One. Two. Buckle My...Shoe Buckles!
In many of his portraits, George Washington wears a military uniform. Yet in this picture of him as the President of the United States, he is wearing a black velvet suit and silver-buckled shoes. In this portrait, Washington wanted to look more like a civilian (or regular person) than like a general or a king. On the other hand, a black suit was considered formal in Washington’s time, as it still is. This tells people that he’s important enough to be very well dressed.

About those shoe buckles: A man wore fancy buckles, like these silver ones, because he thought that they would draw a lady’s eye to his shapely legs. Those were the days when men showed off their legs and women kept theirs covered. Funny, huh?