What to wear with these shoes?

[Dr.Teatime]

Hi all,

I just picked up these shoes and I am looking for advice on what to wear with these suede shoes.
They are a bit light in color so I'm worried about looking too goofy.

All help/comments are appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

 

[MyOtherLife]

Pretty much anything you like with the exclusion of dark suits.
You could wear them with a linen suit (excluding black), or any casual pants.
Nice shoes...details?

 

[DocHolliday]

If you're worried about the color, you could take a page from Cucinelli and pair them with similarly light-colored clothing. Tans, light gray, etc. That would minimize the contrast and make them less conspicuous. But I think you'll get comfortable wearing them quickly. Just think of ways to balance them out -- a light colored sportcoat up top, for example, would let you wear darker trou and still not have all the emphasis on your feet.

 

[Dr.Teatime]

Originally Posted by Man Of Lint

Pretty much anything you like with the exclusion of dark suits.
You could wear them with a linen suit (excluding black), or any casual pants.
Nice shoes...details?

Thanks... these are Magnanni's I recently picked up on sale. BTW, a great sale and selection at nordstrom's as previously posted.

@Doc: Thanks for the comments. Can I get away with these in Fall/Winter? I'm wondering if these are warm weather shoes.

 

[Dr.Teatime]

any other advice??

 

[DocHolliday]

Originally Posted by Dr.Teatime

@Doc: Thanks for the comments. Can I get away with these in Fall/Winter? I'm wondering if these are warm weather shoes.

Personally, I think such shoes can work year 'round, if you choose your color palette correctly. The darker colors of winter can make things a bit trickier, and suede isn't ideal for snow and slush, but I see no reason why these need to be boxed up once the leaves start to turn. They're not white bucks.

 

[chenc]

Is there some kind of "complete" guide/rules/general principles (book, specific thread) a newbie (e.g. yours truly) can look to when he doesn't know how to match shoes with the rest of his wardrobe?

 

[DocHolliday]

The best is probably WAYW, in that it will let you see all sorts of different combinations, so you can decide what you like. In short, the major considerations are design, color, and type of leather. A balmoral shoe is dressy and typically worn with suits. The ultimate suit shoe is the plain captoe balmoral: Notice that it is sleek and elegant and somewhat austere. In black, it would be the most formal type of shoe you would wear with a suit. (Tuxedos are another matter.) Then you have bluchers, which are more casual. These are also called derbies: The difference in balmorals and bluchers lies in how they're put together. Compare: Balmoral:

Blucher:

Balmorals have what is known as "closed lacing," meaning the quarters -- the sections with the laces -- are stitched beneath the vamp, the forward part of the shoe. This gives a sleeker profile than offered by bluchers, which are built in the opposite fashion and said to have "open lacing." In general, sleeker = dressier. By the same logic, a shoe with a thick double sole will be less dressy than a shoe with a thin single sole. Some guys wear bluchers with suits, some don't. The success of the pairing depends on both the cut of the suit and the style of the shoe. Sometimes a hefty clodhopper can make for an interesting juxtaposition with a sleek suit. But sometimes it just looks clunky. You'll have to eyeball it. Aside from the design of the shoe, the color, amount of decoration, and material also come into play. Black shoes are more formal than brown, and dark brown is a bit dressier than light brown. But this can be a subtle distinction. A black Kenneth Cole square-toed blucher is in no way dressier than a sleek dark brown balmoral. In general, though, the black version of a shoe is dressier than its brown counterpart. Brown traditionally was not worn at night or to serious events such as weddings, interviews, funerals, etc. Similarly, suede shoes are less dressy than calf. You wouldn't wear suede to most job interviews, though suede can work well with everything from suits to shirt and khakis. The final factor to consider is how much decoration a shoe has. The more broguing -- decorative holes -- the less dressy the shoe is. A black wingtip balmoral is less dressy than a black captoe balmoral, though many people think the opposite these days. If you've made it through all this and still want to learn more, check out A Harris' post here. It covers the above plus much more, such that I thought a simplified explanation might be a little less overwhelming to newcomers. By the way, you can click the top two pics to see more examples of balmorals and derbies. Doing so will take you to the site of SkyValet, a great little shop in the D.C. area.

 

[mkarim]

Originally Posted by Dr.Teatime

Thanks... these are Magnanni's I recently picked up on sale. BTW, a great sale and selection at nordstrom's as previously posted.

@Doc: Thanks for the comments. Can I get away with these in Fall/Winter? I'm wondering if these are warm weather shoes.

Where is the sale? They were $325 at the Atlanta Nordstrom!

 

[mkarim]

Originally Posted by DocHolliday

If you're worried about the color, you could take a page from Cucinelli and pair them with similarly light-colored clothing. Tans, light gray, etc. That would minimize the contrast and make them less conspicuous. But I think you'll get comfortable wearing them quickly. Just think of ways to balance them out -- a light colored sportcoat up top, for example, would let you wear darker trou and still not have all the emphasis on your feet.

Nice color, but not sure if it is very versatile. One would be limited to lighter pants and more likely in the summer.

I have been looking at these shoes myself but am hesitant because of the light color.

 

[robdpittman]

It seems a lot of the guys around here are afraid to wear a bit of colour on their feet! I think these could go quite nicely with the right navy suit, worn in a casual setting.

That said, everyone else is totally right about wearing them with lighter colours...they would easily work with a light tan or beige suit, or if you're the kind of guy who owns a white suit, do that up too!

They might look a little pale next to khaki, but I think medium browns would be nice also. Just don't wear them with anything black, or with anything that's really similar in colour and I think you should be good!

Very nice looking shoes, btw

 

[mkarim]

Originally Posted by robdpittman

Very nice looking shoes, btw

+1

I like the burgundy color on the sole.

 

[chenc]

DocHolliday,
Thank you for responding to my inquiry. May I say you have made contribution to a better dressed world today.

Chen

 

[Dr.Teatime]

Thanks for the comments and discussion. Special thanks to DH for his education on the styles. I never appreciated these differences.

WRT the sale.... These were ~50% off at the Pittsburgh Nordstroms. I assumed the sale was valid everywhere. They were on the website, but it says sold out now. I was thinking about returning these ( I got the Cole Haan suede Air Donovans also). But maybe I'll keep these now!

 

[mkarim]

Originally Posted by Dr.Teatime

WRT the sale.... These were ~50% off at the Pittsburgh Nordstroms. I assumed the sale was valid everywhere. They were on the website, but it says sold out now. I was thinking about returning these ( I got the Cole Haan suede Air Donovans also). But maybe I'll keep these now!

The Atlanta Nordstrom has them at the regular price of $325, which is quite expensive.