Men’s Shoe Guide: Tips on How to Wear the 8 Most Common Men’s Dress Shoe Styles

If I would only have a dollar every-time I hear a fellow sartorialist say “The shoe makes the man”… Well, this saying is popular for a reason. Nice footwear does add a tremendous amount of style and class to your wardrobe, a fact that inspired me to write this dress shoe guide. Below are the eight most common dress shoe styles found in a man’s wardrobe, and besides just writing about what makes each style unique, I am giving you some helpful dress/style tips on each. Last but not least, because a picture is worth a thousand words, I added images of some of my favorite pieces for each category.

Oxfords (AKA Balmoral)
A classic shoe style with a formal, elegant, and dressy appeal. Oxfords come in any color although black and browns are most popular. Typically the sleeker the design (being also black in color), the more formal the shoe. Brogue oxfords and heavier construction on the other hand appear a bit less formal. Pair the oxford shoes with dress pants but not jeans.

Derby (aka Blüchers)
The Derby is a very similar to the oxford shoe but the difference is in the lacing which is sewn outside of the shoes (showing visible flaps). This more noticeable lacing style makes this shoe style less formal compared to the classic Oxford. Derby/Blüchers come in any color, brogue and non brogue, cap-toed, wing tipped, as well as many different types of leather and linen. Derby shoes are perfect for a smart-casual dress consisting of jeans, dress shorts, and sport coats. They are less suited for suits but do make a good shoe choice for business attire on rainy days due to their more rugged construction.

Loafers
Loafer’s are the traveling business man’s best friend. They slip on and off easily when going through security, they are comfortable, and versatile. The sleeker and simpler the design the more formal it is. Also, darker colors are more formal (black being the most formal), and the less of your socks are visible the more formal the look. Loafers look great with jeans and dress pants, as well as with suits when not wearing a necktie. Common loafer variations are monk straps, tasseled decorations, penny loafers, and formal pumps (see below).

Cap Toes
The term cap toe refers to the extra layer of leather near the front of the shoes. That being said, oxfords as well as Blüchers can be “Cap Toed”. Again, the sleeker the design the more formal. Heavy brogue (embossing of the leather) takes away the formality but does add a more uniqueness. Depending on the style and formality, cap toed dress shoes can be worn with suits, tuxedos, and even jeans.

Monk Straps
The term “Monk strap” refers to the buckled strap the replaces shoe laces. Monk straps come with one, two, and even three straps, are available in any color, can be made from a wide variety of different leathers, and can be cap toed as well as wingtipped (see below). Monk strap shoes are perfect for those who seek a more unique type of shoe that will draw attention. When matching the shoes, make sure that the color of the clasp Typically silver, brass, or gold) matches your belt buckle, wrist watch, and cufflinks (should you choose to wear those).

Dress Boots
Dress boots are a sleek and minimalistic boot style that can be worn with jeans, odd trousers, and suits (in rainy or snowy weather). Dress boots come in a wide variety of styles such as brougai, wing tip, monk strap, and cap toed.

Wingtips
The term “Wing Tip” refers to the shape of the cap toe that looks like wings stretching across the front of the shoe. Most wing tips are Derby shoes decorated with brogue leather. While most wing tips are solid in color (mostly back or brown), two-toned date back to the 1920s (black & white). Today two-toned wingtips are once again quite popular and perfect for a smart-casual dress.

Formal Pumps
The formal pump (aka Opera pump) is a formal type of loafer made from shiny black patent leather. Typical is a grosgrain ribbon decoration on the cap of the shoe. Formal pumps are only suited for formal black tie or white tie ensembles and do make a good alternative choice of shoe to formal patent leather oxfords which are typically worn for these two formal dress codes.

Thanks for Visiting my Site.

Hendrik

Learn to Tie an Oriental Tie Knot

The Oriental is a very easy to tie knot that is small in size and narrow in shape. It is perfect for ties made from a thicker fabric worn in combination with narrow spread, as well as button down collars. I tend to choose the Oriental knot for my thicker Regimental ties. The thick Mogador fabric, and/or Irish Poplin commonly used for these ties, makes it difficult to tie a knot that fits between the narrow spread collar of my oxford dress shirts. The four in Hand, while also small in size, is a bit too wide for this very specific shirt and tie combination. The Oriental knot on the other hand is perfect.

Pros:

• Easy to tie
• Takes little of the tie’s fabric (perfect for taller men tying a normal length tie)
• Great for ties made from thicker/heavier fabric
• Ideal for very narrow spread shirt collars

Cons:

• Unsuited for wide spread shirt collars
• Slips easily and needs to be re-tightened occasionally
• Flat and narrow shape makes it unsuited for most silk ties

Oriental Tie Knot Instructions:

Lay the tie around your flipped-up collar, with the inner stitching facing outwards on both ends. About 3/4 of the length of the tie should hang down on the broad end.

Wrap the wide end around the narrow end. Then pull the wide end of the tie around the piece wrapping your neck (see image). Don’t pull tight quite yet, but leave a loop at the front.

Pull the wide and through the loop created in step 2.

Pull the knot tight, turn down the collar, and center it.

Other Exotic Tie Knots:
Learn to Tie the Kelvin Tie Knot
Tie a Manhattan Tie Knot

A Wardrobe that Even the Top 1% Can’t Afford

The world’s most expensive wardrobe comes in at a whopping $6.6 Million – a price tag that will make even the Top 1% feel poor. Using Bloomberg’s Top 1% income figure of $350K, it would take the average 1% earner over 30 years of frugal lifestyle to afford such lavishness. To put things in perspective, $6.6 Million is enough to feed 90,000 starving children in Africa for an entire year (figure taken from the United Nations World Food Programme). I think this is the perfect example that money can’t buy style, and certainly can’t buy class.

Stuart Hughes Men’s Suit – $900,000
The world’s most expensive suit was a collaboration between luxury designer Stuart Hughes and tailor Richard Jewels. The suit is constructed out of fine cashmere and silk blend, and is decorated with a trip of 480 diamonds with a total weight of 240 carats. Apparently it took a master tailor 600 hours to create.

Eton’s 80th Anniversary Dress Shirt – $45,000
Cheap in comparison to the suit featured above is this limited edition dress shirt by Swedish shirt maker Eton. The luxury shirt maker created this piece in celebration of its 80th anniversary. The shirt is constructed from fine Egyptian cotton, and of course dozens of diamonds on the studs and cufflinks. Best of all, there is no need to feel guilty for this lavish spending since all proceeds will go to Charity.

Jacob & Co. Cufflinks – $4.2 Million
If the “free” diamond cufflinks that come with the Eton shirt (shown above) aren’t flashy enough, then Jacob & Co designed the perfect upgrade for you. The centerpiece on each cufflink features a 10.5 carat yellow diamond framed with an additional 5 carats of baguette cut diamonds.

Patek Philippe “Sky Moon Tourbillon” – $1.1 Million
Compared to the world’s most expensive men’s wrist watch (1735 Blancpain @ $8.39 Mil), Swiss watch maker Patek Philippe created a bargain timepiece. Although one would expect a flashy diamond encrusted bezel for such a price tag, the designer uses ordinary gold and leather instead. It is a lavish yet impressive double-faced timepiece that features a sidereal time display, perpetual calendar, stars motion side display, and moon phases.

Necktie by Satya Paul – $223,000
Still looking to add more flash and bling to your ourfit? Then this quarter million dollar necktie will be perfect. Designer Satya Paul created this lavish tie from silk and white gold yarns, and decorated it with 261 diamonds (77 carat in weight). After finding this tie, I thought about what tie knot would suit it best, but couldn’t decide on one. Regardless of the price, I find this the most tacky piece on this “most expensive wardrobe”.

Crocodile Skin Umbrella – $50,000
Perfect for the rainy season this winter is this $50,000 umbrella, designed and created by Italian Formula One mogul Flavio Briatore and designer Angelo Galasso. It is constructed out of genuine crocodile skin that is actually water resistant.

Moro Alligator Skin Dress Shoe by A. Testoni – $38,000
To finish this billionaire’s outfit, I picked out these $38,000 cheap dress shoes by Bolognia’s luxury shoe maker A. Testoni. It not only Testoni’s most expensive shoe to date, but it is the most expensive men’s dress shoe in the world. It is made from alligator skin that will be the perfect compliment to the $50,000 umbrella featured above.

Think I missed an accessory for this billionaire’s wardrobe? Then tell me in a comment below.

Hendrik
Tie-a-Tie.net