I don't mean to give you a history lesson, but I wanted to share the stories of the muses that inspired my spring 13 shoe collection for Wolverine 1000 Mile. I researched these historical adventurers while designing, and I tried my best to capture their trailblazing spirit. I am sure when you put on your pair, you will have a story of your own to tell.
The Arc Boot
Joan of Arc was born in 1412, a peasant girl in Rural
France, and rose from obscurity through sheer determination, and belief in her
own destiny, so that by the age of 16 she was a respected female warrior. She
went on to lead the French army in the Hundred Years war, helping to expel the
British from France. She had no money to her name, but was always well outfitted
and equipped with the best the nation of France had to offer, for the people
pinned all of their hopes on her to save their country. The Arc Boot is stylish
with a signature shaped gore, making it easy to slip on, allowing you to focus
on conquering the tasks at hand, and helping you along the way to your destiny.
The Nellie Shoe
Nellie Bly was born in 1864, and beginning at the age of 16,
became a trailblazing female journalist, exposing the plight of women in the
industrial workplace, traveling to Mexico to report the political climate of the
day, and going under cover to reveal brutal practices in the mental
institutions of the time. In 1889, inspired by Jules Verne’s “Around the World
in 80 Days”, Bly set off on a trip around the globe, reporting her adventure
for Pulitzer’s New York World. Follow in
her footsteps with The Nellie shoe, this lace-up with cut out detail is perfect
for your globetrotting adventures.
The Digby Sandal
Jane Digby was a native Englishwoman, who was a glamorous
wanderer of literary proportions, whose many love affairs throughout the 1800s
took her on travels across Europe and the Middle East. Digby was a lover of life and adventures, embarking
on a lifelong journey, and encountering romances in Bavaria, Albania, and
Greece, ending up in Syria, wife of an Arab Sheikh 20 years her younger. The
Digby Sandal is the perfect shoe for a woman on the go, staying stylish and
breaking hearts.
The Osa Boot
Our
American made boot is named for an American icon I have always been inspired
by, adventure woman, Osa Johnson, who in the 1920s and 1930s traveled to
distant lands, and along with her husband, made films and books documenting
their adventures. They introduced many Americans to exotic locales, and shared
their interactions with the wildlife and peoples of East and Central Africa,
the South Pacific Islands and British North Borneo.
Both in front of, and behind the camera, Osa was always stylishly outfitted,
and always prepared for her next exploration.
The Osa boot will be comfortable for long days, with added breathability
thanks to a canvas panel breaking up the leather, and a stylish strap to keep
your laces secure.
The Sappho Sandal
Sappho
was a legendary Greek poet, living right in the heart of the classical Greek
era. Her contemporary, Plato, considered her among the greatest muses of the
day, and her beauty and style were renowned by fellow poets. Few of her
romantic verses survive today, but her spirit lives on in the Sappho Sandal,
that takes the wearer from the agora to the beach and everywhere in between.
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