Breaking With Sneakers

With Comfort Intact and Style Elevated

A funny thing happened about a week ago. As it usually goes in New York, when the autumn equinox hits it’s as though a switch flips to fall. All summer I lived in sandals and loathed letting them go until that first chilly day. I reached for my old stand-by Lanvin sneakers, and just like that I was over them. In fact, I felt over sneakers in general. This is a seismic change. I fully embraced fashionable sneakers for the past few years. They were my go-to until boot or sandal season hit. 

You can’t beat sneakers for comfort, and now as a legit shoe you can dress them up or down. However, for my day to day running around shoes where comfort and mobility are key, I’m just not excited about sneakers anymore. Don’t get me wrong, there will always be a place in my closet for great sneakers as well as an absolute need. Now, I feel I need more; something that is still comfortable but more refined.

A hard lesson to learn is how to buy the right shoes for the life you live now.  It’s easy to fall in love with beautiful, impractical shoes. I've done it many times, only to find I rarely had the occasion to wear them, or they’re so impractical I didn’t want the hassle of wearing them. I’ve ruined my feet from years of wearing too-high heels for work. I loved the way they looked and made me feel, the extra height didn’t hurt either. That isn’t where I am today.

Times change, our lives and fashion move on. Though I still wear heels they’re mainly reserved for dressed up nights. Before the pandemic, if I had a meeting or lunch at a nice restaurant I would slap on a pair of heels. Now the thought of wearing heels during the day is foreign to me. Though I make a special exception for knee high boots with 3” or less heels, with the caveat that they are still walkable.

It’s clear what I don’t want; uncomfortable heels and sneakers. So where's the middle ground between the two? The options are out there. Bearing in mind this is to replace the beloved sneaker, I tried not to break the bank and gave recommendations in a wide price range while still adhering to my mantra of buying less but better. There are splurges, as well as high quality, good-looking  alternatives, divided into three groups: men’s shoes, ballet flats and loafers.

Traditional men’s shoes have shown up on the runways for several seasons including Spring ‘25. I always envied the simple choices men have for shoes. They’re attractive, comfortable, sturdy and seem to last forever. The practical side of me loves the sturdy sensibility of a brogue. Now more than ever, men’s shoes are chic for women with none other than Miuccia Prada embracing them year after year. No surprise since The Prada Group owns Church’s, famous for men’s shoes since 1617. For women, it’s a joy to wear functional shoes, while looking cool in a gender bending kind of way. 

The top shoe is a splurge from Miu Miu, no doubt made in Church’s English factory. The next black and brown brogues are from Church’s, similar to the Miu Miu, with a heavy rubber sole. The heavy sole is better for walking and will last forever; a worthy shoe investment.  I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t find them at a substantial reduction for you!

Two oxfords; a Miu Miu splurge, great if you have the budget, and a steal from Leonardo. While researching brogues online, I found the website for Leonardo, a Florentine company that handcrafts shoes using fine Italian leathers. Though I haven’t purchased anything from them yet, their prices and products look very promising. Purchasing directly from the manufacturer cuts out the markup of the brand and the store, which is substantial.

Adding a heavy vibram sole to a traditional shoe gives it a modern edge. Top is Prada’s black brogue. Below, from The Office of Angela Scott, another small company, this one female founded and led. Their shoes are hand made in Portugal by fifth generation cobblers.

Last note on Men’s shoes; in his spring ‘25 show for Loewe, Jonathan Anderson showed oxfords with everything from short dresses to pants.

You can’t go wrong with ballet flats, but please don’t wear them with hose or socks and always have the pants exposing the ankle (Kate’s pants could be a bit shorter imho).

This fall, Loeffler Randall offers the best range of colors for well made, leather ballet flats. I’m willing to try the elastic bridge, it will help to keep them firmly on, and gives an of-the-moment, Mary Jane vibe. The price is fair, and there are more colors and styles on their website.  

For a more modern ballet, try the high bridge and clean design of the brown flat at upper left.  The lower right is the same with a little heel. Also with a small heel, the Veronica Beards at the upper right. The squared off toe gives it a distinctive shape. I sourced these for several clients last fall and they loved them. Not as comfortable, but gives a lot of attitude is a pointy toe ballet.

More and more I’m loving loafers. You can go sleek and soft or more chunky. Like ballet flats, they look best when the ankles show with pants. I also like the look when worn with a longer skirt and why not try experimenting with socks as shown above.

I bought a pair of Tod’s loafers last fall and love them, though I wish they had the thick rubber sole of the top pair, which makes them perfect for walking. These are expensive, but classic enough to be a forever shoe. For the same look, much easier on the wallet, go to the source with these classic Cole Haan penny loafers.

I saw these Sophique loafers in Bergdorf Goodman and fell in love with the blue suede pair. They’re extremely soft and feel like slippers. Jamie Haller is an interesting brand I have my eye on. The loafers are glove-soft and handmade in Tuscany. Look at their website, there’s a wide range of colors and styles, but many are sold out.  For these and all leather soled walking shoes, have your shoemaker add a rubber sole. It costs about 40-50 dollars but is well worth it for prolonging the life of your shoes. It also gives you better traction.

These great looking, calf-hair leopard Tod’s loafers are nearly half off!

Not exactly a group, but worth a mention since Jonathan Anderson for Loewe did his own take on the boat shoe for spring’25. I believe boat shoes will be with us for a while.

I already wrote about these in “When Designers Mine the Classics”, but I had to point out this brown, which has become the suede color for fall.

Thank you for reading and for supporting my work as a paid subscriber! If like me you love your mobility, having a variety of chic comfortable shoes keeps you moving and looking great!

Keep the comments coming, I love them and they help to guide my work.

xxx Jolain