God, it’s been a long time since I last posted on this blog. There have been many occasions when I really thought I would. This year, for example, was the 10th anniversary of the most recent return of the over-the-knee boot, beginning a sustained run of popularity that continues through today. In the last few weeks, we’ve seen the return of what used be called the “baggy boot” back in the mid/late nineteen seventies, now reborn as the “slouchy boot.” Like its late seventies precursor, it’s a serious investment; the average pair seems to run well over $500, with many being in the four-figure range. Most recently Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, turned up in a pair of $895 FRAME x Tamara Mellon boots, which gained her plaudits from the Daily Telegraph; they were no small investment, the paper noted, “so it’s safe to assume that she thinks she’ll get lots of wear out of them in years to come.”
You would assume that such a news item would provide an opportunity to revisit the golden days of 1975, when this style was so popular that the New York Times‘ Bernadine Morris reported that, “popular booteries, such as Renast on the Rue Tronchet, hand out tickets to women standing in line on the sidewalk, as if they were selling meat or pastry.” But if you want to read that story, I fear you’ll have to buy the book. I’ve run out of steam.
All things have a lifetime, and this blog has been going for six years now. Along the way I got great input and comments from a number of people, spawned a book, and provided a forum for the employees of the much-loved (and much-missed) London shoe store, Elliotts. And now I’m done. The fashion boot, emphatically, is not. Long may it continue to walk, into the next century and beyond.
Selected references:
- Abraham, Tamara, 2019. Slouch boots are back – here’s how to wear them this winter. Daily Telegraph, Nov 4, 2019. Retrieved Nov 7, 2019.
- Abraham, Tamara, 2019. The Duchess of Sussex delivers a masterclass in separating forever styles from flash-in-the-pan trends. Daily Telegraph, Nov 7, 2019. Retrieved Nov 7, 2019.
- Morris, Bernadine, 1975. Hemmed up. New York Times, May 3, 1977; p.52.
- Peake, Andy, 2018. Made for Walking: a Modest History of the Fashion Boot. Schiffer Fashion Press, 192pp.
Made For Walking 