Jeans are the most-owned garment in the world and the shoe is where they go wrong. Straight jeans with a chunky white sneaker look heavy, the leg just stops; with a black penny loafer they look finished, a shoe with some weight at the end of the line. Wide-leg jeans swallow a thin strappy sandal; a two-tone cap-toe slingback gives the hem the one thing it needs, a black toe. Skinny jeans on a chunky platform look dated; in an emerald satin kitten heel they look alive, and jewel tones are the shoe trend of the season. All six are under $45 on Amazon and were checked on the day of posting.
Why the shoe decides the jeans
Who What Wear's fall shoe report for denim names five trends worth wearing with jeans this season: jewel tones, embellishment, two-tone, satin and ballet heels, with one warning, that anything too chunky or too high looks off. So we put three cuts on the same model and changed only the shoe.
Each cut appears twice, with the shoe most people reach for and the one that actually works. Two of the three winners come straight off that trend list.
Rule one: straight jeans need weight at the end of the line
A straight leg is a column, and it needs a solid shoe to end on. A chunky white sneaker gives it a great deal of sole and nothing else; the eye lands on the rubber and the leg simply stops. The K KIP WOK platform sneaker has 2,335 reviews and is a fine gym-to-coffee shoe. It is the wrong end for this column.
A black penny loafer finishes it. The Dream Pairs penny loafer sits on a low chunky sole, 4.2 stars from 3,405 reviews, $37.99, and the jeans hem lands on top of it the way a straight leg was cut to.
Rule two: a wide leg wants a toe, not straps
Under a wide, full-length leg a thin strappy sandal disappears. The straps are covered, the heel is covered, and what is left reads as bare feet. The Dream Pairs strappy sandal is a very good shoe under a slip dress, where we used it last week, and lost under denim.
A two-tone cap-toe slingback is the answer, and it is on this season's trend list. The Ankis slingback kitten heel, beige with a black pointed toe, 4.3 stars from 1,562 reviews, $33.99, gives the hem exactly one thing to show: a black toe. That is all it needs.
Rule three: skinny jeans come alive in a jewel tone
Skinny jeans are only dated when the shoe is. A chunky white platform sandal sends the whole outfit back to 2019. The Dream Pairs platform is a good shoe with 3,548 reviews; it belongs under a structured dress, not a skinny leg.
An emerald satin kitten heel does the opposite. It is three trends in one shoe, jewel tone, satin and a slingback kitten heel, and against black denim it is the only colour in the outfit. The Mostrin slingback is 4.4 stars from 1,085 reviews and $39.98.
