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| courtesy http://www.vintage-heels.co.uk |
The 70s was surely the most innovative decade for footwear. Platform soles were bigger and chunkier than in any time in history and I absolutely coveted them. I remember being 11 years old, begging my mother for a pair and not liking her arguments which featured those old chestnuts (1) “not good for developing feet” and (2) “where would you wear them?”
The other newbie of the time was the thigh-high lace-up boot, especially in white. (Yes, a reworking of something marching girls had worn years before, but not the platform heels and not with hot pants).
Nobody used the term ‘trainers’ for sports shoes; they were called sports shoes and THE one to have was the Adidas three-stripe. Leather footwear for sport was a novelty in itself, since most of us had grown up wearing canvas ‘sandshoes’ (aka plimsolls in the UK) to play tennis or basketball.
The other fashionable sports footwear of the day was the Converse Hi-Top – then known (in Australia at least) as a ‘gym boot.’ And like many older styles, they’ve come back around in fashion decades later. Desert boots also reigned popular for much of the 70s for casual wear.
Thanks to the hippie movement, we also saw footwear that borrowed heavily from ethnic traditions. Strappy suede sandals and beaded moccasins, were of course lifted straight from the American Indians. Clogs were popular for the first time outside of the Netherlands, but greatly funked-up, with only the soles being wooden. Man I loved my clogs - apart from the fact everyone could hear you coming *CLOG-CLOG-CLOG*
In the late 70s, espadrilles appeared (again, a resurfacing of an old fashion, formerly resort wear in Western Europe and the beaches of Miami). And finally, we must reference Slap Thongs, those odd rectangular straw-soled flip-flops with velvet straps (which came in a few colors but we all knew it had to be black or nothing).
No fashion since has been entirely innovative; the only completely ‘new’ idea I can think of is peep-toed boots and really ... it smacks of designer desperation doesn’t it?
This post is based on memories, some knowledge and lots of opinion. Feel free to dispute or add your own thoughts!
