My it has been some time since I last posted! Hope you all enjoyed the Queenie celebrations. I am fortunate enough to live in Zone 1 in London on a top floor flat and could see the fireworks from Buckingham Palace after the Jubilee Concert, mid-party might I add, which thrilled all of our guests. I also LOVED K-Middy's nude, lace number at the ceremony in St Paul's. I am in total awe of that lady. Bar the American Tan hosiery.
I was invited along to the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens fashion seminar last Friday at the Foundling Museum. Well worth a go see I reckon and always good to get to know our fashion roots. I will be developing a section of the blog looking at the fashion related things to do in and around London and my native Scotland, so anyone out there launching any new nights or shows let me know ;)
Talking of fashion history, this blog post will be looking at what I like to call 'The Great Shoe Debate', ie. the Brothel Creepers trend. I've seen many a female in East London don these and predict they will dominate the UK this summer.
At first despising this shoe style, I am growing to develop a slight fondness for brothel creepers due to a rich fashion history. With the development of this age-old shoe style's materials, colours and textures in 2012 I'm really beginning to like these. I just genuinely don't think they work on 5 foot girls like me.
First designed as a practical alternative to hard-worn, heavy boots, they were worn by World War One soldiers in Africa due to the thick sole, due to the humid and tough African terrain, they didn't start out life to be worn with floppy hats and maxis a la 2012. The shoe later saw a resurgence back in the UK after the men returned home, being seen in various nightspots around London, hence the coining of the term 'brothel creeper'.
It was in the 1950s when the shoes were worn by the iconic Teddy Boys that their place in fashion history was solidified, catapulting them from being a practical alternative to the ultimate stylish shoe. We can see parallels of the way the Teddy Boys wore their brothel creepers with the way they are worn now, with leather jackets, quiffs and tight fitting tailoring...
After a brief resurgance in the '70s in Malcom McLaren's infamous London store, then in the '80s on the feet of supergroup Banarama, they are now seen in 2012 on the feet of fashion forward celebs including Rita Ora, Rihanna and Jessie J...
The best way to wear this style of shoe is with a 'grunge' look - all messy hair, leather, short shorts and slack t-shirts. Avoid at all costs if you're a glamour puss - hence why I admire, yet can't wear this look. My favourites on the market at the moment are Underground Creepers, which can be found in Office stores online and throughout the UK. Retailing at around £95, they are an investment piece and will see you through many a festival this summer. A thing to note with Creepers is that a solid muted colour works best, as it is the silhouette of the shoe which strikes out rather than the colour or pattern. However, I do love a bit of leopard on my creeper - no pun intend. See some of my favourites below...
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| Underground Creeper, purchase at Office stores throughout the UK |
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Ultimate Style Queen and leading fashion blogger Susie Bubble rocking floral creepers |
Who knows, I may rock these at Lovebox this weekend....got to love a trend stepped in history!
Emma x
BREAKING FASHION NEWS!!!
One of my favourite Scottish designers and over all faboosh lady Hayley Scanlan has won Young Designer of the Year at the Scottish Fashion Awards - you go lady! All - check this amazeball designer out before she's on even more fire. I knew she would do this ;) xx
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