Regency Shoes – Delightful Flats

I’m a little in love with Regency right now, can you tell?  I’ve got new duds for both myself and Mr. C to do, but we’re also prepping a new Regency shoe for pre-order.  Yaaaay!

Before I share pictures of the new “Highbury” flat, though, I inspire you with these original examples that were closely referenced to create our new dyeable satin shoes:

The Met: 1800-1815
Powerhouse Museum 1810-1815
The Met, c. 1812

Once again we are following the “hallmarks” of Regency footwear – pointed toe, high vamp, and side seams. There is also another hallmark to notice – the spring heel.  It is a common misconception that Regency shoes were totally flat.  Most Regency flat have a small wedge under the heel, sometimes covered in leather, like on this Met shoe:

The Met, 1815-20

Many Regency shoes had ribbons attached, to lace up the leg for a Greco-Roman look.  In Abigail Adam’s slippers, you can see tiny little loops set inside the shoe, just for this purpose:

Abigail Adams’ slippers, The Smithsonian, image via FashionablyCorrect.com

We thought this was a great idea, too, so you’ll find loops like these on the inside of “Highbury.”

I will show you photos of the new “Highbury” soon! For now, dream of the all the possibilities. 🙂

11 Comments

  • Caroline

    March 14, 2013 at 12:09 AM

    Yay I'm so excited, they are beautiful! I can't decide if I want these or if I want to wait for a pair of late Victorian pumps!

    Reply
    • Lauren Stowell

      March 15, 2013 at 11:35 PM

      You must have both! The good news about Highbury is that I've done everything I can to keep the price low, without sacrificing the quality. They'll be around $60-$80 instead of over $100.

      Reply
  • Neb

    March 14, 2013 at 12:16 AM

    Yes, please. The ribbon loops would make them even more perfect than perfect. This would keep them firmly in place for dancing (or running from highwaymen). I've been known to use ribbons to lace on my dancing slippers just by running the ribbon under the sole just in front of the heel of the shoe, but this would be more civilized.

    Reply
    • Lauren Stowell

      March 15, 2013 at 11:36 PM

      Hahaha, I have done that too!

      The loops are super cool. There are 4 on each side, so you can do a full lace up, or use just 2 sets, or 1 set for a totally different look.

      Reply
  • Lumikettu

    March 14, 2013 at 4:26 AM

    I'm eagerly waiting to see what happens!

    Will there be a line of men's shoes sometime in the future of American Duchess? (Or American Duke? xD)….. I totally just wrote "dude" instead of "duke", oh my…

    Reply

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