This week in trends to resurrect: the Mary Jane. And why? Because, well, look what Louis Vuitton did; it’s magical. And if that’s not enough, here’s a fun historical fact: Mary Janes adopted their name from a very popular early 1900′s comic strip when the illustrator/author licensed his characters’ comic names to Browns Shoe Company who associated one particular character, Mary Jane, the most notable fixture of the protagonist’s romantic endeavors, with the shoe style in question.
At last, irony strikes again: Mary Jane is a man getter?
That can’t be right. Maybe she represents what they are when not worn with socks. Appropriated most accurately by Michael Kors (above), the shoe most prominently represents what the trenches of childhood are made of. See also: Jachs, Play-Doh, gum drops, thick socks, pink backpacks. Lisa Frank?
And if this were the Mary Jane superlatives, competing with Louis Vuitton (and potentially triumphing,) welcome Prada. These are shoes with character and if the old adage don’t judge a person until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes, were to be re-implemented and here’s what was being used to exercise the walk in question, I’d walk two–nay, three–miles, just for good measure. It’s creative, really. An interesting alternative to jewelry. Clothes, even.
Finally, a loose adaptation. Isabel Marant‘s variation of the Mary Jane is actually not really a Mary Jane at all, now is it. Still, they’re important for Shoesday purpose for two reasons that are actually questions: 1. I bought them yesterday (gift card, people,) and am still undecided, what do you think? 2. Do the sparse ankle boots and copious proper shoes alongside riding boots evident in this season’s shoe round up mean anything significant, albeit threatening for our collective orthopedic future?
Dun dun dun.
From top: Louis Vuitton, Michael Kors, Prada, Isabel Marant. And because Marni is almost always on board for a retro shoe equipped with center strap, here are some of their offerings too. More cost effective alternatives here (Topshop) and here (Asos).
