Out of control. I found myself cursing mandal sightings left and right this weekend. It’s completely uncalled for. I don’t care if it’s hot–if you’re in an American city, you don’t need to be wearing sandals as a man. It’s appalling. Twice last week I was confronted with the after-work sandals costume-change. One man in a Jos. A. Bank conservative sack suit complete with Jansport bookbag (cringe) and dollar-store foam/rubber-laden man sandals. Then this past Friday I got a two-fer when two (DOS) men were hopping on the bus to “grab a quick brew” both with birkenstocks under their dress trousers.
It’s a bad look fellas. I mean, we’re not women who stand on the balls of their feet on 3″ stilts all day. Do your feet really need a rest from a pair of closed-toed leather shoes? Grow a pair. (or at least get inserts).
Sorry to be so stern (I’m actually not sorry at all).
However, this is all fueled by the recent uprising in… wait for it…
MANLIATORS?
anddddddd the line has been overstepped.
Men’s gladiator sandals? Never. Come on, world, seriously? Come on.
To quote Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast:
“NO NO NO NO NO NO NO”
-Dennis Cahlo
http://www.madetomeasureny.com
Oh god.
Also, what kind of short shorts was this guy wearing? unless it was some iron-plated kilt and he was on his way toward the set for Clash of the Titans, this gets a big ol’ thumbs down.
How ironic that manliators are actually not very manli… They should by nature by manly! If women get to wear gladiator sandals, then do men get to wear wench sandals? I will ponder this today.
Obviously i think it’s disgusting with a suit, but what’s wrong with sandals when worn properly?
obviously there’s a lot to avoid. the dreaded crocs for one, and any type of “sneaker-sandal”, but so long as they’re a nice brown leather with not a hint of femininity, and only worn with shorts, i think they’re all right aren’t they?
i am a firm believer of man sandals. the manilators are extreme and should NOT be worn, but a regular pair of Birks with Straight-leg jeans or shorts adds a nice flavor that most sneakers cannot do.
There’s a difference between wearing Birks or Crocs with a suit and wearing actually-nice like, leather sandals with an appropriate outfit. I wouldn’t say sandals are off-limits to men completely, if done correctly (aka as casual weekend-wear).
worn properly, sandals add a lot of benefit to an outfit.
they have their place, as do suits.
i agree that the two should not be intertwined. they are much too different to mix them. perhaps there will be some breakthrough in the future for that. but now at this time?
Agree with the latter posts as to a time and place for everything. I have a couple dozen mandals in high-quality leather from various designers but would not wear them with a suit. Nor do I own anything less worthy like Birks, crocs, or the hybrid sneaker-sandal. And as for Christina’s comment, that was my first horrific thought, too–never mind the pastel gladiators, what happened to his pants and do we really need to see that much hairy man-leg?! OY.
Oops, sorry–that was JB’s comment about the short-shorts! EEEK.
yea way too much man-leg. this guy must use nair.
I think well-made sandals look fantastic when worn correctly. I have several sandals for both casual and dressy occasions and always get compliments. I stay away from fisherman and birkenstock styles as well as flip-flips made of the sad brown leather and puffy footbed–they seem to be favored by clueless breeders with disgusting feet. Oh yeah–keep the feet clean and the toenails trimmed. It’s just a bit off putting when you see some nice manlegs and beautiful sandals, but the feet in them are dirty with long toenails.
what is wrong with mens gladiator sandals really?
the above photo is obviously a failure, but this has to do with many specific things, eg the white color seems very gay, the no hair and not gymmed leg also, the specific design of the sandal, etc, a gay figure will look gay in short pants, in t-shirt, even in business suit
I am quite sure the correct gladiator sandal would look manly and should have a place in fashion
ofcourse I am the first to abolish gayish fashion trends, but at the same time I think people should be more open minded towards fashion, particularly for manly items such as gladiator sandals
that is certainly fair. I would say that gladiators can be done well. and that this picture is definitely an unfair depiction of manilators.
a nice brown leather pair of man gladiators with broader strips of leather can look great if low-cut for shorts, but can look great in jeans/pants if it was a higher-cut shoe.