Shoe differences

[A3M0N]

So what makes a dress shoe dressy, and a casual shoe casual? I'm not talking about obvious things like Chucks vs Allen Edmunds. I know that slipons are casual, but alot of lace ups look similar to me. Anybody care to school the newly style conscious like me?

Thanks!

[MaxMan]

long story short the plainer the shoe the more dressy it becomes. And they fall into two categories: Balmoral dressy, Blutcher, Casual

BLucher: Long Wing, wingtip, plain blutchers

Balmorals: Saddle shoes, Brogued wings, brogued Caps, regular captoe, plain toe

I can get deeper but thats the basic breakdown

[A3M0N]

Where do oxfords fit in?

[LesserBlackDog]

In the shoe context, "oxford" is synonymous with "balmoral."

[Kennedy190]

While not perfect this is a pretty decent visual guide:
http://i.imgur.com/2XNzY.png

[Kennedy190]

Although it's not perfect this visual guide might help:
http://i.imgur.com/2XNzY.png

[bremersm]

There is also those that feel that closed lacing is dressier then open lacing.

[MaxMan]

There is also those that feel that closed lacing is dressier then open lacing.

Exactly right Bremersm, balmorals are close laced and blutchers open. for visuals Antonio C has a good basic breakdown with pic http://www.realmenrealstyle.com/open...s-dress-shoes/

[bremersm]

Exactly right Bremersm, balmorals are close laced and blutchers open. for visuals Antonio C has a good basic breakdown with pic http://www.realmenrealstyle.com/open...s-dress-shoes/

I; like most people just can't notice enough of a difference to call one dressier than another based on the lacing. So a question: I have open lacing captoes and closed lacing wingtips. Both in black. Which is dressier?

[BackedIn]

I; like most people just can't notice enough of a difference to call one dressier than another based on the lacing. So a question: I have open lacing captoes and closed lacing wingtips. Both in black. Which is dressier?

I would have to see pictures to get a feel for the wing'. My knee-jerk is that the closed lace shoe will be more dressy unless it's a longwing. Like most of people, I couldn't tell a difference a few weeks ago. It just clicked one day, one of those details I now notice that most won't, at least consciously.

[MikeAD91]

Although there are probably exceptions, closed lacing tends to have a sleeker profile (consistent for the shoes in my closet, anyway) so I would say generally that profile difference is what would make it dressier. But, to BackIn's point, if they were a long wing, they may not have that sleek look...

[Acousticfoodie]

There is also those that feel that closed lacing is dressier then open lacing.

That is generally true as well. Balmorals in general would usually be more formal, but even that is subjective and other factors like shoe color and brogueing can make a difference as well. For example, Here is a pic of some of my Allen Edmonds in various color and broguing:



Which one would you choose if you needed a standard conservative shoe? Usually the first choice would be a balmoral like the black, chilli and walnut balmoral shoes you see here. However, walnut isn't usually considered a conservative color...so that leave us with the brown and chilli. Chilli isn't as formal as black so we'll drop that one. This leave us with the black balmoral which should be a clear win right?

We'll maybe, but as you can see the black balmoral here (along with the chilli and walnut) has some broguing which prevents it from being the archetype black captoe balmoral formal shoe like the allen edmonds park avenue (broguing doesn't mean it can't be formal tho). However, the brown BLUTCHER that we haven't commented on is a plain toe. Since the vast majority of people don't even know the diff between balmorals and blutchers...subjectively...the brown blutchers pictured here with a white shirt, solid tie and navy suit could arguably end up looking the most formal, even tho the "rules" dictates the blutcher shouldn't be.

[Tommy]

@Acousticfoodie

That is one awesome line up of shoes!!

[bruschetta]

Acousticfoodie, the "correct" answer would be the shoe to the far left. It is the most formal, followed by the brown shoe 2nd from the right, followed by the strands, followed by the brown derby/blucher.

On another note, why are you lacing your shoes in that strange crosswise pattern? It looks horrible.

[Acousticfoodie]

On another note, why are you lacing your shoes in that strange crosswise pattern? It looks horrible.

Hehe, I know bar lacing is the standard...but...it's faster and easier for me to get my shoes on and off