It’s raining, it’s pouring, the fashion gods are snoring!  Rainy weather can be a real drag, especially when it comes to putting yourself together.  It’s hard enough to motivate yourself to leave the house when its pouring with rain but when setting up camp indoors isn’t an option because we’re functioning members of society with responsibilities, we’ve gotta suck it up, brave the elements and dress accordingly!  I don’t know about you but when I think “brave the rainy elements” I get instant flashes of frumpy rainboots, tarp-like jackets, inconvenient umbrellas and frizzy, ratty hair and that, my friends is an image I just don’t want any part of.  I know an umbrella can’t really be avoided when it’s coming down hard and can be your best bet for salvaging a decent hair day but the rest is best to steer clear from.  You can try to justify unfortunate footwear by comparing yourself to Kate Moss at Glastonbury but let’s face it, our daily errands aren’t a fabulous UK music festival and we’re great but we’re no Kate Moss.  With a bit of style ingenuity and effort, we can look cute and put together whilst braving the elements. Allow me to walk you through 4 Styles of Rainy Day Footwear that aren’t rainboots but will keep your tootsies dry without sacrificing your style…

1. Patent
Patent leather or faux-leather is a great rain deterrent material that looks sharp and polished with any casual outfit.  Rain droplets don’t penetrate the material easily so this style of footwear will give lots of leeway when walking through puddles.  Step up your style game in a big way by pairing this boots with any jeans and jacket combo.  They’re the fashionista’s version of a rainboot and will instantly have soggy passersby thinking “how the heck does she do it?!”

2. Lug Soles
Lucky for you not only are lug soles highly functional, they are also totally fashionable on the sunniest of days at the moment.  The thick rubber sole will keep you elevated and protected from the wet ground and the indentations of the sole provide great traction to keep to you stable in treacherous rainy day terrain!

3. Rubber Sneakers
Sneakers are timeless and the streetwear trend is very much alive and now you can look intentionally sporty spice stylish with rubber options from select brands!  Rubber isn’t just on the soles of these sneakers, it is the material used for the entire shoe.  These sneakers are about as much of a glorified rubber rainboot as possible… you can splash in puddles wearing them while still looking effortlessly cute!

4. Trusty DMs
I know pretty much every other style post I do incorporates Doc Martens boots somehow but that’s because they’re just that versatile!  Doc Martens aren’t waterproof but they’re super weather-resistant and the ultimate cool kid style staple so kill like fifty birds with one stone and invest in a pair already!

Click through each page below for my favorite selects of each style of super-cute-non-rainboot-but-totally-rain-appropriate boots and shoes! xo