Our Pompadour 18th Century Shoes are an American Duchess classic! With their custom, curvy Louis heel, easy-to-use tabbed latchet closure, and period accurate white rand, these babies are a tried-and-true shoe; Pompadours are popular for 18th century impressions, actors on stage and film, and for those simply looking to add some 1700s flair to their wardrobes. This past spring marked 12 years since Pompadour was first released for pre-order! We thought it would make for a nice trip down memory lane to review the history of the one, the only, American Duchess Pompadour Shoe.
The day was May 14, 2012. After many a fiasco (including a fire), we released the very first iteration of Pompadour Court Shoes for pre-order. The first round of Pompadours was offered in a dyeable ivory and black jacquard textile, with leather-covered heels. Our first Pompadour heel was quite swoopy, with a flared base. The toes were super-pointy, like period originals. The tabbed closure was based on several examples of extant late-17th c. and early-18th c. shoes.
Come fall of 2013, every pair of the first run of Pompadours had sold. In anticipation of the re-release of this style, we made some improvements. In addition to some sizing improvements, the pointed toe was reduced a bit for Pompadour 2.0. Our second run of Pompadours was also the first to have a distinctive white rand! The rand is the strip of leather ‘piping’ between a shoe’s upper and sole, and is very characteristic of footwear prior to the 1760s/1770s. The addition of the white rand really upped Pompadour’s game.
In 2014, something very cool happened; Whoopi Goldberg commissioned five pairs of custom shoes! Three pairs of Whoopi’s shoes used Pompadour as a base, with rich fabric and color choices, trimmings, and embroidery added on. While custom collections are not usually possible for us, this was definitely a landmark moment in AD history!
Behold- Whoopi’s custom shoes.
Fast forward to fall of 2020, and we released our latest iteration of Pompadour. Several years on from Pompadour 2.0, we made some further adjustments and improvements to Pompadour 3.0. The most significant change was the heel. Our new Pompadour heel featured new and improved curves, spectacular balance, and a carved-out curve on the inside of the heel. Improvements to the last were also made, with adjustments to the instep curve making for a more comfortable fit and elegant shape. Lastly, we made a materials switch, and changed the uppers from textile to leather. We intentionally sourced a special, dyeable and paintable ivory leather that takes color especially well (for those curious about dyeing leather shoes, check out our tutorial blog post).
In 2023, after lots of fit-testing and development, we included Pompadour in a collection of seven of our most popular styles in wide (D-width). This was especially exciting for Pompadour, because of how often it is used onstage and at events! It made us so happy to be able to expand the size range on this long-beloved AD classic style. Now, Pompadour is available in sizes 5-13 in B-width, and sizes 5-13 in D-with. What a range!
If you have been so inspired to procure some Pompadours of your own, we have them available for purchase in our US and UK/EU stores. Pompadour comes in ivory and black leather, in sizes 5-15, in B (standard) and D (wide) widths. And did we mention that they are an excellent choice for fall footwear?
