Today I’m going to answer a question from one of our viewers, submitted via our new contact form.

My wife said it is “bad” to wear black shoes or a black belt with non-black pants, that I need to get some brown shoes and belts.  (And I’m pretty sure she didn’t mean the good kind of bad.)  But what’s the problem?  Will bad things happen?  What’s the big deal?

Mismatched and confused
Conway, AR

Dear Mismatched in Conway,

Many wives have said such things, leaving their husbands in a state of confusion.  But I’ve not encountered any of these “bad things” that are supposed to happen.  Just the other day, I wore navy pants with black shoes and a black belt, and nothing bad happened.  And nobody even said anything about it.  I suppose it’s possible that someone didn’t like it, but I could wear my best clothes and some people still won’t like them, so I don’t see why it matters.

So wear what makes you happy and comfortable (and is convenient).  Don’t get all caught up in these fashion trends — they change every few months anyway.  Why, maybe next year it will be fashionable / cool to wear navy pants and black shoes.  Besides, everyone will never agree on such things anyway.  For example, some people think it’s cool to wear your hair all messy, like you didn’t even fix it, yet most people thinks this looks a mess.  Whatever…  To each their own.