The same guideline is a good one for monkstraps, which, as the photo illustrates, are usually open laced shoes with a strap and buckle replacing the lacing (the double strap version in the photo and some other monks are more generally comparable to oxfords and there we enter no man's land as they do not seem to me to be any more formal than their brethren).
So wear your monks like bluchers, with sports suits, blazers and odd jackets.
Photo: Edward Green
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7 comments:
No open lace shoes with suits is a subtly missed by most men. Most men I know or see, consider a black wingtip the appropriate shoe for a suit. I did for many years until you and others educated me.
I generally agree about open laces but not the Monk. My opinion is probably shaped by a guy I used to work for (very wealthy, titled, English) who always wore black monks with a very discreet buckle with the most formal of suits. He was something of a Francophile and monks are very popular with business wear in France so maybe that's where he picked it up.
Why are open lace shoes not appropriate for a suit? I find them to be more comfortable, and when one wears a suit for ten hours a day five days a week and then for four to five hours every Saturday, as I do, that little extra measure of comfort helps.
I must confess I flout this particular rule for a specific reason; I have to wear orthopedic inserts and the only shoes I can get to fit with my inserts are Derby/Bluchers.
I hope Will can find it in his heart to forgive me
I'd have to agree with Joe. Maybe its just bias from spending my adult life in Montreal and Paris, but I've always felt that the elegance and sleekness of monks, particularly in black, places them well above derbies in the formality hierarchy, and possibly even above closed-laced full and half brogues.
Will - Off topic, but I just want to say thanks for differentiating between odd jackets and blazers in your writing. A pet peeve of mine has always been people using the term "blazer" to refer to any tailored jacket.
SDunsworth said...and possibly even above closed-laced full and half brogues.
In black I'd put them level with the captoe brogue and well ahead of the wingtip (which I don't personally like but that's just me). A lot depends on the discretion of the buckle which needs to be very quiet. Any of the three above in black leather would look good with most formal solid, check and striped, blue or grey suits.
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