If The Shoe Fits...

Then buy a pair in each different color!

I think many women have similar sentiment as the above. Quality, durability, function, design, color, purpose, season, brand name, prestige, status, fashion, fad, or for whatever reason, buying shoes is usually considered as a small investment, just a bit more than for any other fashion items. As for myself, though I'm more of a bag/purse person (meaning I choose my outfit according to the color of the bag I want to use that day), I do confess that I own more than 10 pairs of shoes. A lot? Well, not as many as the girls in Sex and The City would have had, and I bet much fewer than Imelda Marcos' heritage.

Christian Louboutin's Marie Antoinette's shoes (SMRP $6,300)

Talking about SaTC, I've heard that the four leading girls in the story were very much responsible for reviving the consumerism in high end brands of footwear. Exclusive brand names like Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo, Stuart Weitzman and Christian Louboutin enjoyed much more profit than ever, thanks to mid to high class ladies around the world who couldn't keep themselves out of the lure of NYC glamorous life. Owning a pair of brand-named high-heeled stiletto snake skin ankle strap sandal with SMRP of $5,000 has become a fad in female fashion world, just like owning a Jaguar car would be to a male with middle age crisis.

Such ridiculously priced footwear may have the best quality and the most fashionable style, but there are plenty of other less expensive brands out there that can give them a run for their money. I've been meaning to talk about some good British shoes brands, that are getting popular by the day. Why British? UK has a long history of footwear making, supported by the strong industrial and military background from mid 19th century. From then, the country is the home to many fashion icons in the shoe design world. Here are the highlights of some of the Brit brand names worth to check.

Contrary to the popular belief, the iconic Dr. Martens was not originally British (clue: the Germanic name), but from Germany. However, ever since a Brit company bought the patent rights, the name has been associated with Brit designed boots. A more UK brand for boots, Fly London is one of the hottest brands out there. Their creations mostly have the chunky soles, solid stitchings and military look associated with the Brit punk fashion. The women collections own more quirky design, bolder colors and touches of feminine twists to soften the rough edges. In addition to their superb design, customers can enjoy good quality leather and finishing since most of the shoes are made in Portugal, the country besides Italy and Spain that boasts excellent craftsmanship in leather goods. In fact, I made the discovery of this brand when I was in Lisbon last year, only to sadly realize that the brand is hard to find in Japan.

Fly London's latest stuff  (pics arranged by me)

Shoes by T.U.K., or Trade United Kingdom, came to be popular among youth thanks to the patronage of famous punk bands like Green Day. Targeted mostly at teenagers and young consumers, TUK is a much more affordable alternative of Dr. Martens. Their designs are the basic staples for punk-gothic-lolita-emo fashionistas, with chunky-heeled leather mary-janes, platform pumps in rockabilly reminiscence styles, colorful patented oxford creeper sneakers and combat boots. Another perk of this brand is that they provide assorted choices of artfully painted vintage tattoo-inspired burlesque pumps, something edgy yet sexy, tempting items for shoe collectors. You can get TUK's footwear almost in any punk-gothic-lolita-emo fashion outlets in Tokyo (naming Harajuku).

TUK's collections  (pics arranged by me)

Saving the best for last, Irregular Choice is a brand that is not targeted at everyone. You either love 'em, or don't want to be caught dead wearing 'em. The much sought-after brand is dubbed as the "Viagra of the shoe industry", thus calling their designs irregular is a wee it of an understatement. When it comes to design, this brand has no holds barred. Theirs are mixes of plush furry stuffed animals, swathes of boldly printed fabrics and heels with lots of attitude. The combination of good quality leather with shaggy faux fur in any colors imaginable, IC's shoes are a sure bet for every attention-grabber out there.
The designer went further in his attempt to shake free our inhibition by calling the collections with names like "Hot Mama", "Driving Bananas", and "In For The Thrill". Apart from shoes, IC also manufactured hats, accessories, apparels, and much adored funky bags. Amazon Japan's Javari stocks some of their shoes and bags collections, although in a much steeper price than the originals.
I personally think IC design is so kitchy they are brilliant, akin to wearing an object straight out of Salvador Dali's paintings, or sharing a banana and a cup of Campbell's soup with Marilyn Monroe (remember Warhol, anyone?).

Irregular Choice's newest choices  (pics arranged by me)

Next time any of you happen to visit the UK, please watch your steps! (And others too!)