Trainers have lost their edge – slip on some loafers if you want to cut it this summer | Jess Cartner-Morley

Once the shoe of the establishment, loafers work with almost any outfit. But dare you get a pair in white?

Life used to be so simple. Loafers were smart and trainers were not. Loafers were for work or for fancy; trainers were for days off and anything that involved running after a ball. But modern life has a habit of getting more and more complicated, and footwear is no exception. The old rules no longer apply.

This sounds like better news than it actually is, because it was useful when trainers were shorthand for relaxed dressing. There was no debate about what to wear at the weekend, because trainers were the only shoe in town. And if you wanted to wear a suit without wearing A Suit, all you had to do was add trainers for an instant subversive twist. Likewise, if you were wearing a pretty dress on holiday but wanted to look a tiny bit cool, not like you were off on a sightseeing tour of ancient monuments – not that there’s anything wrong with ancient monuments, but you know what I mean – you wore trainers. Converse, Stan Smiths, then Nike Air Force Ones.