Ever since my visit to the Museum of English Rural Life, I can’t stop thinking about clogs.
The pair above (which I believe are the same ones that you can try on in the museum) are an eight-eyelet farmer’s style clog made by Walkley Clogs. I’ve been coveting a pair of these for years and years, although I’d probably cheat and go for the padded derby style instead.
Back in 2001 I had a stall (selling waistcoats and jewellery) at a clog dancing festival. I took just enough money on the stall to buy myself a pair of clogs. They were a gibson style, black at the quarter, but with a fabulous crackle printed black and purple vamp. I was told that they were made with offcuts of Dr Martens leather, hence the unusual pattern.
I sold the clogs to a dancer a few years ago, after I was told that I shouldn’t be wearing any type of footwear without an orthotic inside, and my insoles wouldn’t fit into the clogs. I also worked as a Library Assistant at the time, so I didn’t get to wear them very much. Despite the full rubber soles, they were still a bit noisy for the library!
I’ve found out since that these were the one pair of shoes that I could have safely worn without the orthotics, and I very much regret getting rid of them. It seems unlikely that I might find another pair in such an unusual style.
I’m quite tempted to buy a new pair of Swedish clogs to wear in the summer – and to remind me of my student days. I thought that I’d end up with a plain black pair, and then I found these! Now I can’t decide between flowers, spots, dinosaurs or skulls – or perhaps I should go for the plain black ones, and then paint them. Decisions, decisions…