I haven't worn a black shoe in 6 months.

I wore mine today just for you Moo.

Originally Posted by TC (Houston)

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I wore mine today just for you Moo.

Supergreat.

I'd like to be wearing these...

Woah epic laces on the second one!!!

I am in the courtroom quite a bit and it is a cardinal sin to wear something that draws attention to you, and away from your unassailable logic in your argument. Black shoes are necessary tools of the trade.....though I am digging the brown shoes I've bought for those days I'm not in the courtroom.

Originally Posted by Uncle Jam's Army

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I am in the courtroom quite a bit and it is a cardinal sin to wear something that draws attention to you, and away from your unassailable logic in your argument. Black shoes are necessary tools of the trade.....though I am digging the brown shoes I've bought for those days I'm not in the courtroom.

Wasn't Denny Crane undefeated?

Originally Posted by Uncle Jam's Army

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I am in the courtroom quite a bit and it is a cardinal sin to wear something that draws attention to you, and away from your unassailable logic in your argument. Black shoes are necessary tools of the trade.....though I am digging the brown shoes I've bought for those days I'm not in the courtroom.

I'm in court almost daily and seldom wear black shoes. Guess I'm a cardinal sinner. Also, many of the more successful private practitioners dress quite flamboyantly. I'm in crim law, if that makes a difference.

Yes, that does make a difference. I do IP and commercial litigation. You don't see any flamboyant dressers in those circles.

About 1/3 of my dress shoes are black and I estimate I wear them about 1/4 of the time. Currently cordovan / oxblood pulls the most weight. I feel black goes best with lighter grey suits. Pre-SF I wore black much more (probably 3/4 of the time). Of casual shoes I have one pair of black Doc Martins that I have not worn in about a year, but I think I will pull them out in the fall.

My preferences have definitely changed over the last couple years but still like to wear black shoes on occasion...just not as much as varying shades of brown.

I, like, totally get the iGent brown-shoes-only groupthink. Now, what should I get for wearing with white tie -- brown patent leather opera pumps or burgundy?

I think the reason we're all on this forum is because we all agree that black is safe, while non-black is much more stylish. Brown and burgundy being the next step but now people are progressing to colors like twilight and midnight blue as well as olive and chameleon.

Originally Posted by EdenResident

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Black shoes are the new brown shoes.
- I say navy or dark blue is the new black.
- I am still looking for a black pair

For a travel wardrobe (i.e. what I wear) it's a lot easier to wear one pair of black shoes that will work with any shade of gray or blue and go unnoticed for a few days straight than it is to wear one pair of tan or brown shoes. As such, my black dress shoes get a lot more wear than do my brown shoes.

That said, I enjoy brown for casual shoes (normally wear tan loafers or boat shoes), and I'd like to add a pair of RM Williams Comfort Craftsmen in Chestnut as I think they'll work for both business casual and casual.

When I first traveled I also brought one pair of shoes with a matching belt because it did lighten the load.

However the new 22 inch wheeled carryon's (I have a Hartmann) allow you to go back to brown if you like. I routinely pack the bottom of the case with 2 pair of good brown shoes with wooden shoe trees and put a week's worth of business and casual clothes on top of them. The top of the case has a casual pair of loafers or running shoes along with my casual clothes.

One advantage of this is that in a week of work I wear one pair of shoes 3 days and one 2 days and the shoes last a ton longer given the time to relax themselves and completely dry out. While not downtown on appointments the loafers (or flip flops as my main travel is Honolulu) give the better shoes a bit more rest.

Perry