Nude pumps are best worn with outfits where a grounding color is not needed for the shoes. For example, when Megan Markle wore a hunter green blouse and leather skirt, nude pumps were the absolute right choice, especially as day wear.

If she had worn a red ensemble, the nude pump would have worked, too. However, recently, a photo of a colleague at an evening event revealed a navy dress with a nude pump that looked lost. A black or dark navy pump would have enhanced the dress. Wearing the nude pump made it look like a day outfit. A nude pump with slacks works best in the same color family.

It used to be a fashion faux pas to wear hose with open toes sandals and shoes. Now, the public, especially men, have worn hose with sandals for the last five years, especially in Europe. Last year, designers began showing models with sandals wearing open toe sandals with sheer nude hose.

Don’t wear hose with open toe shoes:
• Sheer hose with a reinforced toe
• Contrasting colored hose with the shoe

Do wear hose with open toe shoes
• Sheer choices with no toes
• Sheer choices, sheer toe
• Colors that match the shoe (black with black)

These rules are flexible when wearing slacks.

Matching your shoe color means that the shoe color and style should coordinate with the outfit being worn. Today, though, everything is all up in the air! Current times suggest that red color shoes can be worn with the opposite wheel color. Yellow sport shoes can be worn with a suit. Women can wear a completely different color red shoe with a white suit. Comfort has become critical and style goes out the window if any clothing or accessory is not comfortable. To play it safe, stay with companion colors in choosing a shoe color to go with your ensemble.

Polished leather shoes are becoming more commonplace with jeans for business casual. The rock stars and actors still favor the white or colorful athletic shoe. However, professionals have found that high gloss leather finished shoes gives elegance to their look.

Recently Marc Marion, a stand up comedian and podcast host, was featured in a well-known publication wearing very casual clothes with polished leather shoes. He looked very smart.

A recent Tribune article asked if a man can wear gym shoes with a suit. In celebrity magazines, we see actor’s wearing funky shoes with suits and tuxedos. If you are in the fashion or marketing industry or a billionaire why not? For everyone else, if you want to be taken seriously and not be the focus of conversations about your shoes, stick with traditional footwear. For pizazz, mix it up with a different color leather (not red!).

It is interesting to see flip flops become somewhat of a main footwear choice on Main Street. Flip flops are designed now in every material from rubber to upscale leather. Recently, at a 5-Star restaurant for dinner, I was disappointed to see men wearing leather flip flops! It was a dinner not lunch. There are so many cool casual shoes that resorting to flip flops is not necessary.

White has been in style for the last two years. In 2016, it hit in athletic shoes and in recently replacing sandals especially for men.  Give credit to the shoe designers. We have seen the colored footwear boom in everything from bright orange to screaming yellow hues. Smart designers decided to add a white and it became a trend. It makes sense because you can wear white with any color outfit. The new white shoe is not clunky so add it to your closet!

Shoe designers have us coming and going. What shoes should we wear for each occasion? Recently a major department store had a sale:  buy one pair and get one free. What a genius idea and seductive way to reduce a shoe inventory and get us to go nutty buying shoes we do not need!

Recently I was getting ready to go to a conference. My biggest challenge was how could I limit my shoes to four pairs? You need shoes to workout, a dressy dinner event, a gala and then to host a meeting. Also, the conference center was a mile away from the rooms. Why couldn’t I just bite the bullet and wear workout shoes the whole time? After all, athletic shoes in all colors are the rage.

I did end up bringing too many shoes but my feet felt good as my image!

When wearing capris at a casual pool party, the shoe we like is a sandal. Not everyone can wear them, though, because of a physical deformity of some sort. If you do wear a sandal, a pedicure is important. Neutral is best unless you have beautiful toes, then choose a color that will enhance the look of the sandal.

You can also wear white gym shoes. Not the heavy athletic ones though. Choose the brand, KEDS.