I Put Some New Shoes On

Recently, my friend Zoe wore these shoes from Margaret Howell and Juju Footwear's collaboration.

I fell in love. Madly and deeply in love. It was the first time a shoe has made me feel like that since discovered my mum's shoe cupboard and found a pair of black velvet Mary Janes. Sadly for me, my feet continued to grow way past a dainty size 5 so I was never able to take any of my mum's footwear out on the town, but until I was 11 I had a lot of fun stomping around the house in them. 

Zoe's shoes brought back all of the black velvet Mary Jane feelings that I had suppressed for a long time. I did what I have never done before, and shamelessly stole Zoe's shoe choice. I went out and bought my own pair. 

I thought I'd be daunted by their size and weight; they certainly don't appear delicate, which is a particular concern of mine because of my size 8 feet. I generally try to avoid anything that would make my feet look bigger than they actually are, which is quite big in the first place. I needn't have worried. I found them light, secure, and ridiculously comfortable. I've worn them with everything. Last week, I paired them with a gold sequin pencil skirt and a man's white shirt from Cos. I've matched them up with summer dresses from ASOS and high waisted 80s jeans from Beyond Retro. I haven't found an outfit that I wouldn't want to couple them with. 

One of the reasons why I'm so in love with these shoes is that they remind me of my childhood. My brother and I lived in jelly shoes, and I remember my dad having a pair that he wore all the time, much to our embarrassment. (Now I can't see what was so embarrassing about it; clearly, my dad was fashion forward.) The most frequent comment I've had from people who have seen me wearing the shoes is 'oh, I used to have a pair just like that when I was a kid!' That's what I'm finding most enjoyable about these shoes - they are hugely representative of people's childhoods.

This is my brother wearing yellow jellies in '94 or '95. He will be delighted that I've chosen to share this picture.
 

And this is me, around a similar time, also wearing yellow jellies. And yes, that is a playsuit with a hood that I'm wearing, thank you very much for asking. 
 

So I'll keep wearing my jelly shoes, even if they fall out of fashion again. It's a nice way to not feel too grown up, especially when I'm wearing them to meetings or other such events. Which I can do, because they go with everything. Seriously. 

Don't You Know About The New Fashion Honey

At the end of last week I was lucky enough to spend a few days in Barcelona with one of my best pals and fellow Spitfire Sister Anna. We had a delightful time walking around, eating and drinking (ahem, mostly drinking) and I was not looking forward to coming home. I knew I had a lot of packing and organising ahead of me, a vast amount of things to do and not a lot of time available.

As soon as we arrived back in London, I checked the BBC website to check the World Cup scores. However, information far more exciting than anything football related appeared on my screen. The What's On iPlayer section listed Billy Joel: The Bridge to Russia, and Billy Joel Live in Leningrad as its top programmes.

I LOVE Billy Joel. He is my favourite musical artist of all time. I've seen him live. I own all his CDs. I'm collecting his records on vinyl. I have a t shirt hanging on my wall from his River of Dreams tour.

I'll write it again. I LOVE BILLY JOEL.

As I was watching both the documentary and the concert, I realised there is something unbelievably cool about him that I hadn't noticed before. Billy Joel was a snazzy dresser.

I found myself wanting to replicate his outfit, from his oversized jacket to his white sneakers.He looked so effortless and yet so well put together that I was overcome by serious ensemble envy.

Thinking about it, however, I seem to get envious over men's fashion from the 80s and the 90s far more frequently than the women's fashion from those decades. There is something so casual about the way men dressed; the pieces are thrown together but sit so well with each other. 

Exhibit B: Billy Crystal in When Harry Met Sally

Harry's approach to dressing seems to match his views on love and relationships - don't care, whatever works, can't be bothered. But the collar of his shirt paired with that terrible old man jumper? Luscious. I couldn't recreate that if I tried, and I frequently do.

Then there are the boys of St. Elmo's Fire, my favourite film of all time (apart from White Christmas,but it's really only appropriate to watch it in December so I have to have another favourite to watch from January to November). While Kirby and Alec don't tend to deviate from the outfits required for their chosen professions, Billy and Kevin have more freedom in wearing layers, oversized shirts, and in the case of Rob Lowe's saxophone playing bad boy Billy, feathery earrings and a ridiculous number of badges.
 

And the outdoor wear! This is why I love winter. Coats, jumpers, scarves and hats. 

I grew up stealing every item of clothing that my dad and brother threw away, and now I know why. I thought Billy Joel only inspired my musical habits, but he had a bigger hold on me than I ever knew.