What does dressing up mean to you?
What does dressing up mean to me is a question we should all evaluate and ask ourselves. For me, dressing up means wearing a suit and all of the bells and whistles that go along with that: leather-soled shoes, a proper dress shirt, and a tie. Now, if I remove the tie and opt for a blazer and trousers, that for me is not ‘dressing up’ but rather simply dressing elegantly, which we can do any day of the week because we feel like it.
Leather Soled Shoes
Most people attribute leather-soled shoes to formality. But the reality is that they are not. They can be used for business-style events and even formal ones, but just because a shoe has a leather sole does not automatically mean it is solely intended for business or formal purposes. There are certain models more catered to that idea, such as the wholecut oxford, but a brogued oxford, on the contrary, is very much seen as a more relaxed, casual style of oxford that can easily be worn for non-business or formal wear.
Wearing leather-soled shoes is what you make it. You can do it formally or casually and be appropriate in either instance. Don’t assume that they are only for one thing or another. Their versatility is their strength.
Suede Shoes
As you can see here in the photos, I love suede shoes. That is because they allow you to blend multiple worlds together: The Business and The Casual. Any dress-style shoe can be made semi-casual if made in suede. A suede wholecut oxford is not a business shoe and looks great worn more semi-dress casual: think chinos, roll neck, and a deconstructed jacket. Even better is the fact that suede shoes look great with jeans. That is where my weakness lies, as I love jeans but still want to look smart and semi-elegant.
Wearing Jackets
Jackets do not always have to be formal or business-related either. Just like shoes, there are styles that are more formal and styles that are less formal. I love an inlined jacket that just feels like it is a part of you. It hugs your natural shape and looks less ‘stuffy’, so to speak. It takes out the idea of being solely related to business attire. Think of the Safari jacket or a nice tweed blazer. Jackets that are dress-style in cut but used for more relaxed purposes.
You can easily incorporate these over a pair of jeans and/or chinos and some suede shoes to make an elegant yet comfortably relaxed look and feel.
Sweats and a T-Shirt
This is where society lost me and itself for that matter. Even when I was young and wore athletic-style clothing I almost never resorted to wearing sweatpants in public. That has always been an athletic and/or pajama style of clothing for me. I either wore them for soccer practice or at home. But never in the street. I did wear T-shirts, but as a teenager. I rarely wear them now and if I do, it has a waffle knit or a more structured, elegantly draped one. But to wear them together? Ha! Never.
You would be surprised how many guys I saw dressed like this in the streets of NYC. It always baffled me.
Dressing up is not a chore. It is perfectly normal to be comfortable in nice clothing that fits properly. We should all aspire to achieve that. Society would be a whole lot better if we did so.
—Justin FitzPatrick, The Shoe Snob
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Honestly I’m tired of wearing sneakers – vans, converse Nikes etc. except when im walking our dog. I’m getting comfortable with leather soled shoes or leather boots with jeans, a sports coat, chore jacket or my Barbour depending on the weather. In the summer I started wearing Marc Nolan sneakers because they tend to be comfortable, colorful and stand out from 90% of the guys with their white Nike Airs. I even drug out my bass wejuns to avoid the dreaded white sneaker. I was surprised to get some questions from guys in the typical uniform of the day.
Thanks for sharing Nick!
We have to get dressed anyway. So let’s dress well.
Exactly!