[madameshawshank]

The darling Griffin sent me an ecard from the current V & A exhibition...The Golden Age of Couture...1947-1957...Paris and London..

a wonderful website...

http://www.vam.ac.uk/vastatic/microsites/1486_couture/exhibHighShoes6.php

tulle over satin, black, Roger Vivier

I was a wee 5 year old when he was designing such loveliness...and at the same time I think of the pain the wench might have experienced wearing them...(I realise these are probably not high high heeled...however the points!...all those women with bunions because of the pinched toes...yikes)

Sarah Jessica Parker has mentioned her knees are shot to pieces because of the Manolo Blahniks she's worn constantly over the years..

myself, I'm a comfort gal...shoes can be both comfortable and elegant/sassy/............... fill in the gap....

wearing uncomfortable shoes reminds me of footbinding...self-footbinding...just as odd as forced methinks...

and at the same time the black satin and tulle is exquisite visually ..in my eyes...

hugs

moi barefooted at the moment.....ah...barefeet!

care to let us know what you're wearing on your feet at the moment?
_________________
"I've never accepted the external appearance of things as the whole truth. The world is much more elaborate than the nerves of our eye can tell us." - James Gleeson

[georgia]

gawd...so beautiful, all of it...i have morphed into a pants & sweater girl almost exclusively, but a dior ballgown could make me change my ways... (would it be practical for cooking and watching grandbabies?? )...wonder if i can get myself to london before 6 january...hmmm...

[Griffin]

georgia,

Everything in that exhibition was fabulous, just everything. I bought the catalogue and I intend to sit down and just read (and try not to look at the pictures.) If you can get over before January do also try and see the Millais exhibition at Tate Britain and the Renaissance Siena exhibition at the National Gallery too. ... so many exhibitions, so little time/money!!

The Haute Couture exhibition website also has downloadable patterns for a dress. You print out the PDF pages and put them together to make the full pattern. There's a separate one for the instructions too. Even the tailored suits were beautiful in their construction and work. Made me feel very good about my own collecting of high street contemporary fashion even if nothing in my collection is quite of that calibre!

I keep having to work tho' to get the money to buy the dresses and shoes... and I haven't bought any shoes for a while now which is beginning to worry me!!
_________________
Confusion comes fitted as standard.

[Rachel]

Griffin is absolutely right, it is a STUNNING show... but Madame, I have to agree with you about the torturousness of the shoes. Actually, one of the nastiest surprises (for me) in the exhibition was finding out about the sheer amount of corsetry/padding required to achieve the New Look... and I had naively assumed that all that went out for good during the First World War!

As to what shoes I'm wearing - my newest pair is deep red, round-toed courts with ankle straps and pompadour heels. Very 1920s and much more comfortable than anything M. Vivier ever designed!

[madameshawshank]

Rachel..here's another pair for you..you '20s' miss you!

http://www.vintagetextile.com/new_page_127.htm

There's a series of books on fashion designers..not sure of the publisher...each book about 10 inches by 8....the one on Roger V has a photo of the shoe design for Elizabeth's coronation...truly truly remarkable..from memory he wanted a liturgical look..

gold leather...straps...perhaps a 3 to 4 inch heel with patterns of garnets...to resemble rubies...

I've gone into the website of my local library...they have a book on Roger...so will see if a photo of the shoe is there...it is oh so coronationy...

ah..now HERE'S a shoe game...if you were being crowned queen or king...what type of shoe would you wear!...oh go for the sky dear King Griffin!!!

for starters, I'll take the red road....

I wonder where a favourite pair has travelled..from the '70s...wide black satin straps...thick bit more than mid heel..felt fabulous to wear..silly billy me for not keeping them...wouldn't it be funny as if they returned to me..

remember cork heels....a friend had a darling pair...the top was little leather straps...each side by side...in different colours..they looked like summer rainbow footwear...

am joyously imagining any C&Zer who's into such things..rockin' up to a serious formal event...let's go red carpet shall we...then the '50s Dior frocks etc would be worn with such pleasure...although the boning and stuff

still imagination is special...ok..must go and get ready!...there's silk ..for sure...maybe lilac shaded...maybe the green of the leaf of the lilac bush for shoe colour...or maybe green silk...and lilac shoe...some nursery black tie event perhaps
_________________
"I've never accepted the external appearance of things as the whole truth. The world is much more elaborate than the nerves of our eye can tell us." - James Gleeson

[georgia]

Griffin/Rachel...thank you for the vicarious experience. How I wish I could get to London before the show closes, but that's really out of the question, given the holidays and the expectation of a new baby in the family. Your eyes and experiences will have to be mine. (By the way, love your names...in my family, daughter Rachel has son Griffin...no kidding...)

Once, in a long ago time in a faraway place where the dinosaurs roamed, I planned to be a fashion person. I became a literature person instead, then a cooking person, but the photographs of the V&A show remind me of the origins of those earlier desires.

Somewhere--I can't remember exactly (Vanity Fair magazine?)--recently there was a lovely photograph of the most famous (American) fashion models of the '50s. One shocking statistic was that many of them were in their 30s already and had the life experience in their beautiful faces and demeanor to carry off the sophisticated clothing they displayed. It's hard these days to look at a copy of Vogue and realize that the models are barely out of their teens, if that.

Finally, Madame, I am currently wearing sensible shoes. Rats.

[Judy]

Birkenstocks for me.... always.

Well, almost always.
_________________
Doing what you like is freedom
Liking what you do is happiness

www.cupcakerecipebook.com.au

[madameshawshank]

'n Jude Darlin'..does that go for thy coronation as well?...you hip queen you!
_________________
"I've never accepted the external appearance of things as the whole truth. The world is much more elaborate than the nerves of our eye can tell us." - James Gleeson

[gingerpale]

(Why wear shoes at my coronation--my feet would never touch the ground! That's what "footmen" are for, yes?)
But I've always liked the look of high heels with a strap across the instep because you'd look like Gwen, Cyd, Rita, Ginger, able to dance your (recently crowned) head off..

I hate Hillary-type pantsuits--hate hate hate ugly ugly ugly.
The tailored but still feminine suits on that site are so perfect! Round instead of pointed collars and soft curves and *skirts*--
now I'm torn-- Queen, President, or Ann Reinking?
At present, dirty white tennys (clean socks!)

[Griffin]

For my coronation as King Griffin the First (and quite possibly the last!!) I would wear dark red velvet knee high boots with maybe a little gold braid at the back and in a riding boot style. Tho' if I thought for one second I could get away with it, I'd have four inch heels on 'em!! If I thought it would scandalise the nation, the boots would be thigh high and with heels... bwahahahahaha!!!!

Naturally my crown would be worn aslant.
_________________
Confusion comes fitted as standard.

[gingerpale]

OK, now I have two new favorite words-- "coronationy" (thank you Madame) and "aslant" (thanks, Griffin.)
I'll use the first next time I'm buying shoes, to confound the salesperson, and I'll use the second next time I attempt a two-layer cake!

[Rachel]

Oh Madame, that's mean... here I was all pleased with my ersatz '20s shoes and you have to wave the temptation of the real thing in my face! (Thank goodness they're a size and a half too small for me, otherwise I'd probably do something I'd end up regretting.)

Georgia - the '50s models were one of the nicest surprises for me in the exhibition. It was a real (and salutary) shock to see all the magazine spreads and films full of women with curves where they should be and mature, sophisticated faces that matched the clothes. Why on earth can't we bring that back?? (without the evil corsetry of course)

And what shoes would I wear to my coronation? Well, probably red... or blue. I find both colours are addictive. I think they'd be made of suede or silk (lovely but impractical), and this would probably be the only time I'd ever allow myself to wear anything with a dangerously high heel. Because as gingerpale points out, that's what footmen are for...

[sweetbabyjames]

That's one thing I love about old films too (besides the great photography) - real, grown-up curvy & buxom women playing the vixens! A tribute to womanhood opposed to the current disturbing taste for a sexy, pre-pubesent look.

When I go out, it's usually either my felt clogs or mukluks if it's raining. At the moment, I'm wearing felted wool slippers and for my coronation, I'll also be wearing slippers and I'll make everyone in attendance wear slippers too.

Vive les pantoufles!

[gingerpale]

That sent me running to Google images, sweetbabyjames--
Pantoufles: http://www.moveandbe.com/mode/magazine/coup_projecteur/2005/lingerie/pantoufles_rose.jpg

[sweetbabyjames]

And now I have "Oh, Them Golden Slippers" in my head - you know that song? Chipper soundtrack for a grey day!

And here's another one (Sammy Davis, Shine on your Shoes).