Men's Shoes: Burnished Leather

The burnished leather shoe is a look that has caught on with men.(photo: iStock Photo)

The burnished leather gives shoes an aged, worn look that works well with everything from dark denim to khaki shorts. The look is very wearable.

— Patrick Thompson, men's fashions buyer for Planet Blue

Burnished leather shoes are de rigueur for today’s well-heeled man, with on-trend kicks sporting a buffed, antique-looking surface that recalls the dapper styles of the swank 1920s. Whether in boat shoes or street-wise sneakers, trend-setting stars -- including singer Justin Bieber and actor Jeremy Piven -- are stepping forward in burnished leather footwear. John Varvatos and Tom Ford are among the high-end designers who have released variations of the style, but rocking affordable versions also are available.

A burnished leather shoe can be dressed up or down. (photo: Timur Emek/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images)

Whether you pay top dollar or pluck a bargain deal from the sale rack, this season’s burnished leather shoes are classy, comfortable and endlessly cool.

According to fashion guru Patrick Thompson, buyer of men's fashions for Planet Blue, a popular Southern California boutique chain with locations scattered about Los Angeles, today’s most popular shoes “are not pristine and all in one shade, but burnt, weathered and comfortable-looking.”

Many of the burnished shoe styles in stores draw their inspiration from the scuffed-up soles of denim-clad motorcyclists who’ve worn their leather biker boots to the bone.

“Those of us who don't have a great pair of leather boots that we've been holding onto for years are now fortunate enough to see the ‘finish’ pre-made on new shoes,” Thompson said.

But burnishing, a technique used by craftspeople to polish leather until it achieves a smooth, lustrous finish of varying shades of color, is certainly not limited to boots. “Burnished leather has been popular with all styles lately,” Thompson said.

A man can pair a burnished shoe with pretty much anything.

“The burnished leather gives shoes an aged, worn look that works well with everything from dark denim to khaki shorts,” Thompson said. “The look is very wearable.”

While Thompson recommends wearing a burnished boat shoe with shorts and a burnished boot with denim, both styles “are quite versatile,” he said. And since burnished shoes come in a wide variety of leather base-colors -- brown, black, tan, plum, olive, gray -- you’ve got a lot of leeway in choosing hues.

“I prefer the dark, wine-colored cognac ones because then you can see the treatment better,” said Bernard Jacobs, celebrity stylist and president of Katy Duds, an image and fashion consulting firm in West Hollywood, California. “It’s an old world look, kind of a worn-in, two-tone look in a shoe. With the brown and black burnished shoes, you can’t tell the detail as well. The cognac ones always look great to me.”

Jacobs notes that burnished shoes add just the right amount of sophistication when matched with trousers, slacks or a basic business-style suit. “You can spice up a boring blue or gray business suit with a pair of burnished cognac or brown shoes,” he said. “The shoes take the suit to a fashionable level without trying too hard to look hip and current.”

Cuffed pants, rolled up just above the ankle, also look stylish when worn with a burnished shoe. “Everybody is doing the cuffed hem thing with the burnished leather,” Jacobs said, adding, "I like the look better when men aren't wearing socks. It's just a much more casual, cooler, more effortless vibe."

If you wear socks with these shoes, he suggests going with a classic, preppy argyle print. "If you're going to go with argyle," he said, "always wear a high sock. A low sock tends to get pushed down or slouched down around the ankle, which is a definite fashion faux pas.”

Even though burnished leather footwear may be worn with a wide range of clothing styles, Jacobs draws a line over which you should not step in such shoes:

“Do not wear burnished shoes with formalwear,” he said. “It will not look right with a tuxedo ... unless maybe if it’s a burnished leather mixed with a patent leather. But for the most part, a burnished leather shoe always comes off as a casual look because this type of leather is used on a chunky square-toed shoe. It never comes across as a dressy shoe.

"As long as you keep them paired with casual wear, though, they'll serve you well."

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