I am enamored of brown shoes with navy suits, even tobacco suede bluchers like the pair on the father of the graduate in the illustration. I used to think wearing bluchers with suits was a sartorial sin, but I have grown out of that one. At least for less formal occasions.
My attraction to the combination of brown shoes and blue suits began after I realized that navy and black look bad next to each other. I gave away a couple of black and blue neckties that had never worked for me and soon after began asking myself why I was wearing black shoes with navy suits. So, before six o'clock, I've stopped. To paraphrase Dorothy, I don't think we're in London any more.
Currently, in the suede category, I like very dark brown best with navy flannel. And I've been seen wearing tobacco suede as well as fox if I'm feeling daringly Neapolitan.
But I'd never wear black shoes with white flannels as the young man is doing and you shouldn't either.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Don't Step On My Brown Suede Shoes
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I have to agree with Will on this one. Blue suits and black shoes are horrible and so many people do it. One of the reasons I have stopped buying blue suits is that I do not yet have the proper shoe to wear. That is why I have been building my gray suit wardrobe.
One exeption to the black/blue rule was observed by me this past Summer at Paul Stuart in NYC. It was the very day of the steam pipe explosion near Grand Central. A young man perhaps in his late 20s or early 30s was at Paul Stuart looking at neckties. As I passed him, I looked at his suit quickly so as not to look like I was staring. He was wearing a navy pinstripe suit, blue check shirt with large checks, and a navy tie with yellow and red figures. The shoes were a black Gucci slip on with the silver metal across the toe. I do not wear Gucci shoes nor do I care for the ostentation on the shoe, but I have to say this worked perfectly on this young man because the silver in the metal picked up the pinstrip in the suit and gave the young fellow almost a casual carefree look but still keeping him looking good. I have to say that look is the only exception I have ever come across to the balck shoe/navy suit combo.
I do have a pair of chocolate brown suede shoes (loafer) that I bought at Crockett & Jones this past Summer so maybe I'll pair them with the only navy suit which hangs in my closet mostly unworn.
John
NYC
Will: What is your opinion on burgundy shoes with navy or gray suits?
So what would you wear with white pants?
What shades of brown would you consider acceptable with navy suits? Mocha certainly seems acceptable to me, but what about something like cognac, brandy, or even burnished tan? They seem too light to me, but as I am just beginning to learn the intricacies of color, my intuition may be a bit off.
Thank you!
I agree with Will and John. I don't like the look of black shoes with navy suits. I mostly buy charcoal suits. I do have a couple of navy suits in a Savile Row chalk stripe that I wear on occasion, but that's about it. Plain navy suits leave me cold.
I was raised (in London) to consider brown shoes with navy suits a major sartorial faux pas, and not just in town. Has anyone else encountered this bias? I wonder where it originates.
Tobacco suede (for tassel loafers, chukkas, and brogues) is my absolute favourite. It's a wonderful look.
Burgundy shoes, and their red-toned relations, are considered members of the brown shoe family.
The Royal Yacht Club specifies brown shoes with white flannels. So should we all.
I wear all shades of brown with navy, though the very light versions should be reserved for sunny weather in my opinion.
This seems to be a debate for the ages! I've read articles in old Apparel Arts magazines about the subject, and have a somewhat mixed perspective, personally.
I agree that brown shoes have an extra panache with navy that black just cannot deliver. It seems richer, more elegant, more refined. Not to mention, quality brown shoes never quite look the same, and the colors and shades of the shoe (to me anyways) always seem to be evolving. However, this is not to say that black shoes are without merit.
Black shoes are, always have been, and always will be de rigueur with navy suitings. This is because they require no effort -- what I call being a "no-brainer". What they lack in style, they make up for in function and formality.
In general, I, like many of you, prefer brown with my navy. However, I am in my third year of law school, and in court (especially in South Carolina, and the 4th federal circuit, where I reside) the courts tend to have a very traditional, very formal expectation of dressing. When I appear in court, or before a judge, or at any formal trial, I always wear black oxfords. It's just safer.
Maybe that's the best word for black with navy -- safe. It may not be the most stylish option, but without question, it maintains an easy, functional formality.
In my opinion dark brown shoes, with the exception of situations requiring dinner jacket or tail coats, can excellently substitute for black shoes , even after six and with gray suits. In all the other occasions, brown shoes in different tonalities and leathers ,are always the right choice.
Angelo
I am disappointed on a daily basis with this modern idea that one should wear brown shoes with a dark suit.. and that a hairbrush or comb is non existent in a Gentleman's grooming regime nowadays.. oh.. don't get me started!!
I have a pair of C&J Peals that were that were the orange-ish brown that BB likes... I had them re-dyed a very very dark cognac, then I acetoned selectively to get a bit of burnish. They are dark enough to be "safe", yet have some character.
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