Spatterdashes!
     | I recently rewatched The City of Lost Children, and it has resulted in a new fashion obsession. The story is rather bizarre and convoluted, but the sets and costumes are so gloriously steampunk that it's a must-see. So what, praytell, is my new fashion obsession? Spatterdashes!, or spats, as they're more commonly called. They have practical benefits: they're warm (like legwarmers, but with far more elegance), and they protect the tops of your shoes from dirt. Ok, fine, that second one isn't especially helpful these days, but if you think of them as aprons for the shoes they seem almost au courant. Of course the real reason I want a pair is that they're really really pretty. I neeeeeed some! How have I lived all these years without owning a pair? The mind, it is boggled. Obviously I'll need to downdate my wardrobe with some Steam garb so I'll have something to wear the spats with. I don't want to draw too much attention to myself (no bustles or undersea globe helmets), so I'm thinking my new look will be more Steampest than Steampunk. The top pair of spats are new ones, done in the classic style. The second pair is vintage. They were found on ebay, but, sadly, I was too late for the auction. The next two pairs are made by etsy seller Straight Razor Slasher and they're shockingly reasonably priced at a mere $35. $35! With all those buttons! They're selling faster than she can make them, and they're often sold out. (update: she just increased the price to a still-very-reasonable $45) The penultimate spat is from Maide The knitted spats on the bottom were found at Booze & Yarn. There isn't any information about them there, just a picture. Too bad. It would be nice if they had a pattern so I didn't have to trouble my poor little head with all those bothersome calculations to make a pair. Hopefully the next time you see me I'll be spatterdashed! (hey- that one's actually a real word)  |
p.s. - Thanks for all the great comments on the previous post!
eta - Whoops! I didn't mean to have comments turned off for this post - all better now!
posted by Petula Darling at
2/04/2008 10:56:00 PM
4 Comments:
I'm trying to envision the spats paired with the petticoat.
It might look something like this (when worn by a bank-robbing somnambulist).
In Maine those are called Gators...and no they are not nearly as pretty! Back to Victorian days: wrist warmers, neck and head warmers, spatterdashers-NO SKIN ALLOWED!
Spats are very cool. Have you seen www.spatterdash.com? Pricy, but very well done. I like Straight Razor Slasher's as well. I'm going to make my wife and I some as soon as I get the fabric and buckles. I have some old ones, too.
Buttonhooks are a very good thing to have, it makes buttoning them up really quick and easy.
Cheers,
Nick
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home