memory it also was considered desirable to dress according to the season in general. Meaning in the summer seersucker and light colored suits were the norm, not the exception.
Modern heating and air conditioning has largely diminished the variables of seasonal dressing. Suede seems to be completely acceptable in the summer these days.
I still think it is especially dapper to vary ones shoes with the seasons a bit. I won't wear loafers in the winter, nor heavy dark colored laceups in the summer. I wear dark suede in the winter and tobacco or snuff suede in the summer. These rules are not hard and fast, and there are exceptions taken....but some seasonal variety is good! It only makes sense - if your attire is lighter colored in the summer - as it is for many - won't a lighter colored shoe be more appropriate?

 

[scottcw]

Year round as long as it is dry.

 

[Gdot]



'xould be wrong, but one's spectators seem to have white suede as part of their construction and they are summer classics and late affectation. Dirty bucks were standard summer fare as a youth, if not year round wear, and they weren't nu-buck but the real daddy in suede. That was before sailing became my summer occupation and past time, and boat shoes were the de rigor summer footwear uniform regardless of attire.

Clark's desert boots and Wallabies seemed to see plenty of summer use as well when away from town and the water until pursuit of the opposite sex demanded more stylish suede alternatives like chukkas, loafers, and oxfords.

Different views from different experiences. It seems wearing anything other than flip flops or trainers is rather unusual for summer wear in the US at least and suede shoes of any color would be a good place to start.

Of course. There were always exceptions to the seasonal nature of true suede. White suede may have been used on spectators - as was white calf. As for 'bucks' they are by their very definition made from Nubuck that is why they are called 'bucks'.

Based on your observations I believe I was referring to a time a bit earlier than you seem to reference. As the Clark's Wallabies were invented in 1965. By the mid to late 1960s all bets were off in terms of what was 'proper' with the youth. However, I was still under the firm control of my parents at this point in time. My generation was probably among the very last to be 'schooled' in these rules. And I do understand that they are archaic. Although I must admit to this day I wouldn't be comfortable in my espresso suede Hallam's in the height of summer. They just 'feel' winter to me.

My observations were included simply for historical reference. As I believe since the 1960s most of the social mores associated with 'proper attire' have been widely disregarded. Some of which I think is unfortunate but most of which I'm fine with.

Anyway - not to get into a debate - as all oberservations are based on personal perspective. I was only attempting to layout the history of the long dead prohibition against most suede in the summer as it seemed pertinent to the OP's question.

Oh! I do have a pair of sperry penny loafers in a rust suede with a rubber sole. I've worn them to death for the past 25 summers. Including boating. I think I waded through a creek in them last summer as well. So I do relate to your comment about the 'ol all purpose 'boat shoe'. A role those loafers have filled admirably.

 

[Gus]

In general for me, darker suede in fall and winter, lighter suede in spring and summer. But, I have been wearing my light bucks a heck of a lot the last few months. Maybe because women always notice and compliment them even though they are well worn.