to all the shoes i've loved before


Julio Iglesias crooned, "To all the girls I've loved before" in his sensual Latino way. My multi-love, wandering nature has been better reserved for shoes, where love is multiplied rather than divided. If like me, you've been gladly afflicted with the devilishly pleasurable trinity of love/lust/like with shoes for years, I'm inviting you to take a look at your archives of photographs and track your shoe evolution across the months, years, or even decades! I love 'longitudinal studies' like these, spanning across the years. .and hey, if you have a whole archive for photographs of shoes, this is the best time to showcase them proudly. You need no excuse to do that!
Some questions that are burning within me
1. How has your shoe taste changed over the years (heel height, type, brand, price range).
2. Are you ever torn between 'ostentatious decadent shoes' and 'more practical, everyday-looking shoes?'
3. Shoes or new apparel or ___? What wins out. Do spill!
4. Funniest shoe story?
5. How do you store your shoes?
6. Do you start dressing based on a pair of shoes? If so, how often do you find yourself doing that.
7. Who are the Shoe Influences in your life?
Do reply, whether as comments, or in your own blog posts. Vary these if you've answered similar questions (as have I in my post here) and tell it in your OWN narrative. Drop me a note, let me know, and link back. . and I will link you too! And here goes seven years of shoes. . .


Back in the day when I was 17, I discovered a shop called VNC in City Hall, Singapore. Most of my friends told me, "It looks expensive" and thus had never gone in before. I walked in one Saturday and my eyes widened. Shoe boxes were stacked from floor-to-ceiling, the place was brightly lit and the shoes were delectable. I was looking for a pair of flats back then, as my only pair had broken. I found the most gorgeous one with silver straps and a pretty floral fabric, and knew that once I saved enough money the following week, I would walk back in and get a pair of heels. They were so reasonably-priced and beautiful that despite having only a £15 allowance weekly (looking back, it's a miracle how I actually survived and bought so many pairs of shoes). . .  
I told many of my close friends of the wonderful finds! Every Saturday after my weekly volunteering at the SPCA, I would get changed and zip down there. It became the new favourite haunt of The Best Friend and myself, and an integral part of our adolescent years post-secondary schools was tied to VNC. We even befriended the designer there (well, actually he chatted us up), and had this strange shoe fetishist shop assistant always talking to me and seeming a little too pervy. So I passed him four pairs of shoes I'd bought elsewhere for him to expand, which he gladly did, since he wanted to be so friendly. Until some guy I knew (who, I suspect was a shoe fetishist too, on retrospect. . maybe that's why he befriended me) told me, "He'd probably be smelling them in the backroom". And I froze. So I stayed away from the shop for a few weeks. He was no longer there the next time I mustered up enough courage to set foot in. When I stepped into VNC's branch in Kuala Lumpur whilst on a case, I was bowled over. It was thrice the size and half the price. And there were sales going on too. . I walked out with four pairs of heels and my fellow private eyes were shaking their heads at me. Well, I was the only girl there.
Peeptoes, pumps, and glitzy shoes. It was all a dizzying array. Of my pumps back then, I love the crocodile-print beige ones most. I still have them back in Singapore. My mother and I share the same shoe size and we'd always exchange shoes (even if mine were way too high for her, she'd be happy modelling them around). Such was the case for The Best Friend and myself and we'd trade shoes all the time. Working in City Hall for seven months was even more dangerous, as I would continually nick into VNC to buy more shoes. .  
Slowly, VNC's designs dropped in standards and its competitor, Charles & Keith (which used to sell really shitty-looking designs) improved by quantum leaps and bounds. Denise and I speculated the designer had been poached, but we *still* had outlets to get shoes from. Slowly, too, we got richer as we grew older, as I started to work before uni and then started tutoring as an undergraduate. My palette became slightly more expensive and varied, but I still love Charles & Keith, especially its signature line. A brand called NOSE (!), in the meanwhile, took over VNC's shop space, with hauntingly familiar 'bad styles'.  

In the meantime, I also experimented with 'funkier' styles. .  slightly mod-ish looks or androgynous ones. Strange-looking socks were thrown in, such as the one with the 'hole' that I call the 'Nun Socks', tights were gladly worn when the weather became colder therein justifying their use (those were my mom's red tights!), and just look at those ridiculous 'sweatsocks' socks in pink and black!

The following were two of my favourite shoes back in the day. Unfortunately, they are shoes that have died. I.e. had a strap broken beyond repair due to age. Nevertheless, I had lived alot in them, and wore them umpteenth times. As a delayed obituary for them, these two are my favourite looks in them, celebrating my dear ol' friends in days gone past. .

Nine West fuchsia shoes. In fact, they were my first pair of NW shoes (which are/were quite expensive for me) that I'd bought with my first paycheck, proud to have 'graduated' to Nine West shoes, on the pretext that I needed new shoes for Chinese New Year. These were also the same shoes that my grandmother loved (which I wrote about here) saying they were a good buy. Here, they are pictured with a gorgeous silk dress from GG>5 that I fell in love with the moment I passed the shop window (also expensive for me then but it was too beautiful, plus I had started earning by then) in a family friend's house where the decor of their homes are always an immense delight to be in. These shoes eventually died five years later. I was devastated, because I had many beautiful memories with it, but cut off the straps with their ornate crystals, saving them for a future project. 




VNC neon pink and silver shoes. My 21st birthday present from my younger brother, i.e. 'you choose your shoes I'll give you some money' in a rare display of generosity. In a rare moment of courage and DevilMayCare attitude, I slapped on my new hat and wore it out to meet my gurlfriends. And that top/dress? Pajamas from La Senza! Life cannot get better than that :)
And these were the styles I had more or less played around with up until the time before I left. . .

 Shoes and books. Why, of course!
In Cambridge, I filled the wall shelves up with shoes. . I thought I'd be quite upset without having things that I loved looking at, whilst friends who visited kept exclaiming in bemusement that my room looked like a store. Of course, I still had loads of books, albeit kept elsewhere. The day my boxes arrived from Seven Seas, I nervously opened them. I hadn't packed them *very* well, just stuffing them with each pair kissing its other half and piled them on top of each other in paper bags. Risky of me, and something I would never dare to attempt again. At 7am, I was half-asleep and cut myself with the blade as I slashed the box open. Ouch. Following which the shelves were lined with my beauties. I soon learned that cobbles were risky to walk on, and I only had a pair of 'long' boots i.e. one that covered at least my calves. And ta-dah! Before long I had bought a whole collection of 'long' boots that were less than three-inches high, for walking about, which I lined the tiny hallway with. Flats were stored under the armchair, and everything seemed neat. But the shoes kept multiplying, and then Disaster Ensued. D would laugh and say, "Look at this floor! It's like a shoe bomb exploded" and proceeded to snap photographs. Although it must be noted, some of them were his.

Shoe Story I:
One day as I rushed to meet a friend, I passed by the charity shop window and saw a precariously-high shoe with some feathers in front. Ooh, it got me all excited. But I would be late if I did a pit-stop, so I texted D to pick that 'fetische-looking high heel shoe in the Save The Children's charity shop window" up for me when he woke up and if they were my size. He said later, "It wasn't your size" and I assumed that was the end of the story. Later on as we queued up to pay for groceries at M&S, he laughed and opened a bag. "It's a money box!". And we agreed he would fill it up for me :)

 
As you might have seen from post on The Devilishly Pleasurable Lair, my shoes are stored with my books. Both my great loves side-by-side. An extremely treasured possession are my YSL Tributes, which I love pairing with gorgeous tights. .

Shoe Story II:
Pretty recently D was shopping for shoes and I led him into Aldo. And we both drooled like salivating dogs, without the saliva of course. After shortlisting a few pairs, we settled on a pair that was slightly-matte, crocodile-embossed and that flicked up slightly like ski shoes. It was quite obvious that he was in love with them. That night,  he kept trying them on and wearing them, with slightly mad eyes, whilst I laughed at him. And THEN he pulled out his gorgeous grey suede beauties, modelling around in them. The Shoe Love Contagion bubbled on and I couldn't resist pulling out a few pairs of mine and strutting around in them, both of us smiling like slight retards. Because the blinds in the flat let all the light in at night, making the flat look like a fish tank, I told him, "If anyone is watching us they'd think this is a mental institution". But hey, loving your life and the ability to feel joy and excitement is a blessing. 
And, what about my latest shoe styles then in the past year? The usual suspects. . strappy ones, open-toed ones. . with many new and amazing additions to my collection and loads of old favourites purchased from my travels around the world. .
Shoe Story II:
Pretty recently D was shopping for shoes and I led him into Aldo. And we both drooled like salivating dogs, without the saliva of course. After shortlisting a few pairs, we settled on a pair that was slightly-matte, crocodile-embossed and that flicked up slightly like ski shoes. It was quite obvious that he was in love with them. That night,  he kept trying them on and wearing them, with slightly mad eyes, whilst I laughed at him. And THEN he pulled out his gorgeous grey suede beauties, modelling around in them. The Shoe Love Contagion bubbled on and I couldn't resist pulling out a few pairs of mine and strutting around in them, both of us smiling like slight retards. Because the blinds in the flat let all the light in at night, making the flat look like a fish tank, I told him, "If anyone is watching us they'd think this is a mental institution". But hey, loving your life and the ability to feel joy and excitement is a blessing. 

Pumps and closed-toed shoes are still great loves. . more so in recent years. And there is my gorgeous late hamster La Nina The Weather Phenomenon peeking into my shoes.


They which flank my bookshelves proudly. .
1. Pedro; Charles & Keith (seen here); MegaShoes; Colin Stuart 
2. NineWest; VNC; Charles & Keith; River Island (seen here); iZU
3. Impo; VNC; Charles & Keith; ClubMarc; River Island

1. Chinese Laundry; YSL (seen here); Aldo; Charles & Keith Signature (seen here); Zara
2. Zara (seen here); Reiss (seen here); Christian Louboutin (seen here); Therapy; River Island
1. Bally; Charles & Keith; VNC; Bata; Mango
2. Mollini; Charles & Keith; Charles & Keith Signature; Nine West; Pazzion
3. Dolce & Gabbana (seen here); Charles & Keith Signature; Prada (seen here); Charles & Keith; Reiss (seen here)

Loads, loads, loads of shoes, and as I have realised, loads of outfit shots sitting in my Mac. Drop me a note if you'd like the outfit shots that came with a particular pair of shoes. .  And, if you'd like. . have a munch on white chocolate dancing shoes too ;)


34 comments:

  1. what a fab idea. i have an obsession with shoes too. shoe was my first word!

    you have an amazing blog and i found it via ifb :)

    i'll be back for more

    BM

    http://thebohemiangoods.blogspot.com/

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  2. Hi my dear-wow, I don't think I've seen such an array of lovely shoes, what an enormously stylish collection!! Have a great weekend! xx

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  3. Wow,you have a great collection of shoes!Love it!

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  4. You must have at least double what I have in shoe booty! And so many gorgeous ones too! Love so many... like a chocolate assortment where you can't choose because they all look so good! I love the story of the shoe money box.

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  5. holy shoes, girlfriend! what a collection!

    you've inspired me to get on some serious shoe shopping. MY collection is so weak. haha :)

    i wander, i wonder

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  6. I'm with you girly! Shoes and books! What more would I need? I'm all about the shoes....an average outfit soars to FABULOUS with a great pair of shoes! ~Serene

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  7. White choccy dancing shoes!! Yum! What an amazing collection - I really love how you've got them lined up on bookshelves with your books. If I had enough shelving I'd love to do the same:). Love the red kimono-fabric pair of chunky platforms oh, and sooooo many more! I'm going to attempt to answer your questions in a post soon - but I don't have anything like your amazing collection. Thanks so much for all your gorgeous comments - they mean so much to me!!! xoxo

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  8. I really enjoyed reading this post. As much as i love shoes, i haven't got many in my collection yet, but i guess i'm compelled to post something similar too. Secretly hoping mine would be as big as yours someday.. Btw, that chocolate dancing shoes looks delish!

    xoxo, http://heelsandwedges.blogspot.com/

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  9. That is a lot of shoes! My taste has changed over the years for sure. I absolutely hate and cannot stand pointy toe high heels. I love me some high heels, but no pointy toe for me!

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  10. I love your shoe tales as much as I love the photographs of the beautiful things you own.
    My shoe taste hasn't changed much, I'll always hate pointy shoes (something mean and spiteful about them) and unless it's a wellie or a flip flop I don't do flatties. xxx

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  11. Such a fun story! I like all your shoes... though not in a creepy fetishist way. :) Your hamster is/was also very cute!

    Personally, I try to stick to shoes that won't damage my feet too much, which means mostly flats or short heels - I never wore heels as a teenager but have moved up to around 3-inch heels so far. I prefer narrow, feminine, non-chunky shoes and I'm not really warming up to platforms on anything but summer sandals of the hippie variety. In general, I think a shoe should not look like an orthopedic contraption :) I sometimes do pick the shoes first, but most of the time they get added to an outfit as an afterthought. Since I'm currently on a fashion shopping ban, I'd spend my money on books or electronics instead (I really do need a new external HD!)

    Cheers,
    poet

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  12. You have such a huge collection!! I love this idea so I will do a post on my blog and answer the questions, will let you know when I have posted xx

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  13. That is a lot of shoes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can understand, I am a bag lady. I do not have quite an impressive collection like yours but it is what it is.

    http://mypretaporterblog.blogspot.com/

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  14. I love how this post ended in chocolate shoes. Two of my great loves - chocolate and footwear, all in one.
    And to answer one of your questions, I store my shoes on a shelf for all to see!

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  15. Pictures and stories heavy post! I love your collection and the way you store/ display it! :) I really enjoyed to read your stories about your shoes!

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  16. This was quite the epic post, I loved the story of your shoes! I like how you have such a wide variety in your shoe collection, you have a shoe or boot for every occasion.

    Sadly my shoe collection is quite small, slowly expanding though.

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  17. Wow, monster post! My shoes seem to get higher and higher.

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  18. Oh wow, what a thorough and completely fantastic shoe "saga!" You have quite a gorgeous collection - I am bowing at your shoes!

    Unfortunately for me, especially with the way I travel, unfortunately sensible shoes have been winning out lately in the shoe purchase department. My feet are more thankful, but it is a little sad! :o)

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  19. Wow... You went through a lot of shoes!! I think I hav elike... 20 pairs.

    www.clothedmuch.com

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  20. I'm amazed by your love for shoes and this blog post. Good stuff; I gotta add it to stumbleupon :)
    http://showcaseedge.com

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  21. That's a whole lot of shoes! I'm love the way you have them displayed right next to your books!
    xx
    Tiffany

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  22. Thanks all! :)

    It was heartening reading your responses and knowing how the white choco dancing shoes are a winner.

    @Veshoevius-- I think we all always think someone else has more shoes. . but I love looking at yours! It was partly my inspiration to embark on this.

    @Ms SyllyBee. . looking forward to your shoe tales then!

    @Serene-- Absolutely! Nothing like a fab pair!

    @Pull Your Socks Up. . I got cheap IKEA shelving, which my boyfriend is upset about saying they are imitation black ash or something. . but they do the job well. .And what better way to celebrate your shoes esp. if you're a recent graduate like myself ;)

    @Fatiha I love your shoes so much too! Here's to more shoes :)

    @Kinsey & Vix-- they look mean-spirited, but I think that's what drew me to them. Oops. The don't mess with me look. Lol.

    @Em K. . I started out with two pairs!

    @Poet-- I try to tell myself 'shoes don't count' when it comes to fashion shopping bans ;)

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  23. I don't think I've ever seen so many shoes in one post! WOW! :D

    Leia

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  24. Mmmm, I'm salivating! So many beautiful ones, that it's impossible to choose favourites.

    It's pained me of late that I haven't been able to buy beautiful shoes; the fact I walk to work and stand up all day, coupled with the fact that the cash flow has been less than abundant - it means I've developed 'shoe guilt', and have started buying more flats. I even had to sell my VW Ladydragons so I could afford food. It's a tragic tale, from start to finish!!

    My shoe collection is an endless source of amusement among my family members, though - thank goodness for lovely ladies like you who make it possible for me to say, "I don't have that many!" :)

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  25. Dear girl, your blog is such a wealth of information fun photos and cool tips. I loved reading about the various shoe related posts and especially the orthopedic ones.

    Love from Toronto, Canada

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  26. O Wow you have LOTS of shoes!! I am so jealous >_<

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  27. Are by any chance related to the Ex-First Lady Imelda Marcos? =)

    I had to call my boyfriend to show him all your shoes! And he thinks I have too much, HA!

    I absolutely adore this post and am seriously jelly over some of your prized collection!

    Xox,

    20 YORK STREET

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  28. Wow. Now that's what I call a shoe collection!

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  29. Wow! What an amazing shoe collection! I love all your stories and you've inspired me to write my own x

    http://baroqueboudoir.blogspot.com/2010/11/bumper-bombshell-giveaway.html

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  30. Great post, I am in envy of your shoe collection!

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  31. @20 york street-- heh, nowhere near marcos' price range!

    @Madame G-- awaiting yours!

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