|
 Last year,
designers went on a true crusade against mediocrity. They have put so many
trusting hyper-fashionistas on heavy-heeled Cinderella clogs (Stella
McCartney), fancy-heeled shoes with flower printed counters (Prada, Miu Miu) or
intricately shaped triangular chunky heels which sway precariously when you try
to make a move (Nina Ricci, Missoni, DSquared). This year, the trends are even
more shocking as the runway hits seem to be utterly unwearable.
Today, trends
in the footwear fashion are diverse, ranging from a cliché style fusion to a complete
denial of comfort and fittingness for nothing but a triumphant red carpet
appearance.
The
greatest fashion hit of 2009 is the latest collection of Olivier Theyskens at
Nina Ricci which includes platforms of dizzying height robbed of their most
valuable attribute, the heel, making the footwear a real health and life
hazard. The sheer height and the fact that the sole doesn't touch the ground
seem like a lethal, if not merely ankle-snapping, combination. Another trend is
shoes that maximally reveal the foot, be it summer sandals or boots designed
for colder weather.
At the
Paris catwalk, Christian Dior showed sandals with a thin lacing along the foot,
while the heel and the counter are the only leather-encased areas. The heel has
all the claims to originality, as it takes most intricate shapes.
Several seasons
back, the catwalks were teeming with ankle and cutout boots. First, toes were playfully
exposed, then the back of the feet was revealed, and finally vamps and quarters
were lost, and the boots started to resemble the Roman - or gladiator- style
sandals. Stylish footwear was featured in Gucci collection, too, - while completely
covering the foot to the ankle, they expose the toes, either only one toe, or
the whole pack.
This bizarre
fusion experimenting is not limited to the styles combining the trends of two
seasons. Sports and classic, business and casual styles - all meet in the
modern footwear trends. Vivienne Westwood boldly suggests combining pumps with
Roman sandals and offers classical flat patent leather shoes with several ankle
straps. At Balenciaga, they transformed everybody's favorites, elegant open-toe
sandals, into a sort of running shoes, which belong rather to a sportswear
section than to luxury footwear department.
While some
designers decided to rob the traditional autumn and winter footwear of its
legitimate functions, others put their mind to emphasize its purpose in a very
special and lovely way. For example, Miu Miu collection features fur-trimmed shoes.
And if it's not surprising to see fine fur-trim on the shoes nowadays, these
shoes, nevertheless, are very and very remarkable owing to the fact that fur amply
covers the counter and the heel. Extraordinary? Yes. Comfortable? Debatable, especially
in the rainy season.
Another
notable footwear style, made popular by House of Nassat, is crochet boots. They
look like a knitted shoes attached to the long legwarmers. You can buy these
long bright crochet boots in turquoise or yellow. They're perfect for cold, dry
and windy weather.
Of course,
we could not do without footwear, which can be described both as «fancy» and «original»,
or «monstrous» and even «hideous». By such footwear we mean various imitations
of human legs, hoofs, or other animal themes. The shape of the heel - a heart, treble
clef, and corkscrew, nails or hourglass - is the expression of our wildest dreams.
There are pearl-embroidered and beaded shoes, which are sensitive to a touch,
and beautiful crystal heels, waiting to be lost by the next Cinderella of our
days.
Fashion can
not make us wear fancy footwear, but it desperately flaunts its ability to
create dizzyingly beautiful styles which we, in our turn, can wear do at your
own risk, or showcase as wonderful museum pieces, admiring the uncomfortable
and even unnatural, but awfully fancy creation of modern designers.
|
