Flora Frock and Fauna: shoe addiction

Showing posts with label shoe addiction. Show all posts

Saturday, January 2

A Lesson in Longevity. Or, Trends be Damned.

The pair I wanted more than ANYTHING. Nude, fabulous.

Confession - I came of fashion age in the 70's so consider the context but..... I've always loved a good, high-heeled clog. This started in the earliest days of 70's platform clogs because allllll the cool girls in Southern California had them:

And then it moved to Candies, the ultimate slide/mule/clog. Being a tween at the time my mother would, on no uncertain terms, allow a pair and I have pined for some version ever since.
Candies, just to refresh your memory - -

In the early 80s someone added furry stuff, which usually looked like a wet dog, but nary a second did my devotion waver.

I was STILL forbidden to own a pair.

Somewhere down the clop-clop-clop road of clogs I switched allegiance to a black, closed-toe variety with dear-to-my-heart SILVER STUDS. Of course, Prada has done them well (Miuccia being a devout 70s girl) but that has forever been above my price range, and anyway, Prada runs way too narrow for me. So, WahhhhHHHH.

I would fall over dead, and would look amazing en route.

H E A V E N!

I have looked and looked and looked for upwards of 20 years for the perfect pair. No one has them just right - heels too brown, too bleached pine like above, brass not silver studs, gold not silver studs, $1200, brown leather, too Hasbeens, heel too low.... you get the picture.

Ta-DAAAAA! The perfect pair!

You, too can have some - Carlos Santana Floret Mule!

Here are my less-than lovely pics - I was so excited to share I couldn't wait another minute to snap them better:-( Get 'em quick on dsw.com - link above.

Ok, so they're calling them a "mule" - NOT flattering, but, who cares?

Wrappy, strappy moto style perfection

So there, I have them, a 20+-year-old dream come true! It happens, don't give up the fashionfaith. Ever.
The lesson here, since that's what we started with, is.... When you love something, you love it; it doesn't matter which decade you buy/wear/find/revive it - it's YOU. Trends be damned, dammit. After all, this is 2016 - Candie's was 1978, and and look how long that style has lasted?
#candies #prada #pradaclog #trendslast #wearwhateverthehellyouwant #wearwhatyoulove #dsw.com

Tuesday, October 21

BEEEautiful Vegan Leather Shoes on Kickstarter!

There is a gorgeous new Vegan "Leather" shoe collection trying to gain traction on Kickstarter this month and you can help them out! No One's Skin by Ivana Basilotta uses a grain & seed based "leather" that she developed with the shoe gurus in Italy. Aren't they spectacular?

I can't wait to see the suede!

Thursday, July 24

The Perfect Sneakers for Fall/Winter 2014

There are so many kooky versions of the sneaker, or trainer, or running shoe, whatever you want to call it, out for fall I thought I'd drop my favorites on you just for kicks.

First of all, I always think it's weird when uber designers issue a version of something like a sneaker and then sell them for $2K. There's something wildly disingenuous about it. Cute and trend setting, but…off, and not in a brilliant way off. Sneaker snobbery has already gone far enough, sez me. Cue Marc by Marc Jacobs and Chanel, in that order below:

on Style.com

Look for knock offs galore at any mall in America and probably Chez Target:-)

All trashing aside - here are ones I LOVE:

1st of all, as a California girl I will forever be devoted to my beloved Vans. And when they collaborated with Star Wars this year I was ecstatic. Even a Mom like me can pull these bad boys off with a little skirt + leather jacket or jeans + T...

Oh Han Solo and Boba…..how do I love thee?

Nothin' and I mean nothin' beats the classic Slip-on

And… in the leather category - how about these darlings?

They come in white too - perfect for end of summer transitions. I just discovered the blogger Chiara Ferragni of The Blond Salad and she has super cool shoes! The slippers with a winking eye are to die, but these = = = FAB, period.

The Lana - also in white

the Drew - also in white.

Wednesday, January 1

Of Sewmobiles and "Necropants"

Ecouterre is offering up a slew of Eco-Fashion Vote-For's today that are both enlightening and fun. A few of the stories were previously mentioned on this blog but there are a host of other ones should you spare the time.

This is our current favorite - talk about every little bit helps - ceramics professor Michael Swaine spends one day/month mending clothes for free, on the street in SF. He has set up his "sew mobile" this way for 12 years! "My small act is mostly a gesture and for some it means a lot but I think the bigger importance is the example of participating, of being a citizen and acting outside of what is normal.”

Necropants under Vote for the Most Bizarre

You can cast your VOTE for many pioneers whom are 'acting outside of what is normal' HERE. Do it!

Sunday, June 23

The Half-Tuck ala Emmanuelle - a How-To

Casual chic isn't going away anytime soon. Not as long as Emmanuelle Alt reigns at VOGUE Paris. A friend and I were discussing the how & why of her ubiquitous half-tucked shirt signature. I appreciate how she brazenly wears the same shirts so many times in true French-girl style. So eco! Truly a uniform. Find our conclusions below the pics.

posted from Stealthelook.nu

And... quelle horreurr! Ripped!!! I know Ms. Alt is of the fine vintage whom survived the original Grunge Age, but she's not exactly a Seattle-ite. How does she DO this and not look like she's just come from sleeping in the back of the van?

mydailyedition.com

from - theclothesmademedoit.com

- a How-To for the Half-Tucked Look -

(so as not to have your kids show up wearing this!)

www.isyfashion.com

Observation #1 - Body - She's skinny, DAMMIT. (Unfortunately my current girth does NOT lend itself to this look:-/ ) Having twiggy legs helps too, but that can be handily overruled by point # 2 -

Observation #2 - Shoes & Pants - Emmanuelle always has a great, high quality shoe and very narrow pants to balance the erstwhile slovenly habit. Heels aid the elongated profile.

Observation #3 - Color - Neutral colors keep it elegant and quiet. Although - - - It could be done with a fuchsia or orange shirt/white jean combo for summer, don't you think?

Observation #4 - Accessories - A distinct lack of accessory flash keeps the overall look like "serious fashion" (which I realize, for some, is an oxymoron) vs. a bag lady pile-on.

Observation #5 - Jackets - When the weather dictates, a sleek fitted jacket purposefully anchors the concept.

What do you think; did we overlook anything? Comment below...

Let's all avoid this frumperie!

Wednesday, March 6

CHANEL dreams = "Chanelarella"

I clicked through - twice - the Fall/Winter 2013 slideshow for Chanel last night and had patent leather cuissardes* dreams 'til dawn. Some beautiful jackets, coats and perfect silhouette images kept them company. 'Still glowing. In love, in love, in love.
Of course a good Karlism came with the glorious package, "I've got my feet on the ground, but this collection is up-to-earth, not down-to-earth."

My favorite dress, worn with impeccable grace here by Stella Tennant, is so Barbarella + Chanel it can only be dubbed Chanelarella, don't you agree? Add a wacky space gun....

Jane in all here splendid glory

*Cuissardes - a fancy French word I've added to my vocab courtesy of Style.com. It translates to "waders", although I doubt Karl had anything so odoriferous as fishing attire in mind when he conjured them.

Cuissardes - commit it to memory, we're going to see a lot of them...

Monday, March 4

Laurence Dacade NEW COLLECTION!!!

Look at the promo video for Laurence Dacade's new collection!!! Can I have every single pair please??
The sparkles, the clown crown, the brown+black, the graffiti booties! Ack. Gasp. Need some.

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Tuesday, February 12

NYFW Reviews - Alexander Wang & Maison Martin Margiela

Hmmmm. After I just posted an anti-fur bit... here goes Alexander Wang w/ a collection chock full of the stuff. A bit nauseating, even though I adore the bondage wrapping of the pony hair coat below. Overall I found it a bit too frumpy, albeit tailored frump.