Nike tennis shoes and leggings
 

I live in these at home. I am just wondering if I will be snubbed in Italy or Paris wearing these items in the day. I have to say they are Lululemons if that makes any difference. (Stylish) I shopped all the "comfy" shoes and frankly they suck. I want to be comfy. I don't really care what they think about me in the streets, but will I be snubbed for having lunch in restaurants? I understand dinner might be different.

I think you will, personally. You will look American for sure. I found a pair of Converse white eyelet slip ons myself and am looking at a pair of Toms to take on my trip along with sandals. While I love lululemon and workout shoes as my norm, it really is dressier (to me) in France. I've been 3 times. Have a great trip!

Thank you Travel Girl!

Not that looking American is a bad word always but I think leggings are inappropriate in public to European tastes. Even an athletic little skirt tossed over your leggings would be more appropriate. It certainly will affect the way you are treated! Enjoy the trip.

Fine if you are a teenager, however. Otherwise, no, just no.

I wouldn't worry overly much about the Nike shoes. For me comfort is paramount and I cannot wear the so called comfort shoes or slip on shoes. I never found that footgear mattered that much, unless you are eating in a super expensive place

But I would not wear leggings unless I was out for a run.

and yes Europeans wear all sorts of footgear, and many are also tourists.

I guess that's why we travel - to experience different cultures. I didn't realize how much I appreciate the casual environment here. (Live in Florida)

I think I will take your advice by wearing a skirt over them - (I have a Lulu skirt to wear over) but I think I will wear my Nikes and bring some ballerina slippers to change into. What about a stylish tunic to wear over the leggings?

Definitely - a tunic that comes to mid thigh is a good look. Neat hair, nice sunglasses, a good bag (not a backpack/rucksack) and ballerina flats sound way better than leggings and Nike runners. I wear ballerina flats but have cushy inserts in them, so they absorb the impact of all the walking without screaming 'tourist'.
Some people may say that no one cares what you wear but....what you wear says a lot about you and whilst casual/neat is the norm in Paris and Rome, casual/sloppy is definitely not.

Professional waiters generally do not judge customers on their appearance; they have more important things to do. It is already clear that the people ready to snub you are your fellow American tourists, as evidenced by the replies to this thread.

I know when I visit Paris, I wear my T-shirt with an arrow that reads, "Je suis avec stupide."

Kerouac - I am not an American. I live part of the year in Europe. I am simply being honest with the OP. She will be judged on her appearance if she wears leggings with Nike trainers. She won't be given a nice table in a bistro for example. I'm sure she would rather be sitting by a window watching the people pass by than be positioned near a toilet or a wait-station. This does happen. It won't impact on her packing to throw in some tunics and I hope she takes the advice with good humour as it is not a personal attack.

Are you going to Rome? I just got back from 9 days in Rome and I saw every sort of clothing options on the street and at the cafés. The only thing that felt out of place were tourists in shorts as it wasn't warm enough last week for shorts. (Italian ladies still in their winter costs- feels like spring to the rest of us.) Nike trainers would be perfectly okay in my book. Rome felt very casual to me as there were tourists everywhere and tourists are usually dressed for comfort. Ballet flats would do your feet in if you might be doing some serious walking. We went into the Louis Vuitton store in our jeans and trainers and no one batted an eye. Not sure about leggings. The only ladies I noticed wearing leggings were with their trainer exercising in Borghese Park.

kerouac, insecure Americans lecturing other insecure Americans is a long standing tradition here, lol.

OP, I suggest you ask the ages of the responders. And perhaps solicit photos of them in Paris before taking their advice.

No-one will give a rat's derriere what you're wearing.

Nike's are absolutely fine. Leggings if you look good in them. Many women wearing them really shouldn't, especially when combined with a short top.
Stylish tunic + leggings + ballerinas would be fine for smarter restaurants. Leggings with a skirt looks odd to me, do people wear that? If you're going to wear a skirt either wear tights or bare legs.
You find plenty of leggings in stores, also smart ones, but they look best in a thicker material, and combined with a loose and not too short top. Joseph do really good leggings. Leather leggings were popular in winter.
Or something like this;
http://www.net-a-porter.com/be/en/product/335057

<i>I think you will, personally. You will look American for sure.</i>

Unlikely.

It's all the rage in Germany at the moment. Well, not a full blown rage but I see way more of it than I did last year. I noticed it quite a bit in Scotland as well.

Leggings or "jeggings" (leggings that look like jeans) are all the rage in Italy right now too, and they're usually worn with athletic shoes of some sort. Brightly colored high-top basketball shoes are popular, but Nikes are ubiquitous also. The leggings are usually worn with some kind of tunic or long shirt. It's mostly teens and younger women who favor this look, probably because skin-tight no longer does the rest of us any favors.

I'm just happy to see that they seem to be replacing the harem pants craze, which often made it look like someone needed to change their Depends.

There are certainly restaurants that have dress codes or that just don't approve of casual dress on their premises. But the average modest-but-decent restaurant doesn't have enough toilets to seat all the casually-dressed tourists near them, nor enough elegantly-dressed patrons to fill the seats by the window.

Incidentally, a lot of the casually dressed tourists in France are French tourists, and a lot of the casually dressed tourists in Italy are Italian tourists. One of the joys of going on holiday is that you can leave the office attire at home, and this is true all over the world.

I like the idea that anyone who proffers fashion advice for travel in Europe should be required to give a link to a full-length photo of self on last trip to Europe.

I live in Italy and i live in leggings -- all the time! They are very, very popular in Italy with Italian women. I sometimes wear longish skirts over them (the thin kind), but the most popular way to wear them is with short tunic dresses or short skirts. Some young girls wear them with shorts or rompers.

As for shoes, I don't happen to have running shoes or trainers, and while Italian women do wear them, they tend wear the designer-type (Superga, D&G, etc). Something sparkly or with patent leather features. But if your Nikes are not beat us and grey from wear, you'll be fine (try accessorizing them with some wild and trendy anklet socks).

But when are coming to Italy? It is fast getting into the season for sandals. You can find stylish ones with good support. Birkenstocks are now hugely popular in Italy. So are FitFlops. Even the right style of Teva can work.

Just so you are prepared, it is very common in Italy for everybody to look at everybody else's clothes. Or I should say -- for women to do so. Very, very few of them are "judging" you. A lot of them are just looking at your clothes. You will certainly be seen as American but that would happen unless you make a real project of learning how to dress like an Italian -- including hair, jewelry, make up. Italians tend to have favorable opnions of Americans, even American tourists in the most popular tourist areas, so it's not a bad thing to be seen as an American.

PS: I think my first paragraph wasn't clear. Italian women also wear leggings all by themselves, not always with a skirt. They frequently wear them with longish blouses, cinched with a belt.

Take a look at these pictures. You would see any one of these women in Italy (except maybe the one of the furthest right) and they would be Italian

http://www.jolynneshane.com/wp-conte...AM-580x368.png

this too

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/23...5eacbbe945.jpg

More proof you will be fine with leggings and tennis shoes

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/23...5eacbbe945.jpg

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...142eab274a.jpg

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...f6904732c4.jpg

http://s600.photobucket.com/user/coc...ker-5.jpg.html

Unfortunately, Florida is a DISASTER when it comes to fashion. The daylight is beautiful in Florida, and I work there a lot, but the fashion sense of the locals is about as absent as snow.

Women (and men) who live and work in warm/hot climates tend to become lazy and carefree about their fashion sensibilities. Many southern expats blame this fashion malaise on the heat and humidity. I'm not a fan of heat and humidity, so I can fully understand why many New Yorkers who move there end up opting for all-day/all-night comfort.

The only problem with all of Sandy's pictures: every girl is a professional model posed and dressed by a professional fashion stylist, hairdresser, and make-up artist. Every girl is skinny and every girl is around 19-years-old. Woe be the woman who doesn't quite qualify and dares to wear this look in public.

There are a ton of women (and men) who look in a mirror and see something far from reality. Self-image issues aren't just an American thing. How else can one explain the visual disasters we see on the street or in an airport every day of our travel life?

You'll find plenty of controversy right here in NYC around women who dare to walk around in public in their yoga-wear. IMO, yoga-wear isn't much different than this tired 80's look. IMO, clothing designed for the sweaty-body-in-a-gym belongs in sweat-ridden gym. Do professional basketball players exit the locker rooms wearing what they wore on the court? I've seen many exit wearing gorgeous bespoke suits.

Too many insecure, shameless, immodest people want to show-off their "goods" and take their gym look into the street. They often just look tacky and inappropriately dressed. Our culture gets dumbed down by the minute.

No matter what you wear in public, it will always be judged by someone. No matter what you wear in public, the clothing choices you make will always say something personal about you.

IMO, many women who dress inappropriately in public ask for the ridicule they receive. Others are just ignorant about style, or they're oblivious, or they're lazy, or they're in denial about their age, their body shape, etc. A woman (or man) who dresses with care will always stand above and apart from the rest.

If you want to visit a stylish culture and earn the respect of the locals who possess style and taste, then research, study, and probably some shopping will be required.

In Italy, you will see many, many Italian women in leggings or skin tight trousers who will make you think: "Whoa! Wrong fashion choice." A great many Europeans think Italians have the most ridiculous fashion sense on the planet. (I'd rather be buying Zara stock these days than Missoni or D&G). The locals in Italy are perfectly capable of being in denial about their body shape, oblivious, lazy and ignorant of style -- and many could give a flying piece of fusilli about what you, the NY or Floridian tourist, think of their style!

Both bvlienci and I live in Italy, and when we tell you that leggings are being worn by Italians in Italy, we are not pulling your leg! Many Italian women still prefer skin-tight trousers and jeans to leggings, but a lot of them have come to the conclusion the leggings are more comfortable and have the same look they like. Many women Italaian who are not 19-year-old fashion models wear them. How often does it need to be said NYC Food Snob doesn't know what she's talking about when it comes to see the world beyond her mirror?

I can't believe that I actually sort of agree with Food Snobby. I guess it really does depend on your age, size, and sense of style when you decide to wear yoga wear while touring in a more sophisticated environment. If you would run around NYC in your Florida/CA casual clothing then sure you will feel fine doing that in Paris. But honestly why? Why not notch up the wardrobe a bit and not even worry about it. Jeans, a nice pair of pants, a few sweaters or tops, you do not need much. Lululemon is really not street wear in most big cities. But then again I prefer to think I am blending in when I travel. I know I am a tourist, and not a fashionista, but I do leave my summer CA clothes at home.

This woman in Rome is not posed and made up by a stylist. It's a candid street snap

http://www.sologossip.com/wp-content...e-17.33.48.jpg

nor this one

http://www.palermomania.it/public/ne..._chiabotto.jpg

nor is this one (and please note woman in background)

https://stylebydaniela.files.wordpre...daniela-12.jpg

more, ad infinitum

http://images2.chictopia.com/photos/...zara-pants.jpg

http://s244.photobucket.com/user/shi...trend.jpg.html

And here's a picture of the Lululemon Athletica store in Rome

http://www.yogajournal.it/joomla/ima...ululemon_1.jpg

The whole "blending in" thing is a fairy tale; It's been sold to Americans, and they can't bear to let go of it.

Italians don't respect you for what you wear, and they don't ask anyone for fashion advice. In the US, women call each other to ask things like, "What are you wearing to the office party?" An Italian woman would think that hilarious. She chooses what she wants to wear and doesn't trouble herself one little bit about whether she'll "fit in" or "stick out like a sore thumb".

The concept of "la bella figura" is all about how you behave and not about how you dress.

I've just browsed through my public Picasa folders to see if I can find some photos of Italians who aren't necessarily 19 and skinny. I don't usually take photos of people, so the best I could find is this, which was taken over five years ago.

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink

And a live and direct update from Italy:

I just went out shopping, and walking on the road ahead of me were 4 Italians in their mid-40s, obviously not from the villag. They were out for a scenic stroll, with picture snapping. One of the women was wearing leggings, a tunic top, and a puffy jacket. She was not thin by any means. On her feet she was wearing elfin ankle boots, a very casual style. Her friend was wearing skin tight jeans and a bulky sweater and flats. She also was not thin. If I had to pick between the 2 of them as to which was the more attractively attired, I would have picked the woman in leggings.

Italians are among the most welcoming and warm host to visitors in the world. If you asked them what they think of Angela Merkel or Hillary Clinton or Margaret Thatcher, you will not hear judgments about these women based on their clothes. Of course Italy has its share of shallow idiots, and of course, if you part of the excitement of travel for you is "dress up like we don't do at home", then they won't judge you for that either.

The people who will judge are likely to be other tourists who seriously need to get a life.

"Fine if you are a teenager, however. Otherwise, no, just no."

Ignore some of the uninformed crap above.

This is three times in a row I have agreed with Sandralist , that's a record but....

Leggings and pink trainers are what most middle class, middle income, European women are now living in. Certainly not for evening meals but certainly for just about any other occasion.

My wife is a Oxford graduate, corporate lawyer. All she ever wears is a pair of black leggings and bright pink Nikes. Other than to work and an evening meal out.

Trainers, leggings and either a tunic type top or ouffy gilet or it in Europe. Believe us, we live here.

Next year it will be a different story.

And one last comment from me:

Some years ago in my Italian town a tour group came through (the town is pretty) and one older women in the group was falling a bit behind, partly because she had to walk at a slower pace. On her feet she was wearing very orthopedic shoes, with velcro fastenings, the kinds I have known diabetics to wear.

People have a right to travel just like we do, no matter who they are, what age or weight they are, or whether they are fashion savvy or not. Looking at someone, you don't know why they have chosen to wear what they are wearing.

There is something really wrong with hanging around social media trying make other people feel badly about how they dress, and trying to make them believe other people think like they do.

Really. Come to Europe. Come as you are! Have a great time. Enrich your life. Get to know the variety of the world, and break free of small minds.

"I know when I visit Paris, I wear my T-shirt with an arrow that reads, "Je suis avec stupide."
That's not very nice to the person who is with you.

The look is not new. It was popularised by the late, great Max Wall
http://voices-of-variety.com/wp-cont...Wallofki-R.jpg

"I know when I visit Paris, I wear my T-shirt with an arrow that reads, "Je suis avec stupide."
That's not very nice to the person who is with you.

I travel alone.

"I travel alone".
Then you are honest with yourself. Congratulations !

This is how I think about it:

At home, I wear jeans or yoga pants to run errands and around the neighborhood.

If I'm spending time in a museum, or church, or theater, or restaurants, I put on some nicer clothes. Maybe just better jeans and tops and shoes, but still nicer than gym clothes.

In Paris, and in most places in Italy, I'm going to museums, churches, restaurants and nicer shops than my local grocery store and post office. I wear nicer clothes just as I would at home for these activities.

The very concept of "gym clothes" is outmoded, as even haute couture houses are cranking out leggings and tees and hoodies made out of high tech fabrics and styled as active wear--only no one wears them to the gym to be active, they wear them everywhere but. It's a growing category of sportswear, popular globally.

Pet peeve: it doesn't matter what you or I would wear or do wear, at home or abroad. The OP asked:
"I am just wondering if I will be snubbed in Italy or Paris wearing these items in the day"
And the only answer is no.

Of course it does not matter at all what anyone wears in Paris, or elsewhere, either. I was posting from my own point of view, and that is I wear gym clothes at the gym. When going out in public otherwise, as a mature woman I want to present myself in a certain way.
If the OP wants to wear, in a museum in Paris or a restaurant, the clothes she wears to paint her bathroom, that is fine by me.
But she did ask for guidance, and again, a teenager can look really cute roaming the city in certain outfits. But if a mature woman, a bit more attention might make her more comfortable.

I think tuscanlifeedit says it best. Most of us, particularly those of a certain age, will dress according to the activity, more than what we think other people will think. I wear gym clothes to the gym, and other clothes when I go out for lunch, visit a museum, eat in a nice restaurant. I do this when I travel. We hardly take very dressy clothes with us anymore, and prefer to eat in places where they are not the norm. But even for being casual, I would hardly wear gym clothes to the Louvre. If the OP wants to, fine by me, just not what I would do. And we were in Paris last month; perhaps because it was on the cool side, perhaps not, but I would not say we saw a lot of women in leggings, at least not without tunics or short dresses. We saw a lot of young people on the Metro, out walking, and in restaurants. Jeans, sweaters, boots, and yes, Nikes but not gym clothes.

<Italians don't respect you for what you wear, and they don't ask anyone for fashion advice. In the US, women call each other to ask things like, "What are you wearing to the office party?" An Italian woman would think that hilarious>

Really? Someone forgot to tell my Italian girlfriends this piece of news. I find it odd that people feel qualified to speak on behalf of an entire nation.

Sandralist - out of all those links (one of which is broken by the way) just two are people wearing leggings and they look great - because they are paired with tops that cover to mid thigh.

Bottom line is, leggings - worn as pants - are not a good choice.