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| Ah, Shoe Embassy! |
Last week we had the joy of having our grandchildren for a half term sleepover. Whilst we don’t really need an excuse for such an event, the reason was that we’d promised our granddaughter a new pair of boots as a belated birthday present. I don’t know who was more excited, me or her. You see, I love shoes. I hazard that I am not alone in this amongst women. Men, not so much - my husband argues that you can only wear one pair at a time, so why would you need any more than that. Meh!
If as Mark Twain said, clothes ‘maketh the man’, then shoes definitely maketh the woman!
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| All the t-bars! (I'm strangling the cat!) |
I feel as if my love of shoes has been with me all my life - I clearly remember lying about a pair of t-bar sandals when I was 10 years old. They were too small, excruciatingly painful to wear but unbelievably beautiful, so I convinced my mum that they were a perfect fit and suffered all summer. But my, were they beautiful!
As I progressed through my teenage years I would save my meagre wages from Saturday jobs to satisfy my need for the latest style and fashion - platforms, slingbacks, Dunlop green flash plimsolls, hippy dippy leather sandals! Never stilettos though - my centre of gravity didn’t suit them!
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| Comfy boots! |
Probably because of my experience as that 10 year old, limping through a family holiday in Kent, I eschew uncomfortable shoes. Not for me having my little toe amputated so I can fit into the latest Manolo Blahniks. I’m more a Doc Marten, Clarks Originals or desert boot type of woman. I appreciate that many of my friends regard my shoes as ugly, but I love them for their stylish quirkiness!
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| Another pair of t-bars - on my beautiful daughter! |
Footwear is perfect - it always fits, regardless of weight fluctuation, can lift an outfit to another level, and make you feel confident when you’re at your most unsure. My daughter and I bond over shoes on a regular basis, sharing links to our latest internet finds. We both own far too many pairs and yet still resort to our favourites, time and time again.
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| Nanny, I love them... |
It was two years ago that we first took our granddaughter to buy footwear - again as a birthday gift. We had her measured in a specialist shop and asked them to bring out any shoes in her size. She tried on a few pairs, reluctantly looking in the mirror each time. Then she tried on the silver pair with the pink flower…When she finally stopped skipping around the shop she whispered in my ear, ‘Nanny, I love them!’ Sold. She knew exactly which ones she wanted, and was so happy. They were impractical, but completely beautiful and, unlike my t-bar sandals, fitted her perfect little feet too.
Two years on, she has even clearer ideas about what she likes. She always chooses her own outfits to wear, and prefers twirly dresses to jeans, and sparkly tights to leggings. In the first shop we went to, the long suffering assistant brought her many boots, none of which passed muster. Too ‘purply’ in one case! We drove 40 miles to the next nearest specialist shop where we repeated the process. She half liked one pair, then tried on THE pair.
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| THE pair! |
We were again treated to a dancing, twirling child. Not only did she love them, she professed the desire to sleep in them! I have also wanted to sleep with shoes in the past, so I didn’t find this at all odd!
So in this confusing, troubling world, be grateful if you are lucky enough to own, appreciate and enjoy shoes - they bring so much happiness to both big people and little people - mine say more about me than anything else I own. Apart from, of course, handbags…
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| Oh the joy! |
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