Some Fruity Footwear

As regular visitors to the salon will know, although the majority of my posts focus on daily events, now and again I like to cast my topic net wide and look at something new. My recent post on a pair of wonderful shoes struck something of a chord with visitors and I have decided to feature another example of fabulous Georgian footwear today.

These fruity silk shoes were made in Spitalfields in 1735. Whilst the body of the shoe is silk, the sole is leather and the heel wooden, as was common in shoes of the era. What is particularly eye-catching about these shoes, though, is the pattern with which they are decorated. 

Upon the toe is a bright depiction of an exotic fruit of an undecided variety that, to me at least, appears to be a pineapple. From their rich colouring to their unusual pattern, they are intended to make a statement, create an impact and linger in the memory.

 These shoes would doubtless have been kept for best and would have seen little of outdoors. No doubt though, they would have enjoyed many an energetic dance and garnered compliments aplenty!