In the Canadian Living Style Department, the fact that our shoes and pedicure polish complement one another is no happy accident. We meticulously discuss our proposed shades en route to appointments every. single. time.

There have been many 45-minute-long subway chats between Julia and myself composed entirely of polish shades. When people hear us yell out, "Oooh, ooh, no, get Between the Sheets! It's a brighter, truer pink than Do you Think I'm Tex-Y!" it's possible that surrounding eyes roll.

And since we have most of the lines from Essie, OPI, Chanel, Deborah Lippmann, Butter London and Revlon entirely memorized (no need to Google shades – we consider each other polishpedias), discussions like this occur often in relation to footwear that's in heavy rotation. For instance, I wore my navy and black wedges so often this summer that a bright berry was a surefire bet for me. When I sampled a Shellac pedicure from the Hazelton Hotel in an inky black hue (Black Pool was the shade name), I spent many days in a pair of nude, braided flat sandals, as well as a pair of patent berry wedges from Joe Fresh.

So while there are no hard and fast rules, here are our justifications for our favourite polish and sandal pairings:

Karen Kwinter, fashion and beauty editor-at-large:

[caption id="attachment_3304" align="aligncenter" width="346" caption="Shoes, Banana Republic; Polish, Essie Chinchilly"] [/caption]

"I love an easy-on-the-eyes palette of all neutrals, so I rarely wear any bright nail polish colours. Just call me stylishly subtle!"

Julia McEwen, senior fashion and beauty editor:

[caption id="attachment_3305" align="aligncenter" width="298" caption="Shoes, Aldo; Polish, Nars Russian"] [/caption]

"I don't know why, but my feet just look WAY better-looking than they actually are when I have a pedi in a darker nail polish colour, specifically a navy shade."

Nicole Pajak, fashion and beauty intern:

[caption id="attachment_3306" align="aligncenter" width="316" caption="Shoes, Aldo; Polish, OPI Short Story"] [/caption]

“I believe no summer is complete without a pair of wedges and a hot pink pedi. A bright polish is a fun way to pump up a neutral shoe.”

Erin Lukas, fashion and beauty intern:

"This mint shade by Essie refreshes a retro-inspired sandal with a fresh pop of colour on the hottest summer days."

Katherine Flemming, associate fashion and beauty editor: [caption id="attachment_3308" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Shoes, J.Crew; Polish, Deborah Lippmann Between the Sheets"] [/caption]

"Berry is my default shade – and paired with a dove grey shoe it's the perfect mix of masculine and feminine."

So there you have it – what's your favourite polish pairing?