I’ve only had two shoe obsessions in my life – Converse Chuck Taylor All Star hi-tops and mary-jane flats – but I’ve recently added a new one: saddle shoes.
Reminiscent of the decades in which they were trendy (the 1940s but especially the 1950s), saddle shoes still keep their naïve charm intact, especially when they are part of an outfit which hints at the past. It’s not a case that characters from movies and tv shows have often worn them, thus fueling that nostalgic current which people like me are so passionate about.
The first character wearing saddle shoes that comes to my mind is the femme fatale Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn), the naughty yet nice schoolgirl from David Lynch’s tv masterpiece Twin Peaks. She wears them with prim and proper outfits (crew neck sweaters in pastel colours and pleated plaid or pencil skirts), thus highlighting the “good girl” impression she wants to give.
Just like any other character in town, Audrey hides a naughty and seductive side, symbolized by the scarlet red pumps she wears at school. Her style, accented by short hair and sexy make-up, reminds me of another naughty high school queen, Betty Rizzo. As for her saddle shoes, they are peculiar: despite being in the traditional white and black combo, they have black accents on the heelcaps and on part of the vamp, while the toecaps, the throat, tongue and eyelets are white. Even if the ultimate finishing detail – coral soles – is missing, Audrey’s shoes are gorgeous.
Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel), the young protagonist of Amy Sherman-Palladino’s Gilmore Girls, is another fictional character who wears saddle shoes as part of her school attire. Like Audrey Horne, she wears a pleated plaid skirt, paired to a shirt with tie and a blazer. Rory is nothing like Audrey, but her “good girl” side is definitely emphasized by her shoe choice.
Amber Holt (Mae Whitman), among the protagonists of the tv show Parenthood, is a frequent saddle-shoe wearer, too. The rebellious girl pairs them with basic outfits featuring quirky details; she apparently owns two pairs, one with red saddle and one with black saddle; judging from the screencap above, the latter could have coral soles, after all.
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