Long a product of the highest craftsmanship and design, shoes are your connection to the ground and a sign that you care about the small details (or you don’t). If you invest in a quality pair and take good care of them — by cleaning, polishing and storing them on a cedar tree — they’ll last for years, with the occasional repair.
While there are strict guidelines in some circles as to what qualifies as formal footwear, we take a more holistic approach: if they look good and you like wearing them, well, then wear them. But it's best to start your search for your next dress shoe by type — beginning with the pillars and making your way out toward something more statement-making with time. Be practical: Try an Oxford or Brogue off the bat, but set your sights on a loafer or mule next. We've made the work of finding all of these easy, though. Find three options for every type of dress shoe — Oxfords, Brogues, Bluchers, Derbies, Loafers, Mules and Monk Straps — below.
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Oxfords
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The oxford is characterized by lace eyelets that are attached below the vamp, as opposed to open flaps as with the derby. This leads to a closed seam above the tongue, and a sharp, neat look.
Decorative and elaborate meets sturdy and traditional with the brogue. It’s primarily characterized by its low heel and multi-piece construction, which gives it a layered and detailed look. The perforations may not work to drain water on a stomp across the marsh as they were originally intended, but they will certainly catch the eye.
Named after a late-18th-century Prussian field marshal general who commissioned the first boot of this style for his troops, the blucher is fit for war. Or, more appropriately, a business-casual event. Don’t confuse it with the more formal oxford, which has a closed connection between the vamp and laces.
Fear not the broken lace. The distinctive strap replaces the laces on these newly back-in-style shoes. Like the buttons on the suit jacket you’ll wear with them, the monk shoe comes in one- and two-buckle styles.
Mules are having a moment. The slipper-like style was born from the habit of crushing the heel of your shoe, whether because it made them easier to take on and off or they gave you blisters. But it's been around, and especially so since Gucci launched its fur-lined slipper in 2015. Brands nowadays are adding bigger, more durable soles to their mules, making them something you can wear all day without fear you'll burn through the outsole.
