Boat/Deck Shoes

(UPDATED: February 19, 2012)

Boat shoes have become an alternative to ballet flats or canvas sneakers. Unlike the aforementioned ballet flats, boat shoes can be unisex. Preppy style will always be a mainstay in fashion. If you are one of those who believe in preppy style, this is a shoe trend you can appreciate. These boat shoes mostly favor those who love casual fashion or dressy casual fashion. They are a total mismatch with any really formal fashions or any ultra-feminine, ultra-chic fashions. Instead, they favor the casual dresser who has an eye for preppy style. This blog entry is my blog entry regarding these shoes that have become popular since last year.

LATEST UPDATE(S):

FEB 19 2012 - made a few edits


NOTE: Boat shoes are also called deck shoes. For this blog entry, I will refer to these as boat shoes.

NOTE: This blog entry contains links to Amazon products. You are welcome to click on images and links to learn more about each item. You are free to order any items featured in this section or in any widget if you choose. Please see "An Important Amazon Note" in my blog's sidebar to see more information on any Amazon items shown.

--- Boat Shoes at a Glance ---

Whether you love or loathe boat shoes, this is more an alternative to those who don't want to wear oxfords or any Converse-esque sneakers. A lot of people see these lace-ups as geeky or nerdy. However, at least this is different from the same old rock-oriented fashions and '80s fashions lots of people are nowadays accustomed to. Boat shoes demonstrate casual and dressy casual. This look was meant for both casual types as well as preppy folk.

In case you wonder what the top maker of boat shoes is, Sperry Top-Sider is the top make for boat shoes. Sperry Top-Sider's Boat Shoes (Amazon search) are very popular boat shoes. So you can think of Sperry Top-Sider to boat shoes as UGG Australia to sheepskin boots or Old Navy (or Havianas) to flip-flops.

What to Wear With Boat/Deck Shoes: Females (Girls, Juniors, and Women)?

I've become a bit more acceptable of boat shoes in recent times. A look I've started to like is the feminine look of short-shorts and boat shoes. I've seen a teenage or college-age girl wear these blue denim short-shorts along with a pair of light brown boat shoes. I've also seen these white flap-pocket short shorts paired with navy blue and white boat shoes. One last combo to look at is wearing tan or beige shorts with light brown boat shoes. If you fancy capris more, a friend of mine wore light brown boat shoes with some cuffed blue denim cropped jeans. Skirts and skorts are just fine to me with these boat shoes. They are fine as long as they are above-the-knee skirts. I'd avoid any flirty skirts with these because it's all about preppy style and semi-modest fashion. Try a denim blue skirt that goes down to about mid-thigh or just above the knees, and pair with some light brown or dark brown boat shoes. I would totally avoid dresses, though. While it may look strange, palazzo pants or gaucho pants with boat shoes aren't too bad to pair them with.

What to Wear With Boat/Deck Shoes: Males (Boys, Young Men, Men)?

What about you guys out there? You could probably wear some boat shoes with cargo shorts or some chino pants. I would probably wear a comfortable polo shirt if wearing chino pants with boat shoes. Got to show some casual dressy style, guys!

--- Criticisms of Boat/Deck Shoes ---

The primary cricism about boat shoes is that they are geeky. I think for most people, if given a choice between boat shoes and crocs clogs, a good majority would go with boat shoes. This is really different from all the rock fashions and '80s fashions.

--- Boat Shoes in Pictures ---

It's time to take a look at boat shoes in pictures. Here are some boat shoes based on pictures I've found across the Internet:


^ from: tqn.com - boat shoes at their most basic.


^ from: shoes.com - a pair of two-tone boat shoes.


^ from: amazon.com - boat shoes, especially for females, can take on the form of a pair of loafers or some skimmers. The above is a pair of wedge boat shoes. This gives a cute touch to boat shoes.


^ from: shoeplayhouse.com - rather than single-color or two-tone boat shoes, they may also be patterened or in plaid.


^ from: louloumagazine.com - a girl wearing dark brown boat shoes with a green top and a blue mini skirt.


^ from: trendycrew.com - a man wearing a white button-down shirt, light lavender shorts, and taupe boat shoes.


So, as you can see, there are many ways to wear boat shoes and wear boat shoes with. Just remember casual and dressy casual only. Don't try to take these to formal occasions or anything.

--- What to Wear With Boat Shoes? ---

For females, there are a number of looks that I've seen boat shoes being worn. I think wearing short-shorts with boat shoes is a cute look. I would prefer a pair of non-denim short shorts (maybe linen or twill) to with boat shoes. If you prefer denim shorts, some non-blue denim short shorts would be nice. What also I have seen are cropped pants and cropped jeans worn with boat shoes. Casually, a pair of twill pants or some kind of linen pants work well as bottoms. I don't think boat shoes go well at all with dresses and skirts, so I'd avoid them when going with boat shoes. So my dream look for females with boat shoes: polo shirt + short shorts + boat shoes.

Males just have to go preppy cool. Not much is needed to look great in a pair of boat shoes.

Boat shoes are very unisex, so they are stylish for both males and females. How you style them is up to you.





Please use this widget below to shop for boat/deck shoes on Amazon, if you wish to buy boat shoes online. No information from me will be given about each item, so make sure to use this blog entry to at least get a head start in shopping for boat shoes.

TRY THIS: This widget is set for boat shoes in the Search box. You may want to add different words to look for more specific boat shoes that may interest you. For example... you may change the text to "girls boat shoes," "Sperry boat shoes," "boat shoes size 9," or something like that to help make your search easier.








My blog post on Boat/Deck Shoes on John's Shop Space can now be accessed! Click on the link in this sentence to visit my John's Shop Space post on Boat/Deck Shoes!

By the way, thank you for reading! You may also read "Preppy Fashion" on John's Blog Space for a look at preppy fashion, which makes a mention to boat/deck shoes.

Become a Fan (or Like) my Facebook Fan Page and subscribe this blog (and my others) via FeedBurner (or any other aggregator in the sidebar)! Visit (or subscribe):
• Subscribe to John's Blog Space!
• Subscribe to John's Shop Space! (http://jbmshopspace.blogspot.com)
• Subscribe to John's Gran Turismo Space! (http://johnsgtspace.blogspot.com)