Can You Wear Loafers with Shorts?

You’ve got a pair of these old-fashion yet stylish loafers and you don’t know what to pair them with. It’s hot outside so you want to wear shorts, and then you ask yourself this very important question. “Can you wear loafers with shorts?”. Well, the right answer to that question would be to type out your question into google and read on.

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Can Loafers Be Worn With Shorts?

The short answer is, yes. Loafers can be worn with shorts. In fact, if you want a relaxed summer, autumn, or spring outfit that looks classy yet casual, loafers are your best bet. You need to be careful what you pair them with.

For women, loafers look best with long or flowy shorts, to achieve an effortlessly classy look. Even though flowy or classy pants for women work best, you can pair them with a pencil skirt or jeans.

And for men, they also look good with shorts that are on the longer side, specifically shorts that are right above your knee. You could pair them with khaki or denim shorts for a casual outfit.

Loafers – What are they?

We’ll start from the basics. What are loafers?

Loafers are also known as slip-on shoes, based on the fact that they don’t have any laces, knots, or garments that you need to buckle up. They’re very simple shoes that are easy to wear and are as old as the 1800s. Nowadays, they are just ordinary pairs of shoes you can wear for your casual or business casual outfit.

There are many different types of loafers, you can find them in any color or with a heel. Currently most popular are the platform loafers. Loafers are great for both men and women, and you can find loafers that are very inexpensive or high-end designer loafers that are worth hundreds of dollars.

Anyhow, loafers are a classy type of shoe preferred as part of a business casual look. Therefore, should you wear them with just a pair of shorts?

How To Style Them

So, now that you’ve learned that loafers and shorts can be paired together the next step is to learn how to style and accessorize them for the occasion. They can be worn with a t-shirt or a polo shirt for a more casual occasion.

For a business casual look, you can wear your loafers with shorts and a button-up shirt, or even a blazer. The same can be said about women’s apparel, with the slight difference that I think women’s loafers look better with high simple black or white socks.

Also, read the alternatives you can wear to a t shirt

What Types of Loafers Are There?

There are many different types of loafers such as:

• Wildsmith
• Aurland
• Penny
• Kilted
• Horse-bit
• Belgian
• Tasseled

I won’t talk about all of them,  because they don’t all match the loafers and shorts combo. Wildsmith’s look too slick for shorts and I would say are a big no, when it comes to wearing them with shorts.

Aurlands are also great with classy long pants or jeans, but not great together with shorts. All of these shoes do not look like they used to when they were introduced to us in the 1920s and after. So, I will mainly talk about penny loafers, tasseled loafers, and moccasins.

Penny Loafers

The penny loafers aren’t just called penny loafers for no reason. It’s believed that they got their name during the 1930s when 2 pennies were just enough to make an emergency phone call on the payphone.

The slit on the front of the shoe had a tight enough space to store a penny inside. Whether this is true or just an urban legend, it never changed the tradition of wearing this type of loafer. And not only because of their name are the penny loafers still a great fashion statement for people to this day and age, but also for their leather look, quality, and comfort.

Also, read a list of great cobbler sewing machines.

Tassel Loafers

This is a pair of loafers that have tassels on them because of Paul Lukas, who seemingly bought a pair of oxfords with laces that had tassels on them and really liked the design.

He then went on to make his own type of loafer that had tassels on the upper part of the shoe in the front. This type of loafer is a classic in Italian menswear and is generally worn by both men and women of all ages.

They are best paired with a suit or something formal, however, we can make an exception depending on the color of the shoe and the shorts. A good option for a casual relaxed look would be blue tassel loafers with white or beige shorts.

Moccasins

Moccasins are another great option similar to the aforementioned loafers. They are great paired with shorts as long as you know how to work well with the given colors. I suggest sticking to beige shorts and slightly darker brown loafers. These types of loafers can be worn with shorts made out of denim as well.

Gucci Loafers

When I say Gucci loafers I mean the horsebit loafers which are the original Gucci loafer. They can be worn for any occasion, as the other loafers on the list. You can wear them with light blue denim shorts above your knees paired with blue loafers or you can wear white or beige shorts with blue, brown, or beige-colored loafers. It’s up to you!

Also, read a great list of zig zag sewing machines.

Final Thoughts

Loafers when worn with shorts create a very well-dressed casual look. There are things you need to look out for, as colors and the type of shirt you wear will definitely make or break your outfit.

No need to worry though, because an all-white outfit can work with any type of loafers. Any button-down shirt is going to look great for a casual look or a simple color shirt paired with the same color loafers will suit you and look just fine. Don’t be afraid to experiment and feel confident in your loafer fashion choices.