By Maureen Mancini Amaturo
Gain weight, lose weight, shoes stand by you. They are so loyal that they often serve beyond their popular peak. With a little imagination and a sense of personal expression, they can work through shifting trends.
However, fashion is about nothing if it’s not about what’s next. Heel heights alter. Toes taper. The vamp varies. Materials morph. And they have to. Depending on what shape skirts and pants take, the volume or level of linear in silhouettes, the use of color and prints in fabrics, the ever-supportive shoe plays its role in the total look by converting into the perfect complement.
Maybe that’s why they are so lovable. They do so much for the good of the whole.
And they’ve been doing it for…well, Spanish cave drawings from more than 15,000 years ago show humans with animal skins or furs wrapped around their feet. We’re still wearing the oldest crafted foot covering known to man — sandals. So shoe-lovers, it’s in our DNA. When it comes to style, anyone who even flirts with the idea of dressing well has no choice but to be well-heeled. That’s why throughout history humans have fit their feet into ever-changing configurations.
In the ’50s, dresses, jewelry, and hairstyles were bigger. With so much happening from the knees up, shoes went low-key — single color pumps, flats, wedges, and loafers. For the ’60s, anything that once came with a heel was available in a flat to ease the sex-factor impact of mini-skirts. Then there were the giant ’70s platforms playing into empowering new heights for liberated women (and men.) Because ’80s fashion and hair were so big, colorful, and padded, ’80s shoes imitated the ’50s in keeping it on the down low. Dyed-to-match heels, sneakers, flat Capezios, Huaraches. The ’90s revisited the ’70s clunky platforms. And here we are. So what’s ahead?
This year’s trends spotlight texture, fabrics, and heels, with glitter and metallic high on the list.
• Satin: mules, evening slides, sneakers, and pumps
• Kitten heels: slide-ons, pumps, boots, and booties
• Suede and glitter sneakers
• Soft, square-toe mules
• Evening slides
• Embellished: fur, feathers, beads, bows, glitter, graphic prints
CAPTIONS
Patterned lace heels at Angela’s
Suede flats at Walin & Wolff
Blue satin heels at Angela’s
Suede slip-ons at Walin & Wolff
Suede and glitter sneaker at Angela’s
Suede slide-ons at Walin & Wolff
