StyleJune 2018
9 Shoe Styles and How to Wear Them
The Rake details the nine shoe styles you simply cannot live without, including advice from leading shoemakers on what best to wear to complement each of them.
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1. Loafers
Though more commonly associated with spring and summer, a loafer is also a perfectly fine choice in winter. The slip-on style was, in fact, invented in the 1920s for King George VI, in response to the tongue-tied British ruler’s request for a casual shoe to ‘loaf’ about his chilly country houses in. Quickly adapted for outdoor wear, as American Ivy League students would soon demonstrate, the loafer can just as easily be slipped on with madras shorts and a polo shirt as flannel trousers and a blazer. No matter how smart the particular style, there’ll always be something laid-back about a slip-on shoe, and that’s a great part of its charm. As Luca Rubinacci tells us, “A man can’t always appear totally ‘perfect’. A loafer gives an outfit a more natural and comfortable look.” Similarly, a velvet slip-on unfailingly adds a relaxed touch to an eveningwear ensemble (while also side-stepping the need for a fussy, easily scuffed patent-leather shoe in your footwear arsenal). £390, www.therake.com.
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2. Chelsea Boots
Providing the ankle support and protection of a boot without the hassle of fastening myriad laces, the Chelsea boot was invented in the mid-19th century and popularised by no less than Queen Victoria, who’d regularly go strolling in the elastic-sided shoe. A little more than a century later, they’d become a key element of the Beatles’ rock’n’roll style, and have remained popular with musical types ever since. Says one of the rockin’-est gents in contemporary menswear, Sergio Guardi of Barbanera, “People are starting to understand that boots are not necessarily just winter shoes, and Chelseas are becoming a must-have — they’re elegant, cool and informal at the same time. They’re good with jeans but complement a suit as well. For me they’re like pizza: when in doubt, go for it.” As well as Barbanera's versions, we're particularly fond of Carmina's ultra-sleek, all-black leather style. £400, www.therake.com
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9. Chukka Boots
The story goes that the low ankle boot known as the chukka — a slightly dressier relative of the desert boot that first gained traction with British soldiers serving a century ago in the Middle East and Subcontinent — took on its polo-influenced name thanks to its popularity with players of ‘the sport of kings’ who’d slip into the comfortable footwear after a match. Though we wouldn’t recommend stomping muddy divots in a shoe made of the material, a chukka is at its most authentic in suede — Crockett & Jones’ Goodyear-welted iteration is especially fetching. Italians will wear them with just about everything, but given its inherent informality, matte finish and athletic origins, a suede chukka is perhaps best matched with denim, cords, flannel or cotton trousers. £345, www.crockettandjones.com.
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