Say Goodbye to the Tie: Traditional Father’s Day Gift Gets the Boot

By admin
Jun 14, 2010
2:57 pm

I have always waited until the very last minute when it came to buying my dad a Father’s Day gift. I believed that he was easy to please and that he already had everything he ever needed. Besides, exerting true effort with shopping would change our unspoken and mysterious father-son dynamic.

So every third Sunday in June, I would wake up and, without much consideration, sleep still in my eyes, dash to the nearest mall and pick up the first tie I saw. Done. Father-son dynamic preserved. Back to sleep.

Well, I have woken up, it’s 2010 and my dad is savvy, informed, and wouldn’t you know, stylish! What happened? Well, while I was busy sleeping, men’s fashion came of age. It evolved even. Now men have just as many options as women, especially in footwear.

Just ask Vanessa Andrews of Friedmans Shoes in Atlanta, ladies love a man in a great pair of well-crafted shoes: “I have been in men’s shoes for 12 years, and that’s the first place I look on a man — his feet! Great shoes are eye-catching. If a man has on bad shoes, I don’t give him a second glance. So I think giving him a really good quality pair on Father’s Day is a wonderful idea.”

Looking down at my feet, it became apparent — she was right — new shoes always give me an instant boost of self-esteem and an equally enhanced quotient of style, so my dad was in for a real treat. Eureka! A new tradition was underway. But with so many different styles available, my new ritual must take the path of least resistant — comfort had to be my goal at the outset.

Unbelievably, there is a shoe — well, a boot — that exceeds my entire criteria, covers the foot in style and comfort, and just might put a kick in dad’s step. The chukka is an ankle-high shoe, laced through two pairs of eyelets, often made of suede, and the perfect gift for the dad in your life. Worn with or without socks, it’s the “it” shoe of the moment. The chukka can demonstrate its versatility with jeans, shorts, and even a casual suit. And it’s not just for dads in their 20s, 30s, or 40s, but any dad at any age. The chukka is the well-heeled solution for the repeat tie-‘ffender and gives me a new tradition.

At least until I wake up next June. –td

Alfani Boots, Oasis Chukkas Men’s Shoes