Your top 2-3 rotated shoes for work

[zerostyle]

What are your workhorse shoes for a business casual workplace? ( dress shirt & pants, no tie or suit ).


I've been rotating between a black cap toe and a burgundy quarter-brogue, but the black cap toe has been getting like 75% of the wear because I feel the burgundy shoe doesn't go too well with everything.


I own a dark brown strand and a walnut mcallister, but feel that they are a little too flashy for work, especially the walnut color.


Here's what I currently have. What brown shoe should I get with a simple pattern to rotate in?




^^^ click to expand / for details


Cross posting this from SF:


I've sorted them from most formal to least formal. I'm looking for 2 main solutions:


(1) I want a new brown pair of shoes to wear to work. I currently rotate in the J&M Aldrich's, but they don't fit me well, and they are also a burgundy color that feels too formal. I like the quarter brogue style (similar to the fifth avenue). The weird thing is, if I replace with with a fifth avenue in brown, then I end up having a very similar shoe to my strand. What would be a good light to medium brown colored shoe that would be a good workhorse shoe? ( business casual work environment - buttondown and slacks, no tie or suits ). The strand and mcallisters I own feel too flashy for my work environment. I'm thinking some kind of moc/apron toe here? Or another quarter brogue in a light to medium brown?


(2) For casual wear / dates, I have 2 nice options for dressier occasions (the strand and mcallister), but only the desert boots for more casual situations ( button down and jeans, etc ). What would be a good option for something dressier than the desert boot but more casual than the mcallister/strand? Maybe some type of boot?


I'm finding it annoying that I spent the most amount of money on the two shoes that I wear the least.

[mixto]

For (2): some chukka (loake or AE amok/malvern) or some blucher (ae townley/sanfford/lombard).

[jicarv]

I like these and I have a similar AE model that is now discontinued.

http://www.shermanbrothers.com/produ...t=sh8672_15392

[JT10000]

"What would be a good option for something dressier than the desert boot but more casual than the mcallister/strand? Maybe some type of boot?"


Loafers. Shiny loafers in a burgundy or walnut color.

[pitseleh]

Gonna go in a different direction for the spot between the Clarks and the AEs and say... nicer boots. The design and fit of the Clarks is part of what makes them so casual; there are plenty of boots out there that, by virtue of being boots, probably exude a somewhat more casual vibe while still not being on on par with the dressiness of your AEs (or even the more casual ones that you don't own, e.g. McTavish, Elgin, etc.). I'd maybe go for a pair of leather wingtip/cap toe boots, or maybe a pair of wingtip oxfords, but switch up the fabric to a more casual suede. Loafers are obviously also an option, but I don't personally favor loafers, so I'd be more inclined to a somewhat dressier boot or a more casual suede oxford. If you're into the distressed thing, something like the McTavish might also bridge the gap between a pair of desert boots and the McAllister. If you're a fan of desert boots specifically, keep in mind that there exist much dressier versions than Clarks, so that's another option.

[samuel_oltz]

For #2, I would recommend Suede bucks, perhaps like these...


http://www.shoes.com/en-US/Product/08882-5109971/Bass/Taupe/Men's+Buckingham.aspx


I wouldn't pay that price for them, though. Florsheim's "Dirty Buck Suede" are on sale here:


http://www.zappos.com/florsheim-kearny-white-suede?zlfid=111&recoName=zap_pdp_sub


Other possibilities could be driving mocs, camping mocs, or boat shoes. Or as pitseleh says, a nicer pair of boots.

[LesserBlackDog]

Right now my top work shoes are:


1. Brown leather wingtips from Fratelli Rossetti, via the Cladmen final sale

2. Black leather wingtips from Allen Edmonds, thrifted and purchased from JC

3. Grey suede wingtips from Johnston & Murphy


I wear black for trials or major hearings, brown for most other days, and the grey suede bucks when it's going to be a slow day.


When it was cold and rainy earlier this summer, I wore my Chippewa classics boots to work for non-court days.

[buffalojackson143]

Right now my top work shoes are:

Dakota Chukka Boot - Casual Shoes (Buffalo Jackson)


http://buffalojackson.com/mens-dress-shoes.html