# Southern Trad: Shoes with Seersucker



## Titus_A (Jun 23, 2010)

I've recently upgraded my seersucker suit and am considering what shoes to pair with it. My brown wingtips rubbed polish along the hems of my last seersucker trousers (so maybe I just need to do a better job polishing). I know the shoes-and-seersucker debate has come up in the past, but I'm looking for specific recommendations, not merely "tan shoes." I want something that will work at the office (this is the South, wearing those summer suits to work is a necessary survival technique), so I would prefer to stay away from the rounder toes on many saddle oxfords (e.g. here). Someday I'll splurge for the Peal & Co. white bucks that Brooks sells, but I'd like to spend less than that right now. Any tips?


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## Sir Cingle (Aug 22, 2009)

How about some white bucks from O'Connell's? They look very nice to me, and seem reasonably priced:

https://shop.oconnellsclothing.com/casual_shoes.php


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## Luckycharmboi2 (May 30, 2009)

I like light colored brogues or brown/white spectators. That's what I wear with mine.


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## D&S (Mar 29, 2009)

I wear dirty bucs with seersucker. Made by Sperry, purchased on eBay new in box for $25.


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## 32rollandrock (May 1, 2008)

I've lusted over the white buck wingtips referenced by the OP. I wonder, though, how different the O'Connells are from my pair of JM. Both are made in Brazil. Realize JM doesn't get much love here, but they're comfortable and, being white, you can't expect them to last anywhere close to forever. FWIW, I wouldn't break the bank on standard-issue white bucks. I think I paid $100 for mine.

I wear AE black-and-white MacNeil spectators with seersucker, as well as the aforementioned standard-issue white bucks. Brown and white spectators, specifically AE Bel Airs, would also look fine, I should think. I have a pair of brown leather, white canvas JM (old school, the good kind) spectators that I suspect would also do, but not as cool as the Bel Airs.


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## Joe Tradly (Jan 21, 2006)

My burgundy weejuns are getting more play than my bucks these days. 

I always admire the few well-dressed men I know that pull off black shoes (weejuns or otherwise) with their seersucker.

JB


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## mcarthur (Jul 18, 2005)

burgundy shell lhs


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## Checkerboard 13 (Oct 6, 2009)

Allen Edmonds Hampstead in chili calf weave.


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## WouldaShoulda (Aug 5, 2009)

Titus_A said:


> Someday I'll splurge for the Peal & Co. white bucks that Brooks sells, but I'd like to spend less than that right now. Any tips?


They were on sale recenty. 

I wear white bucs.

Those AE Hampsteads are nice too.


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## harwellplant (Apr 16, 2007)

white bucks, any brown tassel loafer, ae saddles.... its pretty much open game. its kind of local chic around my area to pair seersucker in court with black tassel loafers. i've done that once or twice, but i'm not a big fan. the thing about seersucker is that you have to OWN it and make it yours - so wear whatever you feel good in. 

the only things i have ever totally avoided with seersucker are boat shoes and black cap toes.


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## Charles Saturn (May 27, 2010)

harwellplant said:


> the thing about seersucker is that you have to OWN it and make it yours - so wear whatever you feel good in.


Thats the key really. I live in New Orleans and you can spot the noobs a mile away who think its so neat that they are wearing seersucker and are in New Orleans, both at the same time, like look at me, I must be in movie. As a friend once said to me sarcastically about mine, Wait until you get a few pee stains, then it will look good.

I know it flies in the face of cw, but the one shoe I hate seeing with seersucker, are white bucks. Just about anything else works. Somewhat relatedly, the same holds true for white linen suits. No white bucks.


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## blastandcast (Nov 29, 2006)

Charles Saturn said:


> Thats the key really. I live in New Orleans and you can spot the noobs a mile away who think its so neat that they are wearing seersucker and are in New Orleans, both at the same time, like look at me, I must be in movie. As a friend once said to me sarcastically about mine, Wait until you get a few pee stains, then it will look good.
> 
> I know it flies in the face of cw, but the one shoe I hate seeing with seersucker, are white bucks. Just about anything else works. Somewhat relatedly, the same holds true for white linen suits. No white bucks.


Interesting. I live in Alabama and I have the exact opposite feeling. I only wear white bucks with my white and blue and/or white and grey seersucker and hate the way either brown or black shoes look with either of these color combinations. I do have a pair of khaki colored seersucker which I wear with dirty bucks.

You can find a pair of white bucks for less than the Pearl & Co. you want that will work well and which you won't be afraid to get a little dirty.

On the New Orleans note, my white bucks survived a trip to the French Quarter last month just fine - nothing a chalk bag couldn't fix.


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## sowilson (Jul 27, 2009)

I couldn't pull the trigger on white bucks but I did on the white nubuck and navy saddle from J&M - looks good with seersucker, jeans, chino's, and red's.


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## cumberlandpeal (May 12, 2006)

I am with Charles Saturn on this. No white bucks. As to polish stains on the cuffs I thought they were supposed to be there. I have never had a seersucker suit that didn't have them and have never let that bother me a bit.

I prefer cordovan cigar loafer or an oxblood ptb with my seersucker. I am not a fan of black with seersucker but that's just me.


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## Bernie Zack (Feb 10, 2010)

Charles Saturn said:


> Thats the key really. I live in New Orleans and you can spot the noobs a mile away who think its so neat that they are wearing seersucker and are in New Orleans, both at the same time, like look at me, I must be in movie. As a friend once said to me sarcastically about mine, Wait until you get a few pee stains, then it will look good.
> 
> I know it flies in the face of cw, but the one shoe I hate seeing with seersucker, are white bucks. Just about anything else works. Somewhat relatedly, the same holds true for white linen suits. No white bucks.


Couldn't disagree more with this post. I wear white bucks with my blue/white and gray/white seersucker, almost exclusively. I have done so for decades, both now, and when I lived in The South. I think it looks "off" when I see someone with brown or black shoes with seersucker. It's like peanut butter and jelly. They just go together, seersucker and white bucks.

I did, however, purchase a pair of AE brown and white spectators that go splendidly with my tan/white seersucker. With blue/white, the staple is white bucks. Period.


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## Cajunking (Apr 30, 2010)

With a limited assortment of shoes, and with my seersucker generally seen when I'm cavorting about, I usually pair it with these:



Occasionally with burgundy loafers, though. 

I like the white bucks, but on one occasion I saw a father and his son both in identical seersuckers with identical belts, bucks, and hair cuts... and it was just too much for me! It's fine to mix it up a little bit!


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## Miket61 (Mar 1, 2008)

I have a pair of off-white bucks that I wear with mine - oddly, they're by Armani. They were also on clearance.

If it's going to rain, I usually wear something completely different, but if I wanted to wear my seersucker suit in the rain, it would be with a pair of light brown Alden All-Weather Walkers.


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## GFH (Jan 22, 2008)

White Bucks.


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## TMMKC (Aug 2, 2007)

Joe Tradly said:


> I always admire the few well-dressed men I know that pull off black shoes (weejuns or otherwise) with their seersucker.
> 
> JB


Agree. I regularly wear my black loafers with my seersucker shorts, but have yet to try it with the trousers. Otherwise, white bucks are the "go to" show of choice for seersucker (for me, at least).


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## Tucker (Apr 17, 2006)

Spectators...

_AlanC and KenCPollock_


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## jht3 (Jul 8, 2009)

while i like the idea of white bucks, i do not own a pair. my go to shoe is a medium brown pebble-grain blucher; and i'm wearing both my suit and shoes today

that pic of the two gents in their suits, i couldn't help but notice neither pair of pants appear to be cuffed. i thought that was one tenant of trad-ness? mine aren't cuffed and i thought i was the weird one


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## Bernie Zack (Feb 10, 2010)

Tucker said:


> Spectators...
> 
> _AlanC and KenCPollock_


Blue seersucker looks good with the black/white spectators, but I can't say the same for the gent with the brown/white specs. Love the shoes, mind you, just not a fan of mixing browns and blues in that fashion. A tan/white seersucker would go much better with the brown/white specs.


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## Joe Tradly (Jan 21, 2006)

All this talk of bucks got me to break mine out today. Got lots of commentary, as you might imagine.

JB


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## DixieTrad (Dec 9, 2006)

Have to disagree. While both look good with the seersucker, I actually prefer the brown/white. To each his own!


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## Racer (Apr 16, 2010)

I have white bucks, but I prefer to wear a pair of dark tan perforated cap toe bluchers with my blue and white seersucker suit. I wear the bucks with dark blue jeans.


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## Charles Saturn (May 27, 2010)

Joe Tradly said:


> All this talk of bucks got me to break mine out today. Got lots of commentary, as you might imagine.
> 
> JB


I'll make an exception for well worn bucks and no socks with the grey stripe. Baby blues are out though.


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## Gromson (Oct 11, 2009)

Would brown suede tassel loafers work?


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## Luckycharmboi2 (May 30, 2009)

I agree....brown and white spectators with a blue/white seersucker. 

David.


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## JakeLA (Oct 30, 2006)

$40 and very comfortable. Made in Brazil.

https://www.shoemall.com/product/Du...ctSearch&CAWELAID=475813776&utm_campaign=CSE/


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## The Rambler (Feb 18, 2010)

I'm liking this thread for some reason. Personally, I went burgundy pennies, until my wife "donated" my seersucker to purple heart, while I was away. Maybe it was the shoepolish on the cuffs :crazy:.


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## Mr. Knightly (Sep 1, 2005)

A gentleman from Kentucky once told me that a surefire way to spot a yankee at the Derby is that he's wearing bucks with his seersucker. He said that black oxfords were the way to go at an event like that. Apparently it reveals a difference in mentality: for yanksees, seersucker is playful, whereas for southerners it's also serious clothing.


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## Pleasant McIvor (Apr 14, 2008)

^ I agree. Few others seem to, however.


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## Mike Petrik (Jul 5, 2005)

Mr. Knightly said:


> A gentleman from Kentucky once told me that a surefire way to spot a yankee at the Derby is that he's wearing bucks with his seersucker. He said that black oxfords were the way to go at an event like that. Apparently it reveals a difference in mentality: for yanksees, seersucker is playful, whereas for southerners it's also serious clothing.


I think Southerners view seersucker as being both playful and serious depending on context. But why would someone elect "serious" for what is the capstone of a two week festival?


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## WouldaShoulda (Aug 5, 2009)

Mr. Knightly said:


> A gentleman from Kentucky once told me that a surefire way to spot a yankee at the Derby is that he's wearing bucks with his seersucker. He said that black oxfords were the way to go at an event like that. Apparently it reveals a difference in mentality: for yanksees, seersucker is playful, whereas for southerners it's also serious clothing.


Kentucky is not "The South!!"

In The South, it doesn't snow. Whiskey and wagering are prohibited, and men wear white shoes to avoid looking like Col. Sanders wannabees!!

Any State which borders Ohio can not possibly be Southern!!


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## Pleasant McIvor (Apr 14, 2008)

WouldaShoulda said:


> Kentucky is not "The South!!"
> 
> In The South, it doesn't snow. Whiskey and wagering are prohibited, and men wear white shoes to avoid looking like Col. Sanders wannabees!!
> 
> Any State which borders Ohio can not possibly be Southern!!


Whiskey and wagering are prohibited? Peach pies and fried chicken too?


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## harwellplant (Apr 16, 2007)

i can absolutely confirm that both whiskey and wagering are staples in the southland. i enjoyed both just yesterday.


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## WouldaShoulda (Aug 5, 2009)

harwellplant said:


> i can absolutely confirm that both whiskey and wagering are staples in the southland. i enjoyed both just yesterday.


Curses, FIE I say, to the repeal of Blue Laws!!

What would Sheriff Andy Taylor say??


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## Saltydog (Nov 3, 2007)

#8 Genuine Shell Cordovan LHS, if to rich for the pocketbook at the moment, Alden burgandy calfskin LhS, if on a shoe string...burgandy Weegans.


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## Saltydog (Nov 3, 2007)

WouldaShoulda said:


> Curses, FIE I say, to the repeal of Blue Laws!!
> 
> What would Sheriff Andy Taylor say??


From what I hear, the sheriff is busy hawking the Obama Health plan to seniors. Who woulda thunk it?


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## Miket61 (Mar 1, 2008)

Saltydog said:


> From what I hear, the sheriff is busy hawking the Obama Health plan to seniors. Who woulda thunk it?


So is Bobby Lee Cook, the alleged inspiration for Mr. Griffith's other well-known character, Ben Matlock.

But back to shoes...

The only reason I can come up with to explain the comment about Derby Day is that activities other than being in the grandstands might require less easily damaged shoes. Someone in bucks would either be heading straight for the grandstands or is completely unfamiliar with the mud and muck that might surround other areas of the grounds.


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## Quay (Mar 29, 2008)

WouldaShoulda said:


> Kentucky is not "The South!!"....


That noise y'hear right about now is a pickup rollin' down The Bourbon Trail, full of some boys with some help fashioned out of wood, a headin' for your house, to have a chat with you about this notion you got, obviously from some durned television program, about what's Southern and what's not.

Better suck up that Old Grand Dad BIB while you have the chance.


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## Quay (Mar 29, 2008)

Mike Petrik said:


> ... But why would someone elect "serious" for what is the capstone of a two week festival?


Truer words I've not seen in days.  For those who have actually been to the Derby, it's a two week party interrupted near the very end by a few minutes of horse racing in which a lot of money disappears, all surrounded by what appears to be a moat of many kinds of bourbon (Very Old Barton being the drink of the locals) that must be drunk up before you can return home. Folks that worry about their shoes have missed out on the fun.


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## WouldaShoulda (Aug 5, 2009)

Quay said:


> That noise y'hear right about now is a pickup rollin' down The Bourbon Trail, full of some boys with some help fashioned out of wood, a headin' for your house, to have a chat with you about this notion you got, obviously from some durned television program, about what's Southern and what's not.)












Curses!! The Good Ole Boys are on a rampage!!


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## demondeac (Aug 2, 2010)

Do they not sell Bucks cheaper somewhere? .... If not bucks, I would probably wear some form of a burgundy shoe.


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## eyedoc2180 (Nov 19, 2006)

I am not too big on the bucks and saddles, though you guys who work it look great. Alden's calf tassels in burgundy have been a favorite in the office, along with white OCBD and navy/green Argyle and Sutherland tie, all BB. Don't forget the pocket square.


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