Moving to Montreal I mentally prepared for certain things, including temperatures of -30 degrees Celsius, lots of snow and bone-nibbling cold. I did not however think of the impact this weather would have on my daily dressing choices. An obvious link, in fact, you might think it was foolish of me to have overlooked this, but nevertheless I did. Indeed many of my daily fashion choices have been discarded or had to be remodeled into my quotidian life. One such example are light shirts: Remember that scene in the Great Gatsby, where Leonardo DiCaprio throws endless piles of shirts of all colors and textures up into the air? It is a scene of perfection, and I myself have a very similar situation most mornings – with a slight alteration. I myself assume the lead role of Gatsby and my floor becomes Daisy. Too often, there are piles of shirts strewn on the floor, too cold to be worn alone with pants as they should be. Nevertheless, whilst I am unable to communicate how deeply forlorn I am with not being able to wear my shirts, there is one item of clothing that I mourn more… my shoes.
Packing for university, I took all my shoes from sandals to Hunters to heels to loafers to high-wedged sneakers. The first few months I enjoyed wearing them too. Then came November and since then they remain untouched in a corner of my room till the present day. I soon came to realize that there is only one choice of shoes in Montreal and those are bulky, unflattering snow boots. I grew up in Switzerland, where snow boots are a pair of shoes that are taken out at most for a week or otherwise restricted to the mountains for ski trips. In a way, Montreal weather has made my life simpler in one aspect, since I only need to consider one warm winter jacket and just one good pair of snow boots, which have become essentials in my wardrobe and make my daily wardrobe decision-making a little faster. Nevertheless it has made me cherish shoes more than ever. They say that you always want what you cannot have, and that couldn’t be more true for me. I crave shoes, especially any kind without grips at the bottom that make my legs feel a few pounds heavier. These longings are becoming more dire as the snowy days are becoming less frequent and ice seems to be confined to Frozen (the movie). Every time I pass a shoe shop, I peep in, hoping to magically find shoes that are pieces of art while simultaneously being ones that I could feasibly use in this snowy city. Yes indeed, Montreal has succeeded in making me what my mother would call a “sensible dresser.” I am still on the prowl to find some good footwear, but my wish list is getting longer as the days go by and my bank balance is getting smaller and smaller.
So here are my suggestions, in case you too have winter shoe blues:
1) Hunter Boots: These quintessential English rain boots are my top recommendation. These perfect set of knee-high boots fit all the Montreal shoe criteria: waterproof, sophisticated, with good grips and a cozy interior when you make an additional purchase of socks.
2) Nike sneakers: While you might think Nike’s should be constricted to the confines of a gym I would like to point your attention to the streets of New York, where they are a staple of almost every “Sartorialist” (street style photography blog) picture. Both comfy and convenient to put on before you dart to class, they have the added benefit of making your legs seem a lot longer compared to everyone wearing snow boots.
3) Uggs: I give this recommendation with one big warning: make sure to buy the waterproof spray that every sales assistant tries to sell you. The cherry on top of these shoes is that they are warm and wooly no matter what the weather brings.
Personally I would wish that the sun really would come out tomorrow, and then so could my spring shoes. Until then, we’ll have to make do with more utilitarian shoe chioces.
Images Retrived From:http://picture-cdn.wheretoget.it/hmq5xl-l-610×610-jeans-blue-colored-jea… and http://blog.netrobe.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/tumblr_lme0eeUFFS1qj6…