How to style loafers could seem like a tricky question as they are a key style statement! Let’s find out some of the classiest and useful ways women can style loafers.

What are Loafers?

Loafers are moccasin-like shoes made with either leather or suede that look quite elegant when worn with any outfit. 

Although not everyone understands how to style loafers and what kind of outfits they go with, they are pretty versatile and can be matched with either a casual dress, business attire, or worn at a party.

There is no doubt that loafers have been here for ages! Bass Weejun, a Norwegian fisherman, first invented the famous loafers in the 1930s. If you watch an old movie of the 90’s, you can see both men and women wearing loafers quite often, glamorizing the vintage look. Soon after their invention, loafers have been coming with several variations; from the broad platform to the classic tassel design. We can see how the chunky heeled one is coming back in style in 2022.

Want to check how to style loafers? Let’s get into the ideas below!

Outfit Ideas For Loafers

There are several answers to the question of how to style loafers, and each idea is pretty easy to carry.  

Go-to Style Statement With Jeans

Nothing suits loafers more than jeans! You can pair up a skinny, bootcut, ripped, or mom jeans with loafers and a t-shirt for a more everyday trendy look. Or, you can also pair up a straight jean with loafers and a buttoned shirt for an executive look.

Loafers look great with both blue, indigo, gray, beige, and black jeans, enhancing almost every color. They can be worn with denim, leather, corduroy, or tailored jeans; whatever you feel comfortable in!

You can totally see how wearing loafers with such an outfit changes your entire look from dull to chic! Gen Z is very much into wearing chunky loafers with high-waist jeans paired up with minimalistic jewelry.

Leather with a Leather Jacket

Seen people wearing leather oxfords with leather jackets? Try replacing the ordinary shoes with loafers, and wear a jacket to ramp-up your style game. Leather jackets appear to be more iconic and give off a dapper look when you pair them up with loafers.

To enhance the overall look, you can wear solid-colored bottoms or even spice it up with a cheetah or hobo print.

Long Socks and Skirts

For a cute high-school look, loafers can be worn pretty finely with long socks and a plaid skirt. Although you need to make sure that the skirt you wear must be tight-fitting and patterned. The skirt must not be entire length, as it would kill the look and make your loafers hide in plain sight.

Loafers go extremely well with white cotton socks; however, you can wear them with colorful or patterned socks if you want a more flamboyant look.

Tops with puffed sleeves or tuck-in shirts can go very well with such an outfit, giving you a chance to be a doll-like style inspo for teens.  

Cardigans, Sweatshirts, and Turtle-neck Sweaters

Even in winters, loafers provide extreme warmth, comfort, and sophistication when paired up with bright-colored turtle-neck sweaters, cardigans, and sweatshirts.

Penny loafers and mule loafers can be worn directly under jeans and trousers, making the entire winter/autumn attire urbane and comfortable.

Pair Up With Cute Dresses

Apart from heels and sandals, loafers look really modern with dresses of different lengths. For example, penny loafers, classic slip-on loafers, and even lug-sole loafers go well with mini or midi dresses. Loafers in both pastels and neutral colors can enhance the beauty of a dress in any season. One can pair this outfit up with a saddle bag, mini backpack, canvas shopper, or a crossbody bag.

With long dresses, loafer mules and tassel loafers look more suitable rather than heeled ones. Make sure not to wear a very long dress that covers your feet, as your loafers would appear gaudy.   

Loafers give off a classic look, that’s why you must pair them with dresses having vintage-inspired flares and silhouettes.

Coats of All Kinds

Not only do loafers look classic with trench coats, they complement well with peacoats, fur coats, long denim coats, cropped coats, and waterfall ones.

There is nothing to worry about what specifically to wear as bottoms, since you can mix and match loafers with leggings, jeggings, skinny jeans, and even tights. Colorful as well as solid-colored opaque tights paired up with black loafers and a long coat can look very posh. 

Wearing an oversized coat with loafers is a trend that is not expected to end anytime soon! We can see it as a preferred attire for people doing both casual and business traveling.

Effortlessly With Jumpsuits

You wouldn’t have thought that jumpsuits and loafers go hand in hand! Horsebit, pointed, square-shaped, tassel, and bow-tie loafers with slight heels look most decent on jumpsuits and rompers rather than chunky ones.

You can wear this combo on a friends’ day out, weekend getaway, or even while vacationing. Nothing is more easy-to-go than wearing a jumpsuit and styling it with little accessories and loafers.

Formal Suits

A nice pair of dark-colored loafers complement your formal suits nicely. Make sure to go for solid color or checkered suits, as loafers look decent on them. 

Let the dress pants’ hem cropped at your ankle for a polished look. White crew socks can also be worn if you want to have a more business-like appearance. Loafers with interesting detailing such as buckles, tassels, and patent leather help you stand out in a suit.

Nonetheless, standard burgundy penny loafers are always a choice for black and brown suits!

Get ‘Em Blazers Out

Want to play safe for both casual and office look? Try pairing up loafers with unbuttoned blazers! You can never go wrong with this look, since you can adjust it easily with your choice of bottoms. 

This outfit looks so chic in both evening events and a blazer night out. Imagine a pastel-colored or even neon-colored blazer with black jeans and horsebit loafers – Pure class!

Tux Shirts and Blouses

Women who like to wear blouses and tux shirts occasionally often think of only heels as an option. However, loafers look pretty decent and formal when paired up with a tux shirt or blouse of any color.

You must have seen a lot of office-going ladies opting for loafers due to their style, ease of wear, and comfort.

Sleeveless Shirts and Denim Shorts

Loafers not just look great on denim pants, but also with shorts for a fashionable look. You can easily pair up this look with sleeveless white shirts and a good handbag.

Mainly in summers, this outfit looks very fine, providing ease and versatility. People might think loafers cannot be worn in summers, but the way they are made airy, you don’t feel sweaty around your feet.

With Neutrals and Monotones

Most loafers pair naturally well with soft creams as well as brown tones. In the current era, it’s a highly followed trend that we can observe on social media. 

Neutral outfits are so much in style, so pairing them up with loafers rather than sandals could be a great option. Imagine wearing a lime colored monotone outfit with black loafers, wouldn’t it look like a style statement?

Grays, blacks, and pastel colored monotone outfits are also trendy these days. So, pair your monotone clothes with loafers to make your outfit look cool and classy.

FAQs

Do you wear socks with loafers?

Definitely! Loafers can be worn with long or ankle socks as they look quite decent, especially when paired up with skirts and suits. However, most women prefer to wear them without socks. So, whether you wear socks is completely up to you.

Can you wear loafers with a suit?

Wearing suits with loafers is an ongoing trend, where people mostly prefer to wear loafers with buckles, tassels, and patent leather. Solid-colored loafers go well with formal suits for a business casual attire , such as black loafers with beige suits. 

Are loafers business casual?

Loafers are a good bridge between casual and formal, being the principal American style. As they can definitely be worn on suits, with blouses, shirts, and coats, they are business-appropriate. Loafers are like a pair made in heaven for business casual attires.

Conclusion


There is no doubt that there are so many versatile, trendy, and easy ways to style loafers. How to style loafers is not so difficult; due to their easy-to-go look, they go well with almost every kind of outfit.

You can wear them with jeans, socks, skirts, leather jackets, turtle-neck sweater, cardigans, sweatshirts, dresses, coats, jumpsuits, suits, blazers, tux shirts, blouses, sleeveless shirts, denim shorts, as well as neutrals and monotone outfits.

Loafers are not going to go out of style anytime soon! Solid colored loafers, such as black, brown, blue, beige, and maroon always come in handy. Loafers are also a long-term investment as you can wear them anytime and any day without thinking much. According to your mood and preference, you can either style them for a casual, semi-formal, or business look.