Find out all about the Mary Jane shoe, this beloved classic

Mary Jane shoes are one of the most popular shoes in the world. It has become a fashion this year as well. If you want to know the reason for its popularity and you don't mind buying a pair of these shoes yourself, read this article to learn about its history and see how versatile it is and how it can be combined with different outfits.

The appearance of Mary Jane shoes; Simple with minimal cutting

I'm sure you've seen this shoe in the window of many a shoe store before, but you might not know it's called the Mary Jane. As soon as I searched for the term “Mary Jane shoes” and saw its image, I said: “So this is Mary Jane”!

Mary Jane is an American term and an old brand whose shoes, with not too many changes, still maintain their popularity. Mary Jane shoes are quite simple and there is not much cut in their top. These shoes have one or more straps that fasten on the back of the foot. These straps are fixed on one side and closed with a button or buckle on the other side. Recently, some of its types are produced with Velcro instead of buttons and straps. The sole of this shoe is usually flat, but there is also a heeled type.

Most Mary Jane shoes are made of leather or varnish, however, other fabrics such as velvet or suede are also used to sew them.

The fascinating history of Mary Jane shoes

The Mary Jane shoe was first designed in the early 19th century, but it wasn't known by that name until the early 20th century. Mary Jane was a cartoon character in the Buster Brown comic strip series created by famous comic artist Richard Felton Outcault. He and his father wore the same shoes in this comic. This comic was first published in 1902. Mary Jane was the beloved daughter of Buster Brown, and Richard Otcalt took the name from his own real daughter, Mary Jane. Although she had tried to not have any other similarities between the Buster Brown series and her real life, except for this name similarity, the character of Mrs. Brown in the comics was somewhat similar to her husband Richard.

In 1904, Richard traveled to St. Louis, Missouri and sold the license to use Buster Brown characters to 200 different companies at the International Exposition that was held. Those companies could use these characters to promote their products. Among these companies, Brown Shoe Company was able to become the most famous brand that uses the characters of this comic strip with this strategy. In this way, the shoes produced by this company, which were worn by Buster Brown and his daughter Mary Jane, became known as “Mary Jane shoes”.

Mary Jane shoes are not only for teenage girls

In the olden days, both girls and boys originally wore these shoes, but in the 1930s in North America and in the 1940s in Europe, it was thought that this shoe was for girls, and for that reason only teenage girls wore it. they used Until it became popular among adult women in the 1920s.

Girls wore these shoes with pantyhose or socks along with shirts or skirts and blouses. It was less common for boys to wear it, but in any case it was paired with socks, shorts and shirts.

Believe it or not, Mary Jane shoes have been very popular among men throughout history! For example:

• Some men in the Renaissance period, including kings such as Henry VIII in England, Francis I and Charles IX in France;
• Some men and boys in the kingdom of China;
• After World War II, the men of some famous families, including the son of US President John F. Kennedy and Princes William and Harry, the sons of Queen Elizabeth, also wore Mary Jane shoes in the late 1980s. Of course, in this era, wearing this shoe was less popular among men;
• Today's men may also wear Mary Jane shoes for various reasons. An example is Mr. Harry Styles, British singer and actor.

The changes that have been made in the style of this shoe

Although the Mary Jane shoe still retains its classic appeal, the style has changed somewhat since the late 1990s. The sole of this shoe, which was always flat, has increased from 1 to 3 cm, and the heel type has increased from 8 to 13 cm. These styles became popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s in the punk rock, psychobilly, and goth subcultures in the United States. They wore these shoes with tights or knee-high knitted socks with dark stripes and designs, and complemented it with a plaid or checkered pleated skirt.

Today, Mary Jane shoes are the most used for children. They can be comfortable with these shoes in school and party. However, there are also many grown-up women who wear modern styles of Mary Jane shoes at work, at parties, and for going out. Mary Jane shoes also have a sports type.

Types of heels for Mary Jane shoes

In this section, you can see different types of heels for Mary Jane shoes:

Short heel

Solid heel

Narrow high heel

Big high heels

flat heel

block heel

What styles are Mary Jane shoes suitable for?

You can find a suitable Mary Jane shoe for any outfit, from classic to trendy.

These shoes go well with flared jeans, straight jeans with rolled hems, short or long pants, all kinds of skirts, quilted jackets, neo-grunge, punk and rockabilly styles, sporty or flashy dresses, flared pants and any other outfit you can think of.

Mary Jane shoes with straight jeans

Mary Jane shoes can usually be worn with straight jeans. The combination of black or dark blue Mary Jane shoes with dark or black jeans is perfect and will make your legs look longer. If you want to look fresher, wear outerwear such as a coat, blouse or t-shirt with a busy pattern and bright color.

tip: Usually, tight jeans or capri pants do not fit with Mary Jane shoes. Because they make your legs look bigger and it will look like your legs don't fit your legs. However, today they wear Mary Jane shoes even with the same pants. Look at the image below:

With flared jeans or flared legs

If you wear this shoe with wide jeans or only wide heels, it is better to choose wedges or wedges.

But why do we recommend a single heel? This is because if the heel is high and narrow, it will catch on the inside edge of the wide leg pants, especially if you are going down the stairs. In this case, there is a high possibility that you will fall to the ground.

With a shirt or skirt blouse

This shoe is available in different styles and has different heels. If you like to wear it with a shirt or skirt blouse, choose a heel that suits your height. If you want to look taller, a tight and straight skirt is better.

Of course, this shoe is also beautiful with a skirt above the knee. Just use block heel Mary Jane shoes. Especially if you pair it with black tights and a dark dress, it will be perfect.

With different socks

Mary Jane shoes look beautiful with pantyhose, knee socks and short socks of any color you can think of. However, black or white socks are the best.

with white socks

with black socks

Mary Jane shoes for the workplace

Since you have to look more formal in the work environment, the classic style of this shoe is better. The front of the shoe can be pointed or square, and the back can be open. Choose a narrower heel but not short or flat. High or medium heels are better for the workplace because you walk more dignified. The combination of Mary Jane shoes with office clothes can present a completely modern and elegant image of you in the workplace.

How to pair this shoe with different clothes?

In this section, we would like to suggest some Mary Jane combinations with different clothes:

• Black Mary Jane shoes with black sleeveless sarafan or manteau and blue-gray shirt;
• Light or black shoes with white and loose pants, black or navy coat, gray top and gray handbag;
• black and high-heeled shoes with a light gray coat and white paper;
• Blue shoes (preferably made of velvety leather) with a flat heel, along with dark blue baggy pants that are a little short;
• Black shoes with a three-inch heel and a short black plaid sarong with a white or milky top and socks. It is great if the sarong has a black leather belt;
• Classic simple black shoes with flat heels and a black top or mantle with simple straight jeans.

All the above are suggestions and you can use any combination you like. In general, today's world is different from the classical world where dressing had certain customs and principles. We don't have any hard and fast rules to combine different clothes together, we just need to look handsome from our own point of view.

See attractive and stylish models of women's shoes

If you wear Mary Jane shoes, write to us and the followers how you combine them with different outfits. Your proposed composition can complete this article.