I wrote this article 4 years ago and just came across it again today, I love how sometimes I don't recognise myself within things I've written or created, but what ever it is makes perfect sense to me. Conversations between my past and present self are some of the best.
This is a lighthearted piece with strong values bubbling beneath the surface, grab a cup of coffee and enjoy....
Do you
really need another pair of shoes?
Perhaps I could be described as a bit odd, but I have to admit that
shoes don’t really do it for me. Gasps followed by the question ‘So why does she love Elle then!?’ may follow,
but hear me out.
A girl’s relationship with shoes begins at an early age, shuffling
around in your mum’s kitten heels soon after mastering how to walk followed by
the anchor point, owning your first pair of stilettos as a teenager. During
that impressionable pubescent period I made the mistake of not sealing the bond
with shoes, I didn’t persevere through the high heel pain barrier and now, a
number of years later, I have a total inability to last longer than about an
hour donning any more than half an inch. We are yet to see small print on the
side of a box of Jimmy Choo’s issuing a health warning, but to me it seems as
though it is only a matter of time. And if the media were to then jump on the
bandwagon they would no doubt try to put an end to anyone having the need for
another pair of 6-inch heels. Ok, maybe I’m taking things to the extreme, let’s
take it down a notch.
Luckily many other styles have been invented allowing us, as liberated
and free thinking beings, to choose a style of shoe that totally suits us, a
reflection of our personality, a complement to our personality. Who cares if
it’s a pair of loafers that shout out sensible and comfortable? (Having been
featured by Chloe a/w 2010 is good enough for me). But what I’m trying to get
at here is that with so many different pairs of shoes in the world there is
definitely the perfect pair for everyone, there’s no need to compromise, your
perfect match, your soul mate shoes are out there waiting for you. On the other
hand, or foot as the case may be, you could now be feeling rather smug in the
knowledge that your perfect pair are delicately encasing and softly caressing
your lower extremities this very minute.
This is the crux of the matter. If you are still searching for your
perfect pair, then yes, you really do need another pair of shoes. You can’t be
denied of your soul mates, this would be a tragedy. Missing out on a happy
ending is a reality none of us wish to face. Which leaves me with those who
were feeling smug a few sentences ago. As far as I can see you fall into two
categories. Perhaps you are filled with a lovely warm glowing feeling in the
knowledge that you have found your perfect match, you smile as you look at them
and they create a feeling completeness - you don’t want, need or care about
another pair of shoes. However, I am more inclined to believe that once a woman
has encountered The One (pair) they are hooked. The warm glowing feeling wears
off and before she knows it she is convinced that another perfect pair is out
there, and another and another. A different colour, fabric, buckle, stitch,
even a totally different style, to feed the hunger that is bestowed upon many a
female in today’s society. With so many possibilities there’s no way a girl can
be faithful to just one pair, right?
When I was 10 years old I remember looking in my Grandmother’s wardrobe.
Looking amongst the fur coats, Hounds-tooth suits and other similar items I
asked ‘but where are all the shoes?’ It was then that I learnt that you only
need one really good quality pair of shoes, which will last a lifetime. If the
sole wore away, instead of being discarded they were attentively repaired at
the cobblers. Our Grandmother’s generation didn’t need another pair of shoes, a
new heel and they were as good as new, their commitment was for life, for
better or worse, in sickness and in health.
Which brings me to the conclusion that we only really need another pair
of shoes if we are ready to fully commit to that pair, ready to share the good
outfit choices and the bad. They will give you the confidence to feel great in
any situation and in return you will respect them and provide them with the
nurture they need. And I feel that this is the point in which I am at my life,
a/w 2010 is the season that I am ready to take the leap of faith to love and to
cherish for better or for worse another pair of shoes, but not just any pair,
The Pair. If you don’t yet feel ready for this kind of commitment your shoe
cupboard may see a lot of flirtation, but proceed with caution, there will be a
lot of styles hankering for your attention and by the end of a busy day you may
be left feeling like you’ve received little in return. Perhaps, most
tragically, you may have found your perfect pair a while ago and they have got
lost in the abyss. They are waiting patiently to be rediscovered at the back of
the wardrobe, if this could be you, quickly go and look at what you have
already got. Lastly, maybe your best option would be to start all over again
with those teenage stilettos because, unlike clothes, shoes can transcribe
across the decades and still fit perfectly, the addition of a few pounds around
the hips doesn’t matter to feet. Whatever your situation may be, when you do
find your perfect pair and you have that feeling Cinderella must have had when
that glass slipper fitted perfectly, these are your soul mates and you don’t
need another pair.
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