25 May 2015
The drawers under my bed are stuffed with shoes. There are sensible mid heels for work (in black, blue and brown), stilettos from the 90s and chunkier heels for jeans. I have ballet pumps for running errands, flip flops for the beach, fit flops that I hate and a pair of trainers that we all know I never wear.
Then there are the myriad of pairs I own just because I saw them, loved them and couldn’t leave the shop without them. Like the cute 1950s style mustard coloured pair with a dinky bow. Or the brown and gold strappy sandals complete with swirly 70s pattern. Or my beloved Stuart Weitzman gold and diamante strappy heels that are so uncomfortable they are known as my “taxi shoes” – to and from a waiting cab being exactly the distance I can ever walk in them.
I also have sling-backs, Mary Janes, mules, T-bar sandals, wedge heels (not to be confused with wedge sandals which I also have), cone heels, platforms, peep toes, French heels, Oxfords, espadrilles, kitten heels, flats, Birkenstocks, several pairs of Converse All Stars, jelly shoes, ankle boots, mid-calf boots, knee high boots and wellingtons.
I’m not sure that I can really explain why this is, but I’m absurdly happy in the right shoes. Perhaps it’s because they allow you to play with your appearance in a less dramatic way than, say, hair colour. Perhaps it’s because you are never too bloated or grumpy or out of sorts to try on a pair of shoes. Perhaps it’s because they allow you to signal who you are that day – pumps are all about business, flats show we are grounded, heels change our posture and curve making us instantly taller and thinner. Shoes are the foundation of the image you want to send out that day, with the added bonus that it can be changed several times, just by kicking off one pair and selecting another.
This is an unusual world, since it is one that the men cannot enter. Rarely is it the case that we get the better deal, but with shoes we do. The men must content themselves with boring flat leather shoes, and perhaps the occasional brogue or boat shoe, and some might even stretch to a trainer or welly. Dull dull dull. Yet in the world of the woman, the possibilities of fashion and self-expression are endless. And even though as I get older they make my back ache a little more, or pinch my toes a little harder, I will continue to sport my most tottery of heels till the very last. For they are works of art that give us a freedom of expression and a bounce of joy that cannot be underestimated.
It’s said that money can’t buy happiness – but it can buy you fabulous shoes and that’s pretty much the same thing, right? I don’t mean to sound superficial here, but if my house was on fire, it’s the shoes I’d save (once the kids were safe, of course….).
