Thom Solo was my best friend in preschool. He was Tommy then. And I was wearing Oylily (think wildly patterned little-girl dresses in vibrant colors), velvet leggings (something my mother would never convince me to buy nowadays, especially in light of the hipster craze that’s swept our nation), and light-up sneakers (which I wish I still owned). Flash forward nineteen years to the other day, when I called my oldest friend to catch up. Even though the little boy I used to play with in the sandbox is now a blossoming shoe designer, we’re still close. So on the phone, when he asked me what color shoes I wanted, I basically died. And of course I went with gunmetal grey because that’s totally in.
Now I could get a pair of shoes from Saks or Bloomingdales or something, but there are two problems with that. One, they won’t be nearly as beautiful or bold as the shoes that Tommy, sorry, Thom Solo makes. And two, they won’t be eight inches high with large, lifelike flowers attached to them. Yeah, eight inches sounds like a lot, but these shoes have such a platform at the front that they’re surprisingly comfortable. Plus, if you’re 5’4” like I am, the prospect of being 6’0” sounds like fun every once in a while.
Thom Solo Shoes will, mark my words, take off. He’s already gotten celebrities to wear his designs like Neon Hitch. Don’t know who that is? Well, do you know that Gym Class Heroes song “Ass Back Home”? You know that hook, “I don’t knowwww where you’re goin’…”? That’s Neon Hitch. A pretty big deal. He’s also sent shoes along to Carly Rae Jepsen, who was supposed to wear them to the American Music Awards until she had a last-minute dress switch…and forgot to call him maybe. And he’s recently sent a couple of pairs off to Lana del Ray. They’re shoes fit for strong, fun, badass women. I’d like to count myself in that category.
For Thom, it’s all about that femme fatale aesthetic. The clash of danger and beauty in his work makes each shoe so unique. “I just have such a love for fashion and glamour,” Thom says. “I wanted to bring that more into my life.” He continues, “I just love how tall the shoes are. They’ve got a touch of my childhood love for Poison Ivy from Batman, and they’re entrancing beautiful things that pull you in. But they’re still dangerous, and you don’t really know what they’re all about. Their whole ambiance is a mystery.”
Whether you’re male or female, where you walk, you get noticed. Every day is a runway show. That catwalk is a stage, and if you elevate that stage, people are more likely to look up. When someone enters a room, people scan them head to toe. So with eight-inch heels covered in flowers and painted vibrant colors, you’re bound to get noticed. People will pay attention if you’re wearing a gorgeous pair of shoes. “It’s one of the most influential, impacting things that someone can wear,” Thom says. “I’m a huge shoe shopper—I guess I’m biased because I design shoes, but I just love them.” When a girl’s wearing Thom’s shoes, the moment she enters a room, all eyes are on her. I’ll be the next girl catching everyone’s eye. And look out, girls. Thom’s shoes will infiltrate the fashion scene in no time. You can hold me to that.
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