AE Cornwallis - How casual can you go?

My stable of relevant shoes includes two pairs of AE Park Avenues (black and oxblood), one pair of Ecco Atlanta Plain Toes in mink, and another pair of Ecco bluchers whose name escapes me in black. Both pairs of Eccos are getting a little long in the tooth, and while they're in good condition, the soles are, to torture the reference, the Achilles' Heel of the line. I imagine they don't have a ton of life left in them.

I've had my eye on the AE Cornwallis for a while now. This shoe seems to thread the needle for me between not being quite as formal as my PA's, still business casual (wool slacks with cuffed bottoms, and a dress shirt, no tie) appropriate, and perhaps being even a little more versatile for more casual wear. My concern, however, is that it may be too dressy for, say, a pair of Dockers in either blue or khaki with a nice buttoned shirt for a dress-down at work or a family function -- or, hell, even a more casual buttoned shirt for social engagements of a casual-but-not-jeans variety. If it matters, I'm looking at the Cornwallis in Walnut Calf.

Unfortunately, the sartorial arts are not my strong suit.

Thanks, gents!

My sartorial arts are no better than yours, but I agree with your assessment. That a wingtip (e.g. McTavish) or Strand might be a better choice for Khakis and dressing down. But those Cornwallis sound like they fit part of your wardrobe needs too.

For me the walnut would be fine even with jeans.

You may want to look into a pair of blutchers/derbys. The Cornwallis is a good looking shoe, but I see your concern with it being a little too dressy for casual wear since its an oxford.

If you have an AE store near, it wouldn't be bad to go in and try some out.

Also, how about a boot? The Fifth Street is a balmoral/oxford boot that hits above the ankle. The toe medallion brings down the formality a bit. It would definitely fit the bill all the way down to casual chinos. I've actually almost pulled the trigger on them a few times, but I'm more in the market for a Chelsea boot right now.

Edcculus said:

You may want to look into a pair of blutchers/derbys. The Cornwallis is a good looking shoe, but I see your concern with it being a little too dressy for casual wear since its an oxford.

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The quoted part is probably my biggest beef with AE. They have some nice looking shoes (and some with way, way too much broguing for my like), but there seems to be a pretty wide divide between their oxfords and their bluchers. If they made the Cornwallis in a blucher, I'd be set!

That said, the boot idea is an interesting one. I wonder if I'd have the same problem as the Cornwallis -- an oxford with some more casual elements rather than a less formal shoe with dressier elements.

I'm still not totally off the island with respect to the Cornwallis. I guess I'm looking for more opinions.

If I had to go into an office on a regular basis, I would be happy to wear the Cornwallis. I think it's too formal for my home-office, around the town, use. My "town" is farm-ish country.

I've always thought that the Cornwallis looked pretty formal. Just one guy's opinion. I have a number of AE shoes, but I bought the AE Rogues in black and chili for versatility. For me, they thread the line exactly as you describe. They're a cap toe with larger than normal brogueing which makes them a bit less formal. That, and I've found that the Rogues' 201 last fits me better than any other AE last. I've worn the black with a dark gray pinstripe suit, the chili with khakis and a golf shirt, and both with a sport jacket and tie. Most of the time I wear them with slacks and a nice shirt since our office is business casual. They're my most versatile AE shoes. Here's the Rogue in chili:

I just picked up a pair in Jeffersonville yesterday in bourbon to match a belt I have and couldn't imaging these shoes being worn in anything less than dress pants and a dress shirt which is my everyday look. I will say that I'm loving these shoes maybe more than any other pair I have. I have Derbys, alumnus and MacNeils in chili and black and the color of this shoe makes it incredibly versatile since it's not quite black or brown.

How was the jeffersonville store? Plenty of stock?

BS812 said:

How was the jeffersonville store? Plenty of stock?

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Yeah it was ok. It's good to troll the shoe bank website before you go because the display shoes are very limited. the bourbons were in the back so had I not have known what I wanted I never would have just stumbled across a great deal. I will say that their stock looks to be all first quality to me as my shoes are flawless and we're $157 as opposed to $395.