Of Ghillies and Grrrlz

The last time I used the word “gillies” in a post, I was writing about Isabel Gillies’ Vogue piece about her cad of an ex-husband. OK—apparently he’s a good ex-husband, but he was a cad of a husband.

But tonight, perhaps inspired by Stavros Flatley,

Undoubtedly inspired by a pair of Kate Spade shoes I saw in a recent NYT but cannot find online because they’re for fall,

I’m thinking about “ghillies”—soft leather lace-up shoes worn to perform both Irish jigs and the Highland Fling (though the shoe for each dance is different. I believe).

I’ve always been drawn to lace-up shoes, though I more often than not find the laces lacking—they’re either too waxy to hold a knot or they manage to look cheap juxtaposed with the leather of the shoe.

(That was my one concern about the Opening Ceremony shoes from a few posts back.)

Although I utterly lost interest in Kate Spade yearrrs ago, I’m looking forward to taking a peek at her ghillies for fall. Her collections are still too cute for me (popped into her Chicago boutique in March) and she uses too much gold hardware for my taste, but as I’m fond of anticipation, I’ll file the memory of the ghillies away until August.

And you *do* know that I used to wear full Highland dress at boarding school, so the fit might be right. At least I won’t have to spit shine them (I think they’re suede!).