Two rules cover most of leather belt styling: match your belt to your shoes, and match the belt's formality to the rest of the outfit. A black belt with black shoes under a suit. A brown belt with brown boots and jeans. Get those two right and the rest is detail.
The dos
Match the belt to your shoes in color and finish. A brown belt with brown shoes, a black belt with black shoes. The closer the shade and the sheen, the cleaner the look.
Set the width by the occasion. A narrower belt, 1 to 1.25 inches, sits right under a suit, where a wide strap would break the clean line. A wider belt, 1.5 to 1.75 inches, holds up jeans and chinos and balances heavier shoes.
Keep the buckle plain. A simple brushed or polished buckle for dress; a heavier brass buckle for casual. A small, quiet buckle lets the clothes carry the look; an oversized one pulls every eye straight to your waist.
Thread every loop, and check that the tail lies flat through the keeper, the loop that holds the end down. A belt that skips a loop or twists undoes the rest of the outfit.
Size it to fasten on the middle hole, so you have room either way as the day goes on. (If you are between sizes, see our belt size guide.)
The don'ts
Don't mix black and brown. A black belt with brown shoes, or the reverse, reads as a miss because the two leathers fight instead of agree. Keep to one.
Don't reach for an oversized or novelty buckle with tailored clothing. It pulls the eye to your waist and flattens everything above it.
Don't cross formality. A rugged casual belt under a suit, or a thin dress belt with workwear, breaks the line. Match the belt to how dressed up the rest of you is.
Don't keep wearing a cracked belt. Full-grain leather darkens and softens with use; it does not crack. When a belt cracks or the finish flakes, it was a lower grade, and it is done. Replace it.
Black or brown?
Match the belt to your shoes, not your shirt or your watch. Black shoes take a black belt; brown shoes take a brown belt. If you are buying one belt to start, brown is the more flexible: it works with jeans, chinos, and most casual shoes, where black leans dressy.
A two-belt wardrobe
Most men need two belts: one black, one brown, both full-grain, both sized to fasten on the middle hole. With those two you can dress almost anything, and full-grain earns its keep by lasting years and taking on a patina instead of wearing out. Shop our handmade leather belts.