When Did You Fall in Love with SHOES?
$2,000,000.00 Stuart Weitzman Diamond Dream Shoes worn by Anika Noni Rose from Dreamgirls
If you’ve a Brown Sugar fan like I am you’ll remember the classic line:
“When did you fall in love with Hip Hop?”
I thought I’d put a spin on it since so many of my readers love shoes as much as if not more than I do. I figured I’d give you the floor, and let you share your love affair with shoes by asking the question:
When did you fall in love with SHOES?
But first I’d like to share my love story with shoes. I believe I fell in love with shoes when I was very young. I may have been 6 or 7 years old and my Mom was preparing us for Easter. She was taking us all to the shoe store and I remember how much I enjoyed getting my foot measured and then having someone come out from the back room with boxes shoes that would probably all fit me and getting to try them on one at a time, until my Mom leaned forward and felt to see if my big toe was touching the front of the shoe and asked me what I thought. It may have been the first thing that has ever mattered to me that I was asked my opinion about. What do you think? About shoes? Of course I remember liking them all, but since I wasn’t an only child or from an affluent family, one pair it was. Picking that one pair was as difficult as it is now. Of course there was the process of picking out the patterned tights, felt gloves and patent leather bag to go with my Easter dress, but that part wasn’t as thrilling as waiting to get home and open up that box of shoes and trying them on several times before Easter finally came. Every school year and Easter after that I remember getting very excited about shoes–still do.
How about you? When did you fall in love with SHOES? Your response could be used in the upcoming book!
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1st aside: I love those “When did you fall in love with Hip Hop” stories in Brown Sugar (one of my fave movies).
I’d have to say it was the summer of 1978 or 1979-ish? I was about 12-13, and I bugged the crap outta my mother to enroll me in modeling school since I was tall for my age and feeling ugly duckling-ish. And that first pair of heels was for catwalk practice…I remember feeling so tall (at 5′6″ – still short for a model), and so svelte, that I wanted to wear my lil 2 & 1/2″ heels to bed. I ate, slept and breathed fashion that whole summer…and wore those heels until I’d finally stopped twisting my ankles and feeling wobbly – until I’d finally been able to walk semi-gracefully in them to the pleasure of my runway/modeling instructor…until she broke the news to my mom that I needed to graduate into stillettos. And I bugged mom (again) into getting me a pair of 4″ red patent leather shoes, very much worthy of Dorothy’s return trip to Kansas (until my best friend’s dog ate them….lol)
And here I am, 30 years later, still lusting after a pair of red patent leather Louboutins. Circle of life also applies to fashion…
Wow. Great story! Thanks for sharing it. I thought I was the only one who had this long love affair with shoes.
I probably fell in love with shoes when I got some cute black patent leather dress shoes. I was in elementary school (can’t recall the age). I thought I was too cute.
I fell in love with shoes when I was 5 yrs. old. My Mother used to have the most fabulous shoes I had ever seen(for a child) and I would sit on the floor of her closet and stare at them for minutes upon minutes. One day I tried a pair on and the rest has been Shoe-story in the making. I now own about 150 pairs. At one time I have owned about 275 pairs of heels and sandals. I don’t wear gym-shoes…heck I can’t even say that word with holding my stomach. Anyway, great Read!
Viva La Shoes!!!
Dee Dee:)
I fell in love with shoes as a little girl. I had to be a toddler sitting in my mom’s closet aka the guest room nobody used. The whole room would be filled with clothes, purses, scarves, and of course, shoes.I used to watch her get dressed for the day or a party. Sometimes I would roll around the bed as I played with the shoes, feeling the textures, trying them on. Other times I would jump off the bed and try to walk around the room in them, but my little legs could only get so far. By the time I got to elementary school, I was known as the shoe girl. I had every color converse. Even the ones with the patterns on them. Now as an adult, I still have all the different color sneakers, but now I have a bookshelf and rack full of heels and wedges.
Thanks ladies for sharing. I’ll continue to pass this link on, I’d love to read more stories about shoes. This is wonderful!
I fell in love with them through my mother’s heel collection in her closet. Many days when I was home alone while my mom was working I would just be in her closet amazed. They weren’t spectacular now that I look back, but my mom seemed so confident in them that they just became my favorite part of an outfit. I love heels and have always wanted to have an on point collection and one day I will.
My mom has always been so beautiful to me. As a lil girl I loved to play dress up in her clothes, shoes, hats and carry her purses. I remember her going to a New Years Eve party wearing a Black sequinned Mini dress and some deep black suede stilettos. LAWD HAVE MERCY… I couldn’t believe how the dress shimmered as she walked and the SHOES were so soft and pretty to me. The following Halloween I was 8 years old and guess what? My mom let me wear her sequinned dress (altered) and black suede shoes (wayyy to big for my feet) as my costume! You couldn’t tell me NOTHING! I knew I was lookin’ good and could care less about trick or treating I was struttin in those STILETTOS all night long! Yes ladies…I was 8 when I became a bonafide SHOE-Fanatic!!! =o)
Hi Dominique
I fell in love with shoes when I was three years old have picture in patent leather boots and I am showing off the boots. I LOVE SHOES…Its an addiction I feel fabulous and sexy when there fresh out the box..I always tell the ladies you need to have presence when you walk into a room all eyes on you and on your fabulous shoes!!!
Let’s see……It is most likely from my childhood days; I used to play dress-up in my mom’s shoes and clothes. She was a fashionista, always on point from head to toe. She had her own style too, but she looked great pulling it together. We were not rich and the priorities were on education, so I did not get the chance to really buy many shoes until I started working (late teens). Unfortunately (or fortunately) there is no turning back. I’m doing the comfort vs. fashion thing nowadays, though. It’s no good if I can’t walk without an ache the next day!!!
When I was in middle school (6-8th grade) is when my real obsession began. I started buying shoes like it was my job. By the time I reached 9th grade in high school, I was on to my 4 and 5 inch wedged platforms, platformed high (chunky) heels, and the rocket-dog platform sandals. By 10th grade I was into the super skinny heels that were as tall as can be. At one point in high school I owned 65 pairs of shoes! (Today I only have 32.)
I’m fairly tall 5′9 and love some 5 inch shoes! I dream day and night about some Louboutin’s (I think they are the sexiest, since they have the tallest heels- compared with Weitzman, Choo, etc.), as well as the YSL tribute pump, and any other fabulous shoes on this site! My most recent purchase (last night ha!) was a pair of faux-snake platform heels w/ 5.5 inch heels. I would rather have a pair of fabulous shoes than any other item and will spend all my money on them rather than clothes or purses!
Your Easter story really resonated with me and for me the Easter shoe was the biggest shoe moment of any given year. A shoe that was always your choice, what you picked out so yes indeed Easter’s a biggie in my Shoesession ( and the reason I can’t get over maryjanes)however.. My mom and my fathers sisters’ were the most fabulous, fashionable women I have ever witnessed and that’s really where my story begins. These women different in so many ways, had 2 distinct shoe quirks. Firstly- the Naming of the Shoe ( say that with Shakesperean reverance..) Secondly- the chat ( you are @ this point talking to the shoe ). This begs for an example so let me set this up properly- 5 year old me assisting my Aunt Sadie as she get’s dressed.
Sadie: “Baby- go in Aunties closet and bring me….THE DELMAN”
“NO,NO, not that one but ..BLACK BEAUTY ” ( there should be a cresendo of music happening right there )
Sadie @ this point says to BLACK BEAUTY as she lovingly pulls back the tissue paper ” there’s mama’s girl-child they won’t see you coming”
This kind of adulation was not lost on me-throw in the ruby slippers and the movie The Red shoes and here you have me. I however assign theme songs to my shoes, because every fabulous girl and every fab shoe demands a soundtrack!!
When I was in first grade and my mom bought me black patent leather tee straps with a nice velvet bow on top~oh my I was so hooked~just yesterday I found some nice satin pumps at nordstroms with a chocolate and brown ornament, made me change my entire outfit for a party~