Toms All The Rage, But Can You Wear Them To A Wedding?

My sister-in-law jetted in from London, her suitcase lighter than mine ever managed to be when in transit, her feet clad in what I can only describe as a throw-back to the ’80s Japanese style slip-ons (alla Karate Kid; the kind that Michael Jackson made famous). Back then guys wore them with pencil tight jeans and coiffed fringes – I cringed then; I wince now.

Yet here they are again. According to her, if you’re not wearing them on the streets of London then you’re just not a discerning dude or a sussed cookie. On browsing the web, to make certain that she hadn’t just lost her mind, I stumbled across the following fashion slave comment: “If you don’t own a pair of these you don’t count in this world”.

So, looks like we’ll all be slumming it in black classic slip-ons, known more commonly as Toms, year after next (it takes about that long for their fashion to hit our streets) but perhaps the very act of being forewarned may prepare us for the shock.

Or at least give us the time to debate whether or not we even like the things (a resounding “no” from me is probably going to have little influence over those of you who haven’t had the misfortune to be in close contact with these particular ‘gems’ before).

Just because these Toms or slips were the ’80s biggest wardrobe fashion mistake doesn’t mean they will be now. And whilst we’re going to also see a death of low-rise jeans (more’s the pity), that heels will go is rather liberating, particularly for brides.

Toms is a brand of shoe (there are numerous, cheaper copy-cats on the High Street too) that are not only popular for their particular style but for each pair of shoes bought, Toms gives one pair to a child in need – the ‘charity’ aspect is what makes them so trendy, even if Forbes debated their ethics and also dubbed them ‘peasant chic’. Someone else on the web called them ‘Crocs with a conscience’.

Can one wear them to a wedding? As a guest, definitely, particularly to a spring or summer wedding. As the bride – well, I’ll leave that up to your discernment, but you might want to re-read the first part of this article before you respond with a resounding “yes”.