Every single pair of shoes that I own

(click for bigger!)

From top left to bottom right: Illse Jacobsen lace-up wellies, white 8-hole Doc Marten boots, black 10-hole Doc Marten boots, thrifted suede ankle booties, Opening Ceremony deerskin platform wedge lace-up boots, knee-high italian leather slouchy boots, electric blue Uggs (!!!), Osborne Guatemalan fabric oxfords, Vans saddle shoes, Fred Perry mocs, white leather Camper elastic flats, black canvas Nike Dunks, black canvas Nike Blazers, lace-up Dolce Vita sandals, blue/grey suede Camper flats, faux-snakeskin bow flats, black-on-black Vans Authentics, black TUK mondo creepers, Bass penny loafers, Minnetonka mocs, star-studded F-Troupe oxfords, Reebok aerobics sneakers, Melissa x Vivienne Westwood dainty rubber shoes, Maurie & Eve leopard print canvas wedge oxfords, faded blue Birkenstock “house shoes” that I’ve had for over a decade, glittery gold Toms, cris/cross elastic Blowfish flats, hot pink Dolce Vita sandals, black/white Vans Authentics, white-on-white Vans Prison Issue, white Vans Chukka Boots, red-on-red Gravis plimsoles, plaid Vans faux creepers, Repetto jazz oxfords, black-on-black high top Coverse Chuck Taylors, black-on-black Asics Onitsuka Tigers, black cris/cross Dolce Vita sandals, black suede Fiornarina maryjane wedges, cheapo H&M loafers, suede/patent leather Bloch lace-up ballet flats, mauve patent leather wing-tip oxfords of Italian origin, weird pointy blue-on-blue Camper oxfords, Bass saddle shoes and girly black/white vans slip-ons.

A few days ago, Definatalie made a post about all her shoes, and I, being at a loss for content (um, I’m basically obsessed with my tumblog these days, sorry guys), decided to follow suit.

I knew I had a lot of shoes, but I didn’t know I had upwards of 44 pairs. It felt pretty weird to see them all laid out on my bed like that. I felt a little bit self conscious, a little bit shallow and a little bit materialistic. I’ve never been the type of girl to lust after designer High Heels that cost more than my rent and have “shoegasms” (can you think of a more disgusting, more ridiculous made up word??) or intensely relate to Sex in the City and Carrie and her fucking Malano Blahniks, but obviously I put a fair degree of stock in personal aesthetics. 

For me I like nicely designed shoes that suit my sensibilites as much as I like nicely designed underwear and dresses that suit my sensibilities — they are a practical necessity, so you may as well wear ones you like and put some thought into the choice if you’re able to. So to that end I have never been able to relate to the whole idea of “Women love shoes!!!!#@@!##@!!”.

I can remember having a lot of shoes in high school, while I was still supported by my family. But “a lot” being something like… 20 pairs. Since I first moved to Vancouver in 2003, I gradually became poorer and poorer, reaching a critical mass of poorness in 2008, where I was living well below the actual poverty line (in the most expensive city in Canada) and having to make decisions like “do I buy toilet paper to last me the week? Or do I buy a cup of coffee and steal the toilet paper from their bathroom”. My parents would take pity on me and buy me some nice clothing a few times a year, but generally all of my shoes smelled rotten (I barely ever wore socks because it meant less laundry to spend money on), cost less than $50 (although usually less than $20!) and were falling apart. I actually got taken aside at a few jobs for a little chat about how unprofessional my clothing looked. 

Having come from an upper-middle class family and raised with a certain measure of “keep up appearances” type ethics (which for better or worse, is a fucking survival skill as far as I’m concerned), I was fairly humiliated by this, and as soon as I became financially stable again, I started investing in well made shoes. If you can believe it or not, from the above photo, I actually think really carefully about wearability and longevity when I decide to buy a pair of shoes. I have so many pairs because a greater rotation means less strain on individual pairs, and they last like a thousand times longer than they did when I was wearing the same dingy flats or torn sneakers 24/7.

As you can see, save for three pairs of shoes and one pair of boots with platform wedges, I don’t wear heels. I also favour black. My collection of shoes is basically comprised of plimsole sneakers, brogues/oxfords, loafers/moccasins and boots. My footwear would tell you that I’m decidedly tomboyish and practical and have a difficult time letting go of brand loyalty left over from middle school (Vans and Doc Martens!). 

I was forced to wear sensible footwear as a child, and as such my toes are spread out naturally, my arches are pretty high and I cannot bear to wear heels. I also have one foot 1-1.5 sizes bigger than the other, which means that shoes are basically never comfortable for me for longer than a few hours, and I often wind up with blisters and pains.

Anyway, I was going to go in and write about (and in a few cases EXCUSE the existence of) of some of my specific pairs of shoes, but I thought better of it and I am just going to allow you to believe I’m the type of person who regularly leaves the house wearing electric blue Ugg boots.