The Red and the Black

June 19, 2011 4:07 AM

Help the style challenged: Doc Martens 1460 vintage color.

As someone style-challenged and clothes-shopping-adverse, I'm fortunate--jeans and a decent shirt work for everything I need clothes for, even meetings with clients. However. My black (well, now dark grey with scuffs and plenty of wear) Doc Martens 1460s are close to 15 years old; I've worn them every day, for all sorts of tasks, and they're now too scruffy to wear anywhere but the yard.

A shiny new pair would be just the ticket for my public appearances, such as they are.

I know most Docs are now made in Asia, but the Vintage line is not. I love my current (UK-made) boots and am willing to spring for a new pair of UK-made 1460s. What I want to know from those with style is: would I regret getting the oxblood color, or should I stick with black?

My attire while wearing them will be (with 99.87% assurance) actual blue-colored jeans and shirts of varying colors, usually fairly muted, but sometimes not. I wear lots of sweaters in the winter. Jackets are usually black leather. My question boils down to: is the red too inflexible to wear with random clothes pulled from the closet? Should I stick with black?

If black is the right answer I won't be heartbroken, but I think the red boots, considered as stand-alone objects, are really handsome.

(I know I'm completely lacking in style, I gave up trying to be otherwise years ago.)

posted by maxwelton to clothing, beauty, & fashion (20 answers total)

I should add I can't spring for two pairs, alas.
posted by maxwelton at 4:08 AM on June 19, 2011

I had the oxblood ones and loved them. Wore them everywhere for years.

However, there's a reason Mrs A doesn't let me buy clothes by myself, I tend to be fashion tone deaf. Given your wardrobe though, I think you'll be OK.
posted by arcticseal at 4:48 AM on June 19, 2011

If I was you I would open the closet door and I would pull things out one by one and ask yourself if you could wear the shoes with them.

I guess this doesn't help if you really don't know if they go at that point, but this is how I decide shoes purchases personally.

Then you can decide if you are comfortable with the shoes going with 100% of your wardrobe, 50%, 25%, etc.
posted by aetg at 6:02 AM on June 19, 2011

Your intuition is right: the red ones will be too much for everyday use.

Now if you're gonna wear them once every two weeks, go for it. Perfect.

You gotta be careful with red. People remember it. It's super flashy. The smallest amounts go a long way. When you wear red shoes, bank on people remembering it. They loose their surprise and start to look like a one trick fashion pony.

Stick with black.

Another consideration: consider brown leather in another maker (Docs don't do brown so well). The benefit to brown is that they look better with age (unlike black that generally look worse). Check out Frye. Similar feel to Docs but IMO more authentic (Docs are not what they were).
posted by Murray M at 6:06 AM on June 19, 2011

Who cares if they "go" with your clothes? You're wearing curb-stomping boots; they're not exactly designed to blend in. I'd get the red ones. They're just too cool to pass up.
posted by phunniemee at 6:08 AM on June 19, 2011

I love the oxblood, but I think it takes a certain kind of style to pull them off.

You should get the black, because they'll be very unobtrusive, go with everything, and don't require that je ne sais quoi.
posted by Sara C. at 6:08 AM on June 19, 2011

Ooh! The oxblood are beautiful, but not versatile. And you might just get sick of the color sometime during the next 15 years... Another vote for the black.
posted by likeso at 6:38 AM on June 19, 2011

Hmm. My initial response was to get the oxblood. I think they generally do go with anything and while they're distinctive, they're not a one-trick pony because they're such a classic. Having read some other answers, though, it occurs to me that I've probably spent more time looking at/reading about/wearing/etc Doc Martens than most people. To me, a pair of oxblood 1460s is as classic as a little black dress and as incapable of being inappropriate -- others' mileage may vary.
posted by daisyk at 7:11 AM on June 19, 2011 [1 favorite]

Get the black ones, then save up for a little while and get the oxblood ones as well so you can alternate.

You shouldn't wear the same pair of shoes every day anyway, they need a chance to air out. And if they're lasting you 15 years, I think it's worth the extra $200 investment.
posted by coraline at 7:19 AM on June 19, 2011 [1 favorite]

Get the red. Your profile says you're a designer/programmer, not a dermatologist. I expect a little sartorial weirdness from really good design-types, and if you wear it every day, so much the better. Make sure you get the appropriate boot polish, and try to shine your shoes every couple weeks. Letting them get too scuffed too soon makes it look like you regret the color.
posted by toodleydoodley at 7:47 AM on June 19, 2011

Get the red. Black Doc Martens already have a certain militaristic/punk connotation, and the red is actually much less severe. And they would "go" with anything in your current wardrobe, and will look quite classy once broken in.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 8:31 AM on June 19, 2011

The oxblood is great, and definitely (as daisyk points out) a classic. But it's not just a classic in the world of docs-- oxblood dress shoes have a long history as well and are gorgeous. They're not bright red, and they're not a color that'll really clash with much. I'm always impressed by people who are willing to wear shoes with a bit more flair than normal, and these will have that while remaining functionally neutral in your wardrobe, especially as they age.
posted by dizziest at 8:41 AM on June 19, 2011 [2 favorites]

Another vote for oxblood red. I absolutely agree that oxblood red DMs are a design classic and go with everything.

Caveat - I wear red shoes of some description (nearly) every day.
posted by mgrrl at 9:22 AM on June 19, 2011

I'd go with the red, because you really seem to dig them. I think they will make you happy when you put them on every day. I don't think anything else matters as much as that.
Note: I am not generally asked for style advice.
posted by Glinn at 9:31 AM on June 19, 2011

Another vote for oxblood. If you're going to wear these the next 15 years, the question is not whether these red boots go with your current wardrobe but whether they will go with your future wardrobe. And that, of course, is up to you.
posted by Sourisnoire at 10:34 AM on June 19, 2011

Oxblood. They'll be your thing - you'll be the guy with those boots - but if you can wear Docs at all for work you should be able to wear a maroon pair. Also, I got a pair of those (in black) new in box on Ebay for about half price. They're okay - not actually as good as Docs used to be in the eighties/early nineties, though, and they've changed the sole. Better than the regular line, but the regular line appears to be made out of polished cardboard at this point.
posted by Frowner at 10:59 AM on June 19, 2011

+1 for the oxbloods. The oxbloods will look better with your blue blue-jeans, worse with your black leather jackets. I agree with others that it is a classic color and will go with many different outfits, just as many as black shoes really, especially as the age and take on patina.
posted by 2ghouls at 12:23 PM on June 19, 2011

Have you thought at all about their For Life collection? They are made in Asia instead of the UK, but they are $50 cheaper than UK-made and they'll fix them up or replace them for life for an "administrative fee" of $25.
posted by MegoSteve at 1:55 PM on June 19, 2011

Oxblood. I wear a similar color of Dansko clogs with black leather anything and everything, as well as most of my other clothing. They tend to look a little more fashion forward than my black pair. As in "I'm wearing things that go rather than match."
posted by oflinkey at 6:53 PM on June 19, 2011

I love my Oxblood DMs - like yours, they're an old UK made pair that I've treasured since I was a teenager.

That said, there are some things I don't wear them with. They're fine with blue jeans, but if I'm wearing black jeans, I reckon black boots look a lot better. Sometimes I just want to unleash my inner goth and wear a solely black/monochromatic outfit - and for that, I think a pair of black Clarks desert boots is just the ticket.

So, erm, get the Oxbloods. Then get a pair of black Clarks desert boots. After all, why settle for just one British design classic?
posted by Ted Maul at 3:16 AM on June 20, 2011