It is Fall so it is the perfect time to revisit our closet. We suggest the best place to start is with shoes. Because of Covid and our year of hibernation, shopping for shoes was not on our radar. We lived in flip flops, slippers or sneakers. We never went out so what was the point.
Well, guess what happens when you walk around in slippers and flip flops all the time? Feet spread… yup, just like Lucy’s mother warned her not to cross her eyes as they would get stuck that way. So here is it, says Lucy, her feet have spread. “Yes, my feet are in a land of their own sizing. I guess it is true. Thanks Mum, you were right all along.”
Another dismal awakening happened. Lucy finds she can’t wear heels anymore. She is not talking about the Hollywood legend spike heels but just a simple wedge. She wore her well- worn favorite wedge heels last week and found her ankles and back ached for days.
Don’t forget we love the M. Gemi flats and the look of Audrey Hepburn flats, but we liked to wear heels for certain occasions. Not anymore. We asked a few friends and, yes, “flats are what we got now gals.” But no matter what, we will never do “sensible shoes.” Several friends have upped their game with an amazing selection of sneakers and boots which may have to serve us.
Even if you wanted heels, nothing is out there. I went to Nordstrom’s and Lucy went to TJ Maxx to buy shoes. There was little inventory to speak of. There were no heels at Nordstrom’s, but rather Uggs, boots, flats and sneakers. Lucy scrounged up two pairs of okay low heels. I found nothing. It is possible to buy shoes online but it can be tough as shoe sizes are not consistent based on the different designs and styles.
Remember when there were racks and racks of shoes? I want to see those beautiful shoes that Sarah Jessica Parker designs and looks fabulous in. I want to see a shoe salon like Saks displaying beautiful heels and pumps. I remember when Joseph Antell was on the corner of Newbury and Arlington, an entire store of gorgeous shoes. I can still remember the smell of fine leather. In fact I looked on line recently and found a pair of vintage Antell shoes that had recently sold.
I have a pair of lovely Chanel heels that I carefully keep in shoe bags in their Chanel box in my closet. I have had them for years. Sometimes I take them out to dust them, put them on to see how they feel and wonder where I could go in them. Probably not to the chicken coop or Whole Foods but on the other hand, maybe.
Perhaps our days of high heels are over but if we are clever we can still find the look that works for us now. At least we know that unlike our mothers, we are not going to wear the “Belgian sensible shoes!”
I admit that there are shoes I still keep in the back of my closet. Just because they are so beautiful even though I have nowhere to wear them and they are no longer in style.
But just the act of cleaning out our shoes and taking inventory feels like a new beginning.
Ciao
Lucy and Claudia