Preposterous. I urge you to attempt cleaning it yourself. Prior to any cleaning procedure, look at the label's washing instructions. Next, examine the materials used. Cardboard, clearly, should not get wet (and indicates a cheap hat, by the way). Under heat, plastic will warp and canvas will shrink. To play it safe, fill a sink with lukewarm water and mild washing detergent. Gently clean the hat using a cloth, such as a face towel, then rinse in cool water and air dry. Never use a dryer.

Of course not. I admit the black shoes with grey suit rule is outdated but the reasoning still applies: one's shoes should not be lighter than one's suit. That rule, however, was created when shoes were not supposed to attract attention, and so much has changed since then. In Italy, for instance, it's not so much whether to wear brown shoes but rather which shade. There, men tend to pair a light blue or grey suit, for example, with a lighter brown shoe, while dark navy or charcoal grey is worn with chocolate brown footwear. Even style guru Alan Flusser grants that dark brown shoes are acceptable on certain occasions.

Do this. Don't do that. Boring! You're meant to have fun with your clothes. If your eye doesn't tell you what shoe looks good with which clothes, then you should have your eyes tested, not look for more rules. Camel brown is such a summery, rich tone, I just love the look of this colour in the warmer months. Some camel shoes I've loved recently include versatile driving loafers, such as those by A Testoni (HK$3,900), Navyboot's Chelsea boots (HK$3,300) and Cole Haan's plain lace-ups, funky, rubber-soled brogues and classic versions (HK$2,180 to HK$2,680). As I've heard more than one Italian comment, save the black shoes for formal events such as funerals (and, OK, black tie balls, weddings, blah, blah, blah).