I bought a pair of Crocs
Is this something else I can blame on LA?
A friend in the UK was texting me last night after she'd got in from work drinks. This happens a lot when your best friends are on a different time zone. My contact with the UK tends to come to an end by 2-3pm here (10-11pm in the UK) so it's always a nice surprise when anything comes in post 4pm. Generally it means my loved ones are either drunk or have anxiety. Usually it's both. And I'm here for it. I like being their phone-a-friend.
Later on, I was overcome by a flurry of memories; a feeling of nostalgia. For London and office nights out and ordering one bottle of wine too many. For rolling home, raiding the fridge and sobering up in front of an awful reality TV show. For jumping on the tube, grabbing a Pret and wiping flakes of Ham and Cheese croissant from my keyboard. For the shoes I would keep under my desk; too pretty and impractical for the commute. For a way of life I have now left behind.
I had certainly forgotten the days of wearing trainers (that's sneakers to many of you! I will henceforth be referring to them as 'sneakers' in this post) solely for the journey to work. Of changing into heels I could barely walk in or brogues that looked cool in meetings but gave me blisters. Totally standard practice in London workplaces 5-10 years ago, but particularly in the world of fashion magazines I stumbled into, in my very uncomfortable shoes.
Life is very different today. It is for a lot of people working from home more now in sweatpants, regardless of whether you're 9-5 or 24/7. We're all juggling stuff. And it helps to be comfy while doing it. And like the rail of colourful dresses that now feel less like a functional wardrobe and more like a museum retrospective of the person I once was, my shoes are gathering dust too.
Now I'm no Carrie Bradshaw. I don't use my oven to store shoes and if I had to chose between buying Vogue and buying lunch, I would head to Pret every time. But I do have some beautiful shoes. I don't buy many designer clothes but I do believe in the occasional 'investment' piece when the time is right when I can find an excuse. You know, something practical and versatile like silver glitter block heel sandals from Marni. Or pink pointed loafers from Nicholas Kirkwood...
Fine! I love a statement shoe. Sadly, I barely get the chance to wear them now. (I know, I know, world's tiniest violin etc). And I can't decide whether that's because I have a toddler and don't go 'out out' as much. Or because 'sneakers' have become de rigueur. Or because I live in LA. Either way, I’m making a very different kind of statement with the shoes I have on today.
... I’m wearing a pair of Crocs.
It's been a slippery slope. To put my feelings towards casual footwear into context, I wore silver t-bar flats (and a long floaty dress) for my first hike. Granted, we weren't planning on a "hike", we drove to Runyon Canyon and thought we'd go for a "wander" in "the hills". (I know. How green we were! How fresh off the plane! Such simpler times! etc)
Anyway, RIP those silver shoes because it wasn't long before I started buying 'sneakers'. And not just for hiking or running in. For fun. Because I chose to wear them. Of course, I blame Chris, who has become something of a sneaker head since moving to LA. You could say the midlife crisis is alive and well in our house and it's sponsored by Nike.
I then dabbled in the world of Birkenstocks. Another style of shoe I discounted for being a bit beige and and a bit boring, I suppose. But they're very LA. Can something so practical be stylish? They definitely look cool on most of my friends here who wear them. Which is why I followed suit, starting with a classic pair before upgrading to their shearling slide sandals. I'm a sheep, what can I say? Pun definitely intended.
'Sneakers' and Birkenstocks are all very well, but Crocs? Crocs are the shoes my stepdad wears when he goes fishing. Crocs are the shoes my two-year-old loves wearing because she can (sort of) put them on herself. Crocs are (according to my trusted research source, Wikipedia) a "comfortable, slip-resistant foam boat shoe... suitable for various water activities." Crocs are not what I have manifested for my LA life. I don't love Crocs for me!
And yet. And yet! I can't argue with the evidence.
Crocs are the most searched fashion trend of 2023, with almost nine million annual searches. (According to research conducted by a company called Hey Discount).
"All the cool kids are wearing Crocs." (According to research conducted by my husband).
Jokes aside, he's right (for once). Crocs aren’t so Marmite anymore. They have been fully embraced by the fashion world (Balenciaga, Christopher Kane et al). They appeal to Boomers and Gen-Alphers. They are all over TikTok. They are worn by everyone from Justin Bieber to Ariana Grande.
So I ordered a pair to see what the fuss is about. I'm not going down the Jibbitz hole (emoji-like embellishments you can decorate your shoe with like charms on a bracelet). I'm not 12. And I remain cynical about how cool Crocs actually look. But when I first slid my feet into them? To quote my friend Niki (a very stylish person), it was “like a massage in a shoe." And who wouldn’t want that every day?
I just succumbed to the pairing sneakers with a dress trend (for practical reasons; not because I like it). It could be a while before I buy a pair of Crocs, although “the massage in a shoe” is highly tempting!