I don’t have many items in my wardrobe whereby I react to it with a ‘What the hell was I thinking?’. That’s not to say my style hasn’t changed but I usually find SOME way of wearing things that are very crusty and old, and in fact, it gives me pleasure digging out old things, feeling like I’ve hit some sort of thrift store jackpot seeing as I forget these things existed.
Not these boots though.
Seriously, what the crap was I thinking? They’re Topshop c. 2002-3 and they came around the time when pirate flat boots were just about the only thing women were wearing. There was some sort of flat suede pirate boot plague going on and not wanting to go for the suede multi-strapped variety that were abound, I went for these short, flat, leather ones with a stitched toe. I wore them everywhere, with everything ranging from prom dresses to pencil skirts. I got about 60 wears out of them and then banished them forevermore around final year of uni. Once in a while, I’ll look at them and think ‘Oh how cute I thought I was prancing around in them and miniskirts and going on ‘dates’, a concept that is pretty much lost on me now…’ and then chuckle to myself in an insane manner and banish them again to the back of the wardrobe.
In a Good Friday cleanout (yes, everything today is related to this wonderful Friday that we love…..) though, I looked at these sad, ugly boots again and just decided to give them a go. Why the hell not? There’s a lot of time, it’s pissing down with rain/hail outside and Great British Menu on BBC iPlayer is keeping me company as a good background sound.
Excuse the very silly labels tacked onto the outfits but it is the most simple way of defining the ways I could possibly wear these out again…
Somehow, the same initial feeling I had when I first bought them and wore them with so much gusto is no longer there (namely because Givenchy has bestowed upon the land with open toe multi-leather strapped ankle boots, thus negating all other boots in my head….) but I’m still not chucking these away yet….
love the layered looks! i could never pull it off but you look great!
I’m sensing more pocahontas than pirate here…moccasin high-tops! Hey, as long as you can make them work, and you do, why bin them?…though how there’s any space to banish them to in the back of your wardrobe is beyond me after seeing your skirt collection.
mgw: Hehe… yup…people do pirate and I go and do pocahontas…. my shoe collection hasn’t reached the numbers of my skirts…but it’s getting there… :S
oo they look like wellies to me! seem perfect for walking round a fesitval. you could try a DIY with them like the shin pad and ribbon adornment you made before? and i love the neckline on the pretty outfit!
I WANT THEM!!
hey susie!
Love the boots, and the blogg!
I wrote a post about the PERFECT BOMBER by Rosanna Julie, Ive had this vintage jacket for a year or so now, and it is exactly the same.I think she came across a jacket just like mine and simply copied that, or that she is bringing out an old item , im not sure! Do you know more about it? I would love your opinion
ooooooh, loving the “pretty” blue dress…
Susie, don’t worry, you can turn “ugly” things into the coolest things ever, just like with this black booties. Awesome.
ador!
surprisingly i like them, they definitely go with everything!
Lol, I actually think they go with everything in ur photos…Especially like the “Sexy” outfit; is that like a dress with a skirt over?? lol have inventive!
G.G.
xoxo
http://www.globalglamour.wordpress.com
Good ,keep them.You never know when you’ll want to dig them out and wear em.I like them personally.
Okay, I am so freaked out. I mean what are the odds? You are wearing a dress almost exactly like the one I made a couple weeks ago. Right down to the fabric (different color).
http://postdecadent.blogspot.com/2008/03/denim-chiffon-project.html
definitley keep them. it could be worst. i mean think of ugg boots.
Hmmm….not so sure on these though I am a bit silly when it comes to sentimental value. I would probably put them in a shoe box, paint it with glitter and toss it into the attic.
I think you managed to pull them off though with the last “casual” outfit 😉
<3<3<3
Wow, i love how you managed to make them work into so many different looks. You really are very talented!
Definitely see the reasons behind you keeping them 🙂
I actually kinda like them,
they’re not all that bad. Maybe it’s cause you managed to pull them off so well but if I were you I wouldn’t completly dread wearing them.
I actually did the same thing today, went around my closet looking through old things and think to myself “why, just why?” ahah
it’s quite amusing =]
Haha. I have issues throwing away things. My own ugly boots have been getting lots of wears lately. I really like the ‘sexy’ outift.
i actually like the boots, they look awesome how you’ve styled them.
ps. check out my new blog, ive linked you on there 🙂
http://www.addison-snakebites.blogspot.com/
Those boots are just like ugly ducklings being turned into beautiful swans – tee hee!
They are good for the current weather we are having though so don’t throw them out just yet!
Jeez, Susie – is there ANYTHING you can’t pull off?
I have an exceptionally similar pair of boots by Prada and I always think the same thing when I dig them out. An unflattering length and shape and I can never imagine what the hell was going through my head when I parted with several hundred pounds for them. I wear them dog walking now.
I’d still practise the ‘Don’t chuck anything away’ thing despite these uglies rearing their head…
Thanks for the support for these uglies…
DJM: I STILL see those sort of boots made by Prada Sports and wonder who buys them…. it’s very baffling…at least you have a dog as an excuse to utilise them…thankfully, these were pretty cheap and I’ll just look at them as a blip…
Stephanie: Yes, flares…. really dunno what to do with such a trouser shape…
Mary X: Your dress is infinitely cooler…
If you dont like them, you could probably wear them with socks and tights, so they wouldn’t be as noticeable. You could also wear them some place dirty, where you wouldnt even care if you ruined them.
Another thing, do you know of any place that sells thigh high moccasins? If they came in darker colors besides black and brown, that would be even better. It also doesnt really matter if they’re lace-up or not. I dont want you to search for them or anything, just if you ever came across them. I’m in NYC anyway, so I’m talking more about if you found them on the internet.
never did i think these could be sexy or pretty but as always, you’ve pulled it off
In a picture just by themselves, they do look a bit ugly, but when you wear them with the outfits that you put together here, they actually look pretty cool. They kind of just melt nicely into the background, which works well with your ‘offbeat’ style.
Like everyone here, I am awed by and envious of your talent for putting things together…