An "ELLE" of a Look: Tevas Redux?

Have you seen the new summer sandal?  It riffs on Tevas, the go-to for hikers that isn't particularly known for its pleasing lines.

When I was climbing through Che's caves in Cuba one summer with 10 other professors, mining helmet on head, I may have distinguished myself by not wearing appropriate footgear, so unappealing to me are they.

But still.

The spread in the recent T magazine featuring these new sandals both repelled me and reminded me of the summer of 1986, when I was living in Montreal, just barely in my twenties. I'd bought an almost-ankle-grazing gray sweatshirt skirt from Daniel Hechter, which I paired with what I considered my Montreal miracle: a tee emblazoned with ELLE, my favourite magazine, from the ELLE boutique on chic Crescent St.

From T Magazine, 2014

These were the days of Rachel Williams, Yasmin LeBon, and Elle McPherson on and in ELLE, and the magazine had a French cool factor that's been lost in the ensuing years. But in 1986, ELLE was it.

To ground the look, I followed my eye and bought what the Montreal denizens wore: a vaguely Japanese thick-strapped slingback on a wedge.  And topped it off with a messy topknot.  I felt I'd arrived.

Also in Montreal that summer I purchased a ridiculous jumpsuit from an eclectic boutique selling clothing from Paris. It reminded me of a Stephen Sprouse design with its bold graffiti and it was a perfect piece to wear around Montreal, where people had a joyful approach to dressing (nothing was too colourful or too eccentric!).

This ad from Celine brought me right back to rue Crescent, circa 1986: 

Celine 2014; compare/contrast with jumpsuit sketch above

Is it, plus the upgraded "Teva," the New Look?



Or even my new look?  Can't get a foothold.