Daily amusings: Trendography and Shoeology

 Sitting on a corner in Oxford, trend spotters will enjoy witnessing the classic collegiate ensemble of black leggings and flats or crisply cut jeans and flats, oversized sunglasses, skinny jeans with boots. Ahh to love the trends. There go 3 girls in Audrey Hepburn ballet flats and sailor blue and white stripe tops because Vogue told them that’s what they should wear. And yes, 3 girls in cropped white pants and flats with loose fitting tops- saw that in Glamour. And there go a clique of girls in neon tops and ray-bans with black leggings- because that’s what in the window’s at Primark. Yes- 3 girls in black miniskirts with flats, slouchy purses and oversized colorful cardigans over white tanks… was that InStyle?

For a world based on sub fusc, this is a surprisingly chic place. But of course… it is a place of learning so even shoeology and trendography have a place in these hallowed halls of higher learning.

 

It has become my belief that you can spot a nationality by footwear. … and I don’t just mean the classic American white tennis shoe tourist, camera strap around their neck, clad in ill-fitting khaki shorts and a loud floral print Tommy Bahama knock-off. No, I seriously mean that you can spot a nationality, or at least a continental divide by shoes.

This, my friends, is Shoeology.

English women are all about their flats- the Ballet Pump they call it (Americans- don’t be confused, Pump does not refer to heel height here). Rarely will you see true high heels… low, chunky heels for the average woman… only the truly brave, or the French, will be seen in stilettos.

The middle euro-shoe is a low, fitted style with stripes. There’s something definitive about the euro tennis shoe- it looks as though it’s from the 80s. rarely do you see the Nike Shox (Nike, pronounced without an accent over the “e”) or the Adidas.

The boat shoe is a universally popular shoe, as are Uggs. Yet, you can tell nationality by colors and brand names. Sperry has not been seen over here while brands such as Italian Geox promise quality.

Converse and Puma (pronounced “pew-mah”) making its way here- Europeans are accustomed to hundreds of years of cobblestone roads and long walks (this is definitely a walking culture- it is common to walk a mile to Sainsbury’s for groceries).

The fitflop is all the rage at the moment, guaranteed to shed pounds and tone muscles while wearing a shoe that is borderline attractive.

Fortunately High Street has L.K. Bennett and Dorothy Perkins. Life is too short for ugly shoes.