From the Street to the Fourth Floor: Trainers Take Harvey Nichols

Harvey Nichols, one of London's great department stores, has just introduced their Fourth Floor Project, which, along the lines of Paris's Colette, is dedicated to achingly hip merchandise, from handbags to phones. One of the floor's standout features is a trainer wall for ladies only, filled with sneaks by high-end designers going street, among them Christian Louboutin's £660/$1070 gold-studded white high-tops.

High-design trainers are fantastic, as these recent snaps from Barcelona show. But do they need to cost in triple digits? Don't think so. Below are some pairs picked pretty much at random from Etsy, in great condition (obv. a critical requirement for vintage footgear)--high-top Jordaches from back in the day, some adorable Liz Claiborne slip-ons that play into the whole color-block thing going on, and these great great New York Transit neon sneaker/brogues.




A girl can never have too many foot-friendly shoes--and in the vintage world, £660 will nab you quite a few.

On the Origins of a Species of Unnatural Fur

Quick Quiz:

What's the very first thing that springs to mind when hearing the term "Princeton's Mutations?"

a) a tiger mascot with an extra tail
b) a freshman class turned hideously crimson by an evil bioengineer in Cambridge
c) a football team that beats Yale more than once per decade

None of the above! The answer, of course, is d) a faux-fur coat

Yes indeed, back in the '50s somebody thought this would be an excellent name for a high-end faux garment. Which ranks right up there with Droopy & Browns formalwear in England and Sweden's Acne Jeans as one of the most questionable marketing decisions in fashion history.

Nonetheless, Life magazine's December 5, 1955 issue, which devoted its cover and an illustrated feature to man-made mink, and had this to say about Princeton's Mutations. . .

"After four years of beaverlike work in the laboratory, an eye-fooling duplicate of a Cerulean mink stole is now available for about a fiftieth of the price of the real thing . . . . Called Princeton's Mutations, after the firm that makes it, the cloth has just been introduced in gray, brown, and taupe . . . Hopeful guys who assume that this mock mink solves their fur-for-Christmas-problems should be warned that their dolls may say, "Take back your coal-water-and-natural-gas mink!"

Etsy seller renouveauclothing has this one on offer and I think it looks great. And the label's on the inside, right?

This Old Stiletto

In the immortal words of Billy Joel, some ladies are so good with their stiletto that you don't really mind the pain . . .

He's talking about mean girls with a bad attitude. Stiletto heels are another story. If they pinch, or rub, or squeeze your toesies into an impossible little ^, then you do mind the pain, and then some, and typically retaliate by sending the offender to the back of the closet, the Azkaban of evil footwear.

But there's an alternative to the banishment . . . make the shoe do some hard labor. I saw this ad for a little plastic stiletto that works as a doorstop and thought "how cute!"



And then realized that an actual shoe would work just as well, as long as the toe is shallow and you dislike it intently enough to risk scuffing the leather.



How seductive would one of these babies look holding open your bedroom door? If the shoe doesn't fit, wedge it.

(Shoe wedge designed by Liz Dubois and Anthony Petrie, available from www.worldwidefred.com. Stuart Weitzman stiletto image from shoewawa.com)

Kiss-Clasp Me Deadly

Like Ava, above, there's something in classic film noir that grips and won't let go . . . the rainslicked nights, the melancholy of the hero, the dead-souled beauty of the woman that destroys him . . . all wrapped in looming black curves that were a nightmarish exaggeration of the Deco sensibility.

That design ethos crept into the late-40s daylight as well, with Buick's Roadmaster automobile, the furniture designs of mid-century modern architects like Henry Glass . . .


and, now getting to the point of this post, handbags.


The beauty above, made by the dubiously-named François of California, captures all the nasty dark volupté of the time, right on down to the pink vinyl interior. François bags are marked by this overblown sculptural quality. Notwithstanding the calibre of design, examples can be found at very reasonable prices online and in vintage shops. This particular example is from Vintage à la Mode in San Francisco.

If you're into channeling your inner Noir heroine, a bag like this would be a reasonably safe way to go.

(photo top from The Killers, 1946, review on electricsheepmagazine.co.uk; Henry P. Glass chair design from the ArchiTech Gallery's show Future Perfect: Mid-Century Modern Design Drawings, 1947 Buick Roadmaster from www.supercars.net, many thanks)

In the Zip File

We've all been here, yes? Working up a zip just so far and then hitting the DMZ between southerly and northerly leverage. If there's a helpful man around the house, he's happy to oblige, but that's not always the case.

Which is why this little device seems so genius. With a Zippade on hand, you'll never get stuck, seems to me a must for every vintage fan's drawer.



Photo above, Bare Your Bare Bones, Sea Legs Snapshots' on photostream, here at Flickr, many thanks!)

Not Your Granny's Apron

The shorts-over-leggings look is a trend with staying power. But girls, honestly, it's getting old.

Wouldn't this darling apron, its satin ribbon tied in front, be so much cuter over black leggings or white, especially with a cropped leather jacket up top? Because honestly, there is no way this garment should stay tied to the stove.

Wrist Candy: Vintage Needlepoint Bags

After years and years of Dominatrix Chic in the handbag department, I am so glad to see that designers are ditching the chains and padlocks and moving back to the center with traditional frame bags . . .

But why stop there? What's catching my eye these days are vintage needlepoint bags by the likes of Koro Creations, Souré, and the pictured example from Christine Custom bags of Detroit . . . outlandishly feminine and so well suited to spring's forecasted pastels and lace. Or even right now, when the promise of violets helps dispel winter's gray . . .