Shoes are expensive. You don’t get a pair every week and, for this reason, when you decide to take out your wallet, you have to be very well informed. If you bought them and after that you realize they’re a little too small (like a friend of mine recently had this happen), you end up giving them as a gift to someone else. Of course… you need to buy new ones for yourself.

A lot of people think shoes are the most important part of an outfit. The reason? If you’re wearing simple clothes but your shoes look great, you’ll create a much better impression than if you’re very elegant but your shoes are old or dirty.

Your care when choosing your shoes shows your attention to details and sub communicates more about you than you think. Come to think of it, this article is probably the most important one I’ve written so far (except the one about personal hygiene, maybe).

Who is this article not for?

Since the subject of shoes is very vast, I’m only going to be talking about the basics. This article is not for you if:

• you’re looking for your formal meetings
• you want something for your sporting activities
• you want some winter boots

The types of shoes we’ll talk about will be worn in situations such as: going out, at work (business casual), at school, parties, romantic dinners. Since these situations are informal (we’re not talking about business meetings), the shoes are, of course, casual.

I’ll take this opportunity to post up pictures of my own shoes. Don’t worry if you don’t like some of them: we each have our own style and taste.

Basic advice before you buy

There are a few things you need to know before you buy a pair of shoes.

Shoes are not something to be cheap about. A pair of good leather shoes will last a lot longer than an imitation leather shoes (not to mention they look better). As long as you take good care of them, you’ll increase their lifespan enormously. Thus, you’ll have only to gain in the long run.

Another thing is the moment you buy. When you try on shoes, especially leather ones, it’s VERY important they’re not too small and that you feel comfortable in them. Don’t take advice from the salesperson such as “don’t worry, they’ll loosen up in time”. This depends a lot on how they were actually made so it’s not guaranteed to happen.

Try on both shoes before you buy because your left foot is not the same size as your right one. If you’re only looking around you don’t have to do this. But if you’re ready to buy, don’t skip this step!

Loafers

The first option for casual shoes that you can wear on a daily basis are loafers. On the formality scale they’re somewhere between business shoes (usually worn with a suit) and sport shoes. So they’re great if you want a classy yet relaxed look.

The first time loafers appeared, the reactions were terrible. People were not used to seeing shoes that didn’t have any laces, so they thought they’re extremely weird. In time, because they’re very comfortable and easy to put on, they were accepted but only in informal situations.

The above pair is something that I wear on weekends a lot and sometimes at work. IT’s made of leatehr, looks very good and it takes me a couple of seconds to put on. I make sure I don’t wear it two days in a row to increase its lifespan.

But not all loafers are necessarily stylish. My pair as a few things I want you to look at.

First of all, the toe box is pretty narrow at the end. This is something I actually impose as a rule to everyone: choose shoes with an elongated top. The sole is thin and low. The frame is thin as well. Make sure you look for these the next time you buy a pair of loafers!

Boat Shoes

Loafers are in style right now but there’s a pair of shoes that has laces that’s even more stylish. You’ll start feeling relaxed from the first second you put them on. That’s right, I’m talking about boat shoes!

Even though they were used exclusively by sailors, boat shoes started to become fashionable in the 80s and are still holding on today.

Also known as deck shoes, they’re made of canvas, the sole is made of rubber. Their advantage is that they’re very comfortable and cheaper.

The pair above can be worn both with leans and shorts. It has both white and blue so you can repeat these colors in your outfit. Of course, if you want to make an outfit that stands out, you can even wear them with a shirt and sports jacket. The combinations are limitless.

Sneakers

If you’re the sporty type or you just don’t like leather shoes, you can be stylish wearing sneakers. Here we need to make an important distinction: day-to-day sneakers are not the same with what you wear during sporting activities.

You don’t want to make a big mistake such as buying expensive soccer sneakers, that are specially designed to give you best performance when playing that sport. You’ll only end up paying extra for features you don’t need, such as extra resistance, a specially designed sole or toe box etc.

So, if you want stylish sneakers, go for those that only imitate sport-line shoes.

The shape of the sneaker should be aerodynamic… it just looks better! The sole should be low and thin. Sounds like the same advice I gave for loafers, right?

Don’t go for cheap counterfeit sneakers because they won’t last long. In the long run you’ll end up paying more for cheap shoes than for more expensive ones. When it comes to shoes, quality comes at a price.

When it comes to sneakers, you have plenty models to choose from. Take a look at the pair below. I’ve had it for over a year now and still looks great. Canvas sneakers come in a wider variety of colors than leather ones. This means you have more options when you want to match them with your outfit.

Ready to choose?

Now that I gave you some ideas of what stylish shoes you can get, all you have to do is start searching for you ideal pair. Pick the one that matches the most clothes in your wardrobe. ideally you’ll want to get at least a pair of each of the shoes I presented in this article (except for sneakers if you’re not the type).

Until next time,

George