If The Shoe Fits

Liesl, 7N

We've all fallen prey to fads and what we put on our feet is not excluded from this indiscretion. Personally, I don't like wedges and I don't think you will see many of them in a season or two. I think there are always those styles that are destined for Goodwill rather than the vintage shop around the corner. And that's the difference: timelessness or folly.

I think my worst fad transgression must be L.L. Bean Duck boots. They were IT when I was in high school. But you couldn't just wear them with the laces tied like a normal person; no, no, you had to wear them with the laces undone and some thick socks peeking out. We wore them with skirts, too. Oy. You have to know that when a shoe is unisex it probably isn't going to be haute couture. Of course, I did see some duck boot heels a few years ago at Neiman's. It made me shudder. Anyway, I think it's usually obvious which shoes will be vintage and which will be Goodwill, so the question remains: To fad or not to fad?

My gut feeling on this is that, if you have the money and the inclination, why not? As long as you know that the shoe you are buying is probably not destined to be worn for long and you're OK with that, I think it's OK to fad. You know how I feel about my shoes and my inability to let them go, so I cannot fad. However, not all hot shoes are fads. For example, the bejeweled sandals we're seeing everywhere right now; some of them are too faddish to last but many of them have classic enough lines and understated enough bling to last us for years to come. I suppose it's all about the pretty factor. Mama like her pretty!

The moral of the story is this: Duck boots should stay in 1985.

Today's Favorite Shoe:

Rene Caovilla