Question:
What color shoe do you prefer with a navy colored suit?
Answer:
I selected darker brown as the go-to choice, but in summer months I'll vary that with antique tan, and in cooler weather I'll break out the cordovan for a change of pace.
Only rarely will I break out the black. Typically for evening events.
Answer:
It is just my opinion, but I think the reason most men wear black dress shoes, even with blue suits is that they do not have to think about color cordination.
Classic
Answer:
IMO completely depends on the function/purpose, and the rest of the outfit. All choices are correct and stylish given certain circumstances...
Answer:
I agree with Steve. Generally, for day-wear or more relaxed after-six-affairs, I tend to prefer dark brown shoes. For more "formal" events, I stick to black shoes. However, well made, exquisitly polished shoes of either brown or black of appropriate style will pretty much always be fine.
Answer:
IMO, brown shoes, especially dark brown suede, with navy suits is far more prevalent in New York or larger cities and is unknown in the smaller towns of the Midwest.
Answer:
Stylestudent: That is very interesting. With every household inundated with all sorts of visual media, I would have assumed that regional perceptions of sartorial propriety would have begun by now to recede. Some ideas are tenacious, I guess.
Answer:
Black for city
Brown if I go to country
Answer:
Yea, that is why this is such a great question (to toot my own horn). I know that people feel strongly about which color shoe to wear with a navy suit. Some are adament against wearing black shoes with navy, while some think that corodovan is only apporpriate, and that brown is too casual.
I feel that cordovan looks the most stylish, while darker brown is the norm.
Answer:
the poll choices should have included "all of the above".
Answer:
as well as 'lime green'.
Answer:
Do any of you make distinctions among the various shades of navy? For example, I have both a midnight navy HF Boardroom suit and a much warmer, brighter navy HSM 'Gold Trumpeter' suit. The darker one is close enough to black that wearing black shoes with it gives the same clash you always get when mixing 2 slightly different shades of any color. I'll usually wear cordovan shoes with it, but would consider brown in relaxed situations where I'm not worried about offending anyone.
The lighter navy suit, on the other hand, goes just fine with black shoes. In fact, its fabric is actually composed of tiny alternating pinstripes of black and medium blue, but it appears solid to all but the closest of inspections.
Now, tan with navy suits is a bit much for me personally; I'm a 48L with a 13 foot, and I think I might as well wrap my feet in neon tubing as wear big, bright clodhoppers like that.
Answer:
I only wear the bright navy suits, so I've never thought of that. As for the tan shoes - that's primarily what I wear with navy suits, though I prefer dark brown and I've got those sz 13 clodhoppers you're talking about. I've got so many pairs of tan shoes I've got to wear them with something.
Answer:
as well as 'lime green'.
Heh, I have a pair of lime green Ludwig Reiter trainers I have yet to wear; I may have to wear them with one of my navy suits one day just for the hell of it.
I don't have any huge preferences myself, though I personally like light brown/tan the most, but all colors seem fine.
Answer:
How can brown shoes be considered offensive? I don't get it. Too casual?
