04-07-2025
- Lifestyle
- Wall Street Journal
Few Menswear Items Are as Controversial as Sandals. 7 Rules to Follow.
Men's sandals divide opinion like flip-flops split toes. 'Sandals are a much more polarizing shoe style for men than for women,' noted New York personal stylist Turner Allen, because men 'aren't necessarily comfortable showing their feet to the world.' (And because the world isn't necessarily thrilled at the prospect of seeing them.) In 2016, king of chic Tom Ford famously copped to hating flip-flops on men 'unless you have the world's most perfect feet—and then only at a beach resort.'
Pah! Why should those blessed with ravishing toes have all the fun? Vacation, at least, is a time to be free! I say wear whatever breezy, foot-flaunting shoes you desire—so long as you follow these seven strict guidelines. Since sandals can present a sartorial minefield—some plunder wallets, others murder feet and plenty more wound eyeballs—it is worth keeping a few things in mind:
This is more important than all the other rules combined. The goal is not billboard-beautiful feet—just ones that won't cause the nice family on the neighboring sun loungers to spit out their piña coladas. 'A little basic maintenance before you start wearing anything that's going to expose your piggies is a good move,' as Chris Gentile, the founder of New York brand Pilgrim Surf + Supply, put it.
