Imagine how weird Prince would have looked in “Purple Rain” had he traded in his High Heeled Boots for a pair of Chuck Taylor Converse. I don’t think his Purple Trench Coat / White Pirate Frill Shirt / Leather Pants combo would have been the same, had he been wearing sneakers.
Pairing a classic outfit of Dark Denim Jeans and a White T-shirt with slightly worn canvas sneakers just seems right. Especially if those sneakers have been worn just enough to have a great patina to them, so that they are not so clean to be mistaken for brand new. An outfit like that not only feels comfortable, but it looks laid back and relaxed. Hence, the reason the fit described above is a staple amongst human beings aged 5 – 60.
Some of the more sartorially inclined or daring even, tend to use their footwear as a way to make a statement. Or as a way to support the theme of their outfit, either through colour, brand or silhouette. A statement outfit of skinny black jeans, black slim dress shirt an red tie could be topped off by a statement making pair of 24 hole Cherry Doc Marten Boots.
Supporting themes would be something along the lines of a Slim Grey Two-Button Suit, with a pair of Black Canvas Oxfords. A slim suit and a slim shoe. The silhouette of this outfit is very modern or for the stylistically cynical, it’s trendy. But, it still looks good.
One of my “go to” sneakers from my collection is a pair of Leather and Tweed AF1s.
The leather is a rich brown, almost grey-black. The Tweed is classic Harris Tweed and the accents are pale Pink. They look great dressing down a pair of Dark Grey Slacks / White Oxford Button Down Shirt and Charcoal Grey Cardigan. They also work with Dark Blue Denim / random logo T-Shirt / Zip-Hooded Sweatshirt/ Baseball Cap look, which I exclusively seem to be in on my days off in the fall season.
Footwear holds the key to a complete outfit, by having the final say on one’s fashion statement for the day. Most of the time, you are trying to (literally) put your best foot forward.
When I See You…
