The loafer was thus a farmer's shoe
and did you know that Weejun comes from Nor-we-gian?
Pen in hand and paper on your desk? The fashion college starts, with today's topic: the loafer. Completely due to my current crush on that denim variant from Hermès that is of course worth every euro (and there are many), because loafers can go anywhere. Chic, casual, under jeans or shorts... And how wonderful it is to slide into them so softly without needing a shoelace diploma.
The first
The very first loafer was made by Raymond Lewis Wildsmith (the grandson of a famous shoemaking duo) for King George VI. The shoe was intended as a house shoe, to be worn under his hunting outfit. The model was first called 582, then 89, and then the slightly more logical The Wildsmith Loafer.
Where does the name loafer come from?
The loafer area is where cows are milked on a farm. Many farmers wore shoes that they could easily put on and take off while milking. This shoe was also widely worn on farms in Norway, and the shoe is also known as the Weejun, which is the phonetic version of the last two syllables of Nor-we-gian.
And who came up with that leather layer on the instep?
That was introduced by D.H. Bass, but John R. Boss made it out of metal in the shape of his wife's lips. So he had the kiss of his wife with him on his feet when he left the house. The name penny loafer, how did that come about?.
In the 1950s,
students often wore a penny or a dime in that leather flap. Partly as decoration, partly as a coin on hand in case you needed it. Hence the name the penny shoe. The loafer took off enormously when Gucci introduced the loafer shoe. Especially the version without a heel is the perfect interpretation of the word slip-on. loafers women's models on the street.
