Mental rewind to my days at F.I.T...

Just one look at this perfectly preserved sample of early fashion, and I remember the shoe design class I took in sophomore year. For my final semester project, I made a pair of flat shoes, quite comparable to this one. They were textured white leather with lacing and wood buttons. I cut them to fit my feet and sewed them by hand. Hmmm, I wonder if my mother still has them in my old closet... I even cut small heels to adhere to the bottom. The whole process was so fascinating yet really basic. Learning about the fit of a shoe is an art in and of itself.

So browsing the paper this morning, the photo instantly caught my eye. Apparently hidden under layers of sheep dung in a huge cave in Armenia was this shoe, made of cowhide and tanned with plant oil. According to scientists, it is about 5,500 years old which make it older than Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids. Leather laces crisscross through numerous leather eyelets on this right shoe. Although scientists say the shoe was stuffed with grass to hold its shape, it had been worn. “You can see the imprints of the big toe,” said Ron Pinhasi, an archaeologist at University College Cork in Ireland.  Pinhasi said the shoe resembled old Irish pampooties, rawhide slippers. “As the person was wearing and lacing it, some of the eyelets had been torn and repaired.”

Continuing through historical archives, it is obvious the Vikings and  Medieval times have heralded similar specimens in their simplicity and charm.

Stepping into today's footwear, shoes have certainly made major strides. Marc Jacobs, Manolo Blahnik and even the late Alexander McQueen are just a few designers taking shoe-making to new heights. Prehistoric lace-up details married with new age stilettos and wedges produce the high stepping fashion of the future.