During one of my random
internet window shopping moments I came across the Pour La
Victoire studded sandal at Urban Outfitters. I'm not really familiar with the brand, but it appears to be a bit of an upscale Steve Madden. Basically they take "
inspiration" from other high profile brands.
PLV by Pour La Victorie Studded Sandal @ Urban Outfitters
The sandal's price at Urban is $178. I then came across the same sandal at Intermix with quite a different price, $275. That's nearly a $100 difference!?
Studded Flat Sandals - Pour La VictorieI'm not familiar with the pricing of
Intermix's items, but that seems like quite a mark up from what the wholesale probably is.
This got me to snooping around for some more Pour La
Victorie swag. And then I came across this...
Pour La
Victorie "Ella" sandal
This sandal is a poor (
wo)mans
Christian Louboutin Adona (Phillip Lim special). The shoe was featured in
Lim's S/S 09 show.
Those who know me know my love for Phillip
Lim in general, these sandals and their sister pump version,
Dillian.I personally think that one would be doing a great disservice to oneself if they chose the the
PLV version of these shoes. For starters the
PLV looks like it's ruffle could use a little
Cialis. But it's easy when comparing the prices to expect for many to consider the
PLV to be an acceptable surrogate. Fashion is often seen as an empty indulgence for the shallow. Just ask a regular person on the street what they think about spending 1.3k on a pair of shoes. Now ask a few people how they feel about buying a plasma TV, home theater system or a wonderful new couch. To look at it what may be more equal terms consider the regard and converted status famous/historical
artisnal furniture has amongst many. What makes this shoe different than owning a certified
Barcelona chair? Even if the
individuals surveyed were not familiar with the chair a brief mention of it's prestige in the world of furniture and design should bring them around. FYI the chrome version starts at $4,328 and the stainless steel starts at $6,609.
When your consider what the fundamental functions of these two items are it seems hard to justify spending anything more than the prices of
Payless and
Ikea. However, these two items are not given the same respect. As stated before, you'll probably be able to more easily justify the chair purchase than the shoe purchase. Many find it quite easy to drop big money on furniture and appliances, but just can't justify spending more than $50 on a pair of shoes or shirt. I find this hard to understand for several reasons.
First, when you buy those expensive appliances, be it a plasma TV or PS3, there's a performance half life. Technology is constantly upgrading and the top of the line advanced item you own now will be a technological dinosaur the next year. OK, that may be an exaggeration, but I'm sure you've experienced something like this to some degree. The item may function well, but you'll find yourself in need of something better just because your product seems so inferior or that the item in question is now obsolete, e.g.
Playstation 2. Paying premium for electronics and appliances is accepted because the cost of creation and manufacture of new technologies is expensive. As things become easier to produce cost decline. In the end your item will almost always see a sharp depreciation in value. Try selling a Zach Morris style cellphone and see how much people are willing to spend.
In regards to those who view
artisanal furniture as somehow superior to a high fashion piece, I don't agree (obviously). The argument that the fashion pieces will experience atrophy through regular use and thus spending more than minimum on it is only half valid. Yes, buttons fall off, shoes scuff, and soles wear out. Though when purchasing items of high quality it is possible to restore said item. Using a shoe for example (since this is what sparked this discussion), an individual may have the uppers refinished or the actual sole of the shoe replaced. Furniture is not without it's own
atrophic qualities;
reupholstery anyone?
Thus, the appeal of these
designer furniture pieces is the fact that they are designed. They are a work of art. This is something that the
Adona and Barcelona share. They're form is extraordinary when compared to items which share their same function. There is a beauty of form which these items posses. You could just tie strings around wood plank and strap them to your feet and get the same functionality of the
Adona. Conversely, you could also sit on a milk crate to accomplish the function of the Barcelona. But would you really want to invite people over to sit on milk crates in your
apartment and annotate in your will which grand child gets said crates when you're gone? When you're looking to finish off an outfit and add the confidence with the perfect finishing touch are you going to grab your rope and planks? You're daughter will just be dying for the moment she's your identical foot size so she can take those beautiful planks out a wild night.
