There’s nothing quite like a bedtime story each night as I watch my neighbors clothesline alternate between 90 degree summer nights and the brisk winds of fall that make me want to stretch my toes. Late August is the cave we crawl into to complain about the lost experiences that we never tired to have either because we felt too broke in the big city, too saturated by faces we already know in the apartments we’ve already been invited to, or because true social activities (lying in bed and sending TikTok’s to friends) are seasonless.
People have been saying that “the summer hasn’t really summered” and whether they are referring to the unsustainable price of NYC rooftop bars or the repeated low-vibes weather, they’re right. It’s not only been too hot to wear fun loafers without scorching blisters but it’s also been too gross to bare our feet to the city streets without moderate risk of the elements (elements meaning rats, glass, dirt, etc. (mostly rats)). Allegedly the Rat Czar ^TM has ascended the throne and is ready to take action. All I know is until further notice, I will continue to stomp my feet down the street every night to ward off the vermin. So what do you wear to do that?
There’s so many toes shapes and so little time to distinguish them, but here are a few favorites:
Balenciaga Anatomic Ballerinas ($925)
Camper Ballerina Flats ($245)
Lemaire Flat Piped Slippers ($445)
It’s mind blowing the constant rebranding of silhouettes and colors. Strawberry Jelly nails, Tomato girl makeup, Martini eyeshadow, Honey chocolate hair dye. That’s how fashion SELLS! But what’s really crazy to me is the rebranding of Moto boots. People say trends come and go but these have truly never left! They just have a different name! i-D was right in calling it so aptly this summer— the dawn of biker core was imminent. Suddenly, instead of looking for the perfect heeled boot, we were looking for the perfect heeled boot without a heel. WITHOUT A HEEL! Some would call that a riding boot, but unlike the wheel, it was the boot’s time for reinvention. Many are the hunt for the perfect “DUPE” of Miu Miu’s heavily buckled edition. (These may not be new but boy are they trendy). So here are a few alternatives:
Valentino Studded Boot ($516) — The rock stud is SO BACK!
Gucci Moto Boots ($310) and more Gucci ($335)
Florentini & Baker ($50)
Celine Buckle Boot ($463) — not too dissimilar to the current season, for a fraction of the price
Fendi Cowboy Moto Boots ($300)
Brunello Cucinelli Moto Boot ($420) — honestly, these are fabulous and if they were my size, they would be mine
But I mentioned a bed time story and as we all know, as the summer winds down and we remain in our beds, there’s no place for shoes there. I’m currently reading The Count of Monte Cristo which, though 1,400 pages, is an epic tale of honor and revenge. Originally published as a serialized story, it reads just like so. One or two chapters a night and I’ll have an epic tale told to me each night for the next year. There’s something underrated about a book that lets itself tell its own story— the narrative is so unburdened that these kinds of tale might actually be perfect for people who don’t like reading. Similar narrative tales would definitely be Madame Bovary and Frankenstein, both which for too long I mistook as heavily tortured classics. While Monte Cristo is taking up my foreseeable future there’s still plenty I can recommend for the slow silent days of our transitional season, including, Kokoro (Natsume Sōseki), Fish Soup (Margarita Garcia Robayo), The Country Life (Rachel Cusk), The Days of Abandonment (Elena Ferrante), and obviously (as I mentioned I was finishing in a previous newsletter) Slouching Towards Bethlehem (Joan Didion).
I hope as this comes to a close you find yourself either well read or well tread, and will see you back here next week.
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