HOMME|FOOTWEAR| Man of the Cloth – Guys put your best foot forward

Any woman will tell you that you can never have enough shoes. Call me evolved but I agree. In drawings as far back at 5000 years, the Egyptians were seen wearing shoes. While its purpose and design has evolved over the centuries since then, somehow men still manage to get it wrong.

The truth is a man needs at least four pairs of shoes on a basic level. After that it's a simple matter of building a collection, or as some would call it an investment.

WORK BOOTS: Comfortable, manly and sturdy boots are incredibly versatile and will serve you both in-doors and out. Pairing fitted jeans, a waistcoat/shirt/blazer combo gives the term "semi-formal" a great lift with your boots.

DRESS SHOES: Ideally black, brown and tan shoes will cover you in anything you own. If you don't wear earth-toned suits then don't worry about the latter of the three. Patent leather looks fantastic and can even be worn with jeans, a white shirt and blazer to many events that don't require a penguin suit.

CASUAL SHOES: By casual we don't mean running shoes or Haviana's. A casual shoe fits in between formal and semi-formal. Boat shoes, loafers and lace-ups in brown and black fall into this category.

SUPERCASUAL: Athletic trainers have only one purpose and that is to be worn in a gym. Enough said. Flip-flops should be worn sparsely, like a Sunday at the beach. Leather sandals are a much better alternative and go well with jeans, linens and trousers.

An important point to reiterate is the matching of shoe and belt; just note that identical matching is not necessary, just tonal.

Equally important to consider is shoe care. You do the same for your car so why not your shoes? Not only do they look better polished, but in doing so you are preserving an investment!

Leather dries out and cracks so either stop by a professional shoe cleaner or buy yourself a shoe kit.

The process, whether done at home or professionally should include:

• A smooth leather shoe cleaner
• A leather conditioner
• Polish
• Leather protector

ADDITIONAL TIPS:

• Beeswax products form a protective layer instead of absorbing which helps against water damage.
• A soft application of black polish on a brown boot/shoe gives it natural and slightly worn look.
• Avoid wearing shoes for two days in a row to allow time between to breathe.
• Store your shoes in boxes if you don't have space to display them, this will also keep them looking good for longer.
• Use shoe trees to maintain the shape of your leather shoes.

All images via paulsmith.co.uk accept the black patent leather shoe, which is from theshoebuff.com

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