I recently joined a small firm, dress code is business casual. I am coming from a suit-and-tie environment so trying to adjust my wardrobe a bit.
I noticed guys at my office wearing loafers. I’ve been on the search for a pair of brown leather penny loafers but I run into the same problem every time I try a pair on: the “vamp” is extremely low, and my socks are totally exposed. I feel odd walking around with the tops of my feet/socks showing. Is this a fashion faux pas?
Idk what brand the other guys at my office are wearing (It'd be weird to ask), but are there any penny loafers on the market that do not have such a low vamp (preferably sub $200)?
There are definitely two types of penny loafers. The ones with a lower "vamp" as you said are usually considered more casual than the other type of loafers.
Taking Crockett & Jones as an example:
The "Boston" penny loafer model is a "lower-vamp" type: https://www.crockettandjones.com/collections/mens/loafers/boston-black-…
The "Sydney" penny loafer is, in my opinion, more formal, and will show less sock: https://www.crockettandjones.com/collections/mens/loafers/sydney-black-…
If based in the UK you could check out Loake, their 1880 line is not bad and they have some decently priced shoes. If you want to invest in good shoes I still recommend Crockett & Jones/Church's, and for higher budget J.M. Weston.
SB'd for C&J – IMO best quality at that price bracket (full disclosure, I worked in one of their London shops when I was at university there).
I wouldn't say that wearing a low vamp loafer is necessarily a fashion faux paux or too casual, One of the best dressed men of the past century Cary Grant for example only wore low vamp loafers from what I've seen. North by Northwest is my favorite film of all time and you can see his socks in one of the scenes are clearly visible. Also in the movie "To Catch a Thief" the camera quickly looks at his loafers when he gets into the car and they're also low vamp ones. It's more of a matter of preference in my opinion
Here is an underappreciated brand which I like - www.meermin.es they have amazing quality for a very very affordable price. They're based in Europe but ship to the US too
I love my Tods penny loafers. At your price point, check out M. gemi. It's primarily an online brand.
I quite like the socks-peeking-out from a low-vamp loafer look, especially when it's paired with an "interesting" pair of socks (think a repeated pattern or stripe, or maybe a plain sock in a muted colour like dark green or burgundy – if it references a colour on your tie then so much the better). Takes a bit of confidence to pull off though, and I'm a Brit, so I don't know if it's a different set of rules for business dress in the States. Definitely not a faux-pas though from my perspective.
I wear Allen Edmonds loafers with no-show socks for the summer time... keeps me cool on the way to work with a nice breeze up the pant-leg.
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