Nory Giraffe

I’m entirely smitten by these shoes I procured over the weekend despite their being ugly and unnecessary. Allow me to elucidate my reasons. Firstly, only hours before their purchase I became aware of this brand in the elevator of Yotel on Saturday night at 2am when a girl responded to my complement and inquiry about the origin of her shoes by surreptitiously divulging that they’re 80%20, she purchased them from karmaloop. This was gibberish to me at the time and I was also certain she was tipping me off to an indispensible clue in a French espionage thriller. Turns out it’s just the brand name and a website but the intrigue lingers on. Secondly, it took me 24 hours to come up with the realization that while they are an animal print, said animal is in fact a black and white giraffe who does not exist in the natural world. How ironic? The closest I could find is the Masai giraffe found in South Kenya, pictured above. Thirdly, the buckle and chunky-ness are so deliciously referential of the 1990s (which is all the rage right now) and reminds me that fashion—as does life—moves in cycles of repetition, influence and change; it’s a beautiful world. Which brings me to my last point, that these shoes are absolutely hideous. Shoes could not be described as further from sexy. They are wide and have a hidden heel, bold texture and make my calves look larger than average, which they are not. These shoes are so unattractive that I am lured to love them because if I don’t love them, who will? Alas, sometimes it is the faults that we fall for, that make up the essence of the thing itself. But basically, they just look cool.