A good court shoe has nothing to prove. It is the shape that everyone else’s take on the category gets measured against, a rounded or almond toe, a clean vamp with no strap, no buckle, nothing shouting for attention, and a heel that sits somewhere between kitten and mid height so the whole shoe reads as considered rather than dressed up. The ones that earn their place have a properly shaped heel counter that holds the foot without gaping at the sides, and a toe box with enough structure to keep its line after a full day of wear. Anything too soft collapses within a season. Anything too stiff will never behave like a shoe that fits you rather than a mould you’re borrowing.
Leather, or a leather look with real body to it, still does this shape better than anything else.
It creases in the right places instead of the wrong ones and takes a polish, which matters more than people admit, since scuffed suede reads tired in a way that a leather court simply doesn’t. Patent has its place for evening but should be used sparingly through the week, it draws too much light for anything you want to look understated.
Styling a court shoe well is mostly about resisting the urge to make it work too hard. It sits brilliantly under a tailored trouser, breaking just at the ankle bone so the leg line stays long and unbroken.
With a pencil skirt or a straight midi it does exactly the job it was built for, formal without stiffness. The more interesting styling comes from putting it somewhere slightly unexpected, under wide leg denim, with a slip dress and a blazer thrown over it, or against bare ankles under a summer coat when the rest of the outfit is casual and the shoe is doing the elevating on its own terms.
Occasion wise, this is the shoe for anything that needs a bit of formality without looking like you tried, client meetings, interviews, weddings where you’re not the one being photographed constantly, funerals, any day that moves between a desk and something smarter in the evening. Comfort across those hours depends entirely on the things you can check before buying, a proper insole, a heel that isn’t too narrow underfoot, and a toe box with just enough room to forget about by lunchtime.
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