How to Wear Brown Shoes & Boots

When getting ready for a formal party or an event, even a style-savvy man might be unclear on the guidelines on styling brown leather shoes or leather boots. Hence, this article is a guideline on how to wear brown shoes and boots.

Brown shoes could be worn with almost anything ranging from blue jeans to calvary twill, tweed, flannel to corduroy. Unlinke black, brown shoes come in a variety of shades, allowing you to distinguish shoes and making the collection look unique. A classic brown leather lace up shoe fits everything. You can wear earthy-hued shoes with almost any pants or shirt.

1. Business suits:

For a 2 piece or a 3 piece business suits, in the following colors, pinstripes or faint window panes or in solid flannels or worsteds:

• Black: Don’t wear black suit with brown genuine leather shoes, or leather boots. Black shoes with black suit look best.
• Charcoal Grey: Wear charcoal grey suit with brown leather shoes but please avoid tan color.
• Mid Grey: With mid grey, black would look absolute but dark brown or cherry would also look suitable. But please avoid tan again!
• Dark Navy: Black is universal that looks best here also. But dark brown, tan, cordovan would also look dashing and magnificent.
• Lighter Navy: Black would look better than brown but it depends upon the fabric also. With pinstripes pants, we suggest wearing balck shoes , never brown.
• Dark Brown: Pair dark brown shoes with brown leather shoes. Skip black forever! Brown and brown works fantastic together.

What you should know:

• A 3 piece suit is more formal than a two piece suit, so black shoes will pair better with such outfits. Still keep the above color-coordinate in mind.
• Always choose a shade of brown shoes darker than a suit color.
• If you wear a contrasting double breasted waistcoat in buff or dove grey, always go for black shoes.
• If you wish to seek attention or are too confident, then pair lighter shoes with dark suits.
• If you wanna play safe, then stick to black shoes. If you’re planning to invest in balck shoe - then go for a black cap-toe oxford shoe.
• If you’re wearing a belt, match the color of the belt with that of the shoe. As shoes come in many shades of color, it isn’t necessary to match the exact same color for the belt but try to be close as possible. But if you plan to wear suspenders, then don’t bother at all!

2. Casual Suits:

Casual suits such as brushed cotton, corduroy, bolder patterns, material blends etc.

• Green: Avoid black. Brown everytime it is
• Khaki: Avoid black. Khaki suits go well with brown leather shoes.
• Tan: Again avoid black. Pair it up with cherry and medium brown or cordovan color shoes.
• White-offwhite: Pair it up with dark brown, mid-brown, or reddish brown. For a dapper look, two-toned shoes such as brown and white spectators.
• Brown: As always, pair a brown suit with brown shoes and skip black altogether.

3.Sport coat / old jacket- Trouser combination:

Fresco, Linen, Cheviot, Thornproof, Donegal, Worsted, Flannel, Corduroy, Velvet, Cotton, Gabardine, tweed:

• Black: With black corduroy, tan leather boots such as chukka boots or desert boots are a perfect choice. Black dress pants worn with a sport coat will look best with balck shoes, though more casual shoes such as black loafers would also look dapper for a casual look.
• Charcoal Grey: Dark brown will work but avoid tan boots completely. Instead go for a cblack color shoes.
• Mid Grey: Avoid tan here. Black works, even brown and cherry color would also look dapper. Leather boots are a natural pair with jeans.
• Blue: All kinds of brown shoes can be worn with a blue dress/suit. Colors like tan, cordovan and dark brown would look magnificent. LIght tan shoes would grab more attention than the others!
• Denim: All kinds of brown leather shoes work well with denim even with black jeans.
• Red: All shades of brown works well with the red especially dark brown and tan
• Green: Avoid black, try wearing brown always
• Khaki: Dark brown ofcourse!
• Tan: Go for cherry, mid- brown or cordovan. Avoid black totally
• White/off white: A two toned- footwear, mid brown dark brown or reddish brown.
• Brown: Only and only brown.
• Dark brown: Tan works well with dark brown.

As seen above, brown is the best shoe and boots to tone with sports coats and contrasting trousers.

Things to avoid:

• Avoid brown shoes in opera
• Avoid using black tie with brown shoes
• Do not wear a whole black suit with brown shoes
• Avoid mismatch of belt and shoes
• Avoid light brown shoes with light colored pants
• Do not wear black jeans with brown shoes
• Do not wear the same coloured pants and shoes
• Do not wear browns shoes in black tie or white tie occasions
• Try to avoid too many colored socks over brown shoes

Conclusion:

Brown is elegant! Brown shoes are not a substitute for black shoes. Every man should own a black pair of oxfords. Brown shoes are more versatile, it’s better for casual outfits and it develops a fantastic patina overtime. If you work in a white-colar environment , you can invest in a pair of black and brown genuine leather shoes. As seen above, brown can do a lot of suit ups for you. Everything from lace-up boots to loafers, wing tips to cowboy boots, button down shirts paired with boots are great for a dappered look.