Ugly Shoes: A Brief History
New York Magazine has a really cool article about really ugly shoes that somehow became trendy. They start their timeline of ugliness at 1966, with the infamous German sandals that Westerners are still so fond of wearing.
It is always easy to tell a non-Arab from the way their dressed, regardless of how Arab their skintone and facial features are. They always seem to be wearing a backpack or a messenger bag, khaki pants, a dull-colored tank top, and a pair of German sandals similar to the pair above. My Arab sense of style never really understood how anyone could strut such hideous footwear.
The time line then moves to 1971 with the clog, but naturally, having been born in the 80′s, I have no memories of that portion of the timeline lest for the clog revival of the early 90′s, when the “sabot” was extremely fashionable in the Arab world. I am not aware if it was fashionable abroad as well, but I can easily say that the heavy wooden sabots are the main reason I still cannot run properly. At the peak of their fashionability, I was barely a child of 7, and it is REALLY hard to run in leather-and-wood footwear. I can still remember the woody clanky noise produced by simply walking in them…
Moving over to the late seventies in their timeline and the mid 90′s in my memories, to the reign of the Doc Martins. Although I wasn’t much of a fan of their sexless shape, I remember that they were very, very cool at some point. I even had a British physics teacher who would only wear Doc Martins, a color-changing green pair that turned blue depending on its angle!
Actually, at that point in my early teens, I was more of a sexless sandals person :) They were very cool in Jordan, complete with socks, a woven-fabric backpack slung low, and jeans ripped vertically at the side of the leg. Such a fashion crime to commit, but on my defense, I was 12, and it was very comfortable to wear to daycamp. I still see some people wearing them, mainly Westerners dressed up for a “safari” in the deserts and malls of Jordan.
I am always amused by the very touristy outfits of tourists.
The timeline of ugly shoes seems to miss a very important addition to ugliness in the 90′s- the Spice Girl platform shoes, which every teenager at that point is surely guilty of wearing. It was so cool at that point, and they were admittedly very comfortable.
Skipping over to winter 2004, just a few measly years ago, we come upon the hideousness of the Ugg Boot, still being sold at fashionable retailers worldwide (in Amman, you can find them in this season’s Pull and Bear collection). You see, I really, really like boots. I even think that suede boots lined with fur can look really, really cute, but alas, there’s something about Ugg boots that is just absolutely and appallingly not likeable. Perhaps its the way the toe curves in such circularity, or unflattering flatness of the sole. Ugg boots make me feel like I’m looking at a pair of shoes turned inside out, or at an Eskimo crossed with a normal person.
Next comes Crocs, which I’ve seen on display in many stores around town but which I’ve yet to see anyone wear, and perhaps that’s a good thing. I mean, my childhood clogs reinvented in more comfortable material seems to bring out rather bad memories. Namely that I never could figure out how to pronounce sabot, French for clog.
I can think of many more ugly shoes that I have been victimized by fashion into wearing, but on the brightside, I have a gorgeous new pair of overpriced, uncomfortable boots to coo over. Aren’t they absolutely gorgeous?
So, what ugly shoes are you guilty of wearing? :)
