It’s a four-day public holiday here in the UK, thanks to the diamond jubilee of HM Queen Elizabeth II. So naturally, it has been freezing cold and flogging rain since Friday. Whilst this is not a problem to us non-Brits who have been making the most of the celebrations ensconced in French restaurants with visiting American friends – vive la différence! – one’s heart does go out to the poor loyal subjects who lined the Thames yesterday to wave at the royal barge in weather conditions more reminiscent of October than June. Not to mention the 86-year-old granny herself, who must have been shivering in her ermine undies.
What is really called for at a time like this is something blinging but... cosy. Like these rather marvelous gold Doc Martins (below), which my friend Katya Z called into the Russian Vogue office a few weeks ago. Sturdy as well as shiny, they would be warm and waterproof aboard the Gloriana, not to mention a fashionable wink at that other pillar of great British heritage, punk.
Alternatively, for something with a bit more stature (the queen is only 5’4” after all), how about the gorgeous 5-inch (12.7-cm) ankle boots below? The gold leather has an appropriately antiqued finish, the “hidden” platform and smart white block heels could be helpful for kicking recalcitrant corgis. Wee nod to the Duke of Edinburgh: they are from 3.1 Phillip Lim.
This evening there’s a concert at Buckingham Palace, so a chance to ditch the sensible footwear in favour of something to dance in (or at least tap the royal toes in. Let’s not get carried away, the bash is organised by Gary Barlow.) You can’t go wrong with a pair of gold pumps. With a modest 4-inch (10.2-cm) heel, these Louboutins (below) are fit for a – well, you know who I mean.
