I'm trying to get something, basically, that's a step up from sneakers, but that I can wear without changing my wardrobe. So something that goes with jeans, khakis, high quality t-shirts, mostly collared button ups though. I also need new shoes (my nike's, the sole is literally flopping around, it's soooo fucked up). I guess you could say I was inspired by JWD's blog:
I hear a lot about allen edmonds, but they are wayyyy too expensive! I'm looking for like, $140 tops, probably, although like to spend maybe $100. I'm guessing I need something brown. I have no fucking clue what I'm doing. I've already spent too much time in shoe stores.
Like, i am sooo fucking clueless what to do. I walk in, grab a shoe. Oh yea, it looks good. I have no clue what I'm doing. Cool. I'll just set this back. Oh look, another 100 pairs of shoes that look way better than sneakers. Cool. Feels kind of tight. I'll just put this back. (I'm one of the most indecisive people in the world too, in that I'm always trying to get the 'best').
I went into H&M, and they had $69 leather shoes ('oxford' i think, solid brown with black 2inch tip) that was on sale for 50% off. They looked nice, but I think the cashier said they would be too nice, due to the black tip. They had some brown brogues that I think would have been perfect, but they didn't have my size (i wear 11.5, 12, US).
But like... should I be buying dress shoes from H&M? That was another thing that was questionable. I mean for clothes, awesome place for me (my favorite store is United colors of beneton, zara is nice but can only get one shirt very rarely or stuff on sale due to price)
I talked to some people, and I think that maybe instead of dress shoes, I should be looking at Dockers, or Sperrys. Does that sound right? I think that might be what I should do instead (although again, I have no idea what to do for that either).
On another note, Cole Haan shoes seem to come up a lot, in terms of affordable dress shoes. Are those okay?
All the stuff I search says "I have a ton of cash to blow, yea, okay, allen edmonds? great". I think I need something a little cheaper than AE...
I buy my brown work shoes from Aldo. They're low quality so I buy new work shoes (black and brown) about once a year. But they look fine for <$100 and you can wear them out with a brown belt. If you're going with dress shoes, I recommend you avoid laces. Dress shoe laces are annoying and tend not to stay tied. Both my first pairs (black and brown) had laces and after that I've never bought another laced pair and it's awesome.
i would recommend saving up for ae or alden or a high quality well-made shoe. they are worth it. really.
i would check out ebay too. i got some pretty good ae park avenues on there for $35.
if not, i would check out florsheim. they are on the lower end of high quality shoes.
and finally, if you don't know much about shoes, you should educate yourself on shoe terms(oxford, captoe, brogue, wingtip etc) and when to wear what. stuff like knowing wingtips/longwings should generally not be worn in very formal occasions etc.
Yes, I have some roberto villini (sic?) that I got for like, graduating high school (still have them, they are fine, but very dark oxfords so obviously extremely formal) and the laces never stay tied!
i would recommend saving up for ae or alden or a high quality well-made shoe. they are worth it. really.
i would check out ebay too. i got some pretty good ae park avenues on there for $35.
if not, i would check out florsheim. they are on the lower end of high quality shoes.
hm okay. I mean, $50 isn't that much. I guess I can always just go for AE.
But I'll look at florsheim too!
I mean, I walk a lot. I need a shoe I can wear a lot... I don't think you can really do that with AE. Or maybe I should just have sneakers, and then also some AE. I don't know.
and finally, if you don't know much about shoes, you should educate yourself on shoe terms(oxford, captoe, brogue, wingtip etc) and when to wear what. stuff like knowing wingtips/longwings should generally not be worn in very formal occasions etc.
I know a bit. Oxford is very plain - i thought this meant formal, but I guess it means it's versatile. Captoe I guess is a toe cover? Brogueing is that hole punch design - it makes shoes more informal. Wingtips are w-shaped toe caps. I forgot what's up with that.
I'm probably looking for like, a very plain brogue, or maybe oxford. In dark brown kind of color.
On March 22 2012 03:51 Diglett wrote: i would recommend saving up for ae or alden or a high quality well-made shoe. they are worth it. really.
i would check out ebay too. i got some pretty good ae park avenues on there for $35.
if not, i would check out florsheim. they are on the lower end of high quality shoes.
and finally, if you don't know much about shoes, you should educate yourself on shoe terms(oxford, captoe, brogue, wingtip etc) and when to wear what. stuff like knowing wingtips/longwings should generally not be worn in very formal occasions etc.
^ Let's see... I did that, and the guy recommended some like, white/tan leather shoes that had like a light brown leather attached on it too (around shoe lace area if I recall). I thought they looked kind of goofy. They were summer shoes I guess?
Then they recommended I probably go for sperrys. My gf made comments about "thats what all the bros wear" or 'preppy'. I said, well, bros dress well / preppy people dress well. We then proceeded to realize we had no fucking clue what we were doing, and left.
1) Whether it fits 2) Whether it's clean 3) Whether it hasn't started falling apart.
You can buy dress shoes from Walmart and look fine. I don't know why you want something between dress shoes and sneakers.
I've gone through stages were I was worried about shoes and fashion. But when I do, I always think about the Shawshank Redemption. Really, how often do you look at a man's shoes?
From the sound of your wardrobe, I would recommend Sperrys. They're pretty comfortable, versatile, and durable. Not formal though, but it doesn't sound like you want something formal.
Edit: or a similar style of boat shoe, doesn't have to be Sperrys
i only wear them when i wear suits though. i have casual "dress" shoes for my day to day work.
Can you please talk about those casual dress shoes?
I basically wear nice, fitted jeans, from H&M, United Colors of Benneton, and Zara (not super thin hipster jeans, but, you know, if you want to think that, whatever), some button ups from same people (some colorful, some darker blues), and you know, sneakers! What I'm looking for, is like, big boy shoes. I'm no longer a kid. So I'd like to get some nicer shoes, that I can wear with my clothes. I can't get something super dressy, because I don't have like, formal clothes. I have decent clothes, but you know, it's jeans and button ups, or high quality $5 tshirts from said companies.
If I wanted to get quality, obvious, I get Allen Edmonds for my first pair.
But I think Allen Edmonds, even the 'casual' ones, are too nice to wear with fitted jeans and a button up. Not to mention just a little too pricey... but if that's what I need, then so be it (I mean I work 70 hours a week, if that's what I need, I can buy it).
Whenever I dress up I only care about:
1) Whether it fits 2) Whether it's clean 3) Whether it hasn't started falling apart.
You can buy dress shoes from Walmart and look fine. I don't know why you want something between dress shoes and sneakers.
I've gone through stages were I was worried about shoes and fashion. But when I do, I always think about the Shawshank Redemption. Really, how often do you look at a man's shoes?
I don't know if this is serious. I'm not some high fashion snob, I totally get it. But you put on a $500 pair of jeans from like, prada, you understand why it's $500. Now should you buy it? Hell no. But, you know, there is a reason for it, and I'm just as american as you. But I think a $20 pair of on sale jeans from h&m and ucb, is definitely worth getting, over wal mart. or hell, even if it's $50, it's worth it. And I'd rather buy nice jeans like that, same price, than get it from levis or like abercrombie.
You don't have to spend a lot of money to dress nice. I mean, button up from h&m? I've seen them as low as $10, that are probably way nicer than anything in abercrombie or those kinds of stores. A really nice button up that will last a lifetime can be like $40 at zara or something.
I appreciate your feedback. And that's kind of what I'm getting at here - that Allen Edmonds might be too nice for me, and that I could just as well go for like, Dockers or Sperrys. Which I'm JUST as clueless about. So, you know, hence the help-me blog.
But if you suggest wal-mart dress shoes, I can just get some sneakers from nike or skate shoes from vans or DVS that I'm sure would be nicer.
I have a pair of Clarks, they come in many varieties. They are comfortable and look pretty nice at the same time. Not too fancy and not too plain.
From the sound of your wardrobe, I would recommend Sperrys. They're pretty comfortable, versatile, and durable. Not formal though, but it doesn't sound like you want something formal.
Edit: or a similar style of boat shoe, doesn't have to be Sperrys
Cool. Can you tell me what I should be looking for exactly? "boat shoe" you say?
Do you wear dress socks with sperrys?
edit2: My gf says this (shes clueless too though so keep that in mind) - Sperrys are extremely preppy (i dont dress preppy) - Clarks are more conservative, lawyer, very moderate, 'safe', 'clunky', not on the fashionable side - aldo is more young crowd, modern.
On March 22 2012 03:45 Chill wrote: I buy my brown work shoes from Aldo. They're low quality so I buy new work shoes (black and brown) about once a year. But they look fine for <$100 and you can wear them out with a brown belt. If you're going with dress shoes, I recommend you avoid laces. Dress shoe laces are annoying and tend not to stay tied. Both my first pairs (black and brown) had laces and after that I've never bought another laced pair and it's awesome.
There was a video like this on some shoe website that I cannot recall, but this I can honestly say changed my life lol I haven't had my shoelaces untied since I went square
hey, sorry I haven't got to your comment on my blog. it seems like you are getting a good amount of advice here.
my only specific tip given your posts here is that, yes, it is worth it to save up a few hundred bucks for a pair of shoes. if you pick a trusted brand and pay, say, $300, you will get a shoe that is nicer and will last well more than 5 times longer than a cheap $60 alternative. I know that a big purchase like that is daunting, but if you do your research and like the shoe you will not be disappointed.
edit: one more thing: I wear brown AEs with jeans most days. sometimes jeans and a t-shirt. as long as they're not right out of the box / just polished, they won't look too formal. chicks dig em.
Go to reddit.com/r/malefashionadvice and then to reddit.com/r/frugalmalefashion. They will help you a lot! It's amazing what reddit MFA did to some people. Walk in looking like hobos, walk out looking like movie stars.
EPT
