The Convenient Cuban

There is nothing more exciting than receiving an order through the post that you have ordered online.

There is nothing more exciting than receiving an order through the post that you have ordered online. Whether it's the waiting for that delivery or the nervous expectation for what is about to arrive, there is a guaranteed thrill as the letter box tinkles or you return home to find a box, landed in your porch. I speak of this small pleasure as exactly the latter happened to me today. Let me just update you: I have recently had a foot operation and so have been fairly house bound for a number of weeks now. My twitching fingers have coincidenatlly found their way to my iPad and ordered a host of unnecessary purchases (many of which have been returned may I add). Today summoned the arrival of a new pair of Kurt Geiger heels; well they are short, stubby cuban heels to be exact and not ones that I would usually find myself buying. Following an appointment with my surgeon a few weeks back, it became evident that my favoured mega heels were out of the picture for another few months yet, and so I have taken to trying a slightly lower alternative.

The simplistic and unpretentious 'Cuban' featured at Proenza Schouler, Derek Lam and Dries Van Noten for autumn winter 2012 and has already proved itself a key player for SS13 with an appearance in Acne's spring summer pre-collection. In the last few seasons a lower heel has been favourable: following a revival of the 1940s/50s silhouette and an exentuated female form, kitten heels enjoyed a moment of fancy, whilst for winter 2011 the velvet slipper replaced the ballerina pump. For this season, androgyny continues to reign supreme, with the brogue surpassing all other shoes as the footwear of choice and (for what is left of SS12) the flat-form has been of particular popularity.

I would like to add [here] just how much I have already fallen for my new squatty, square heeled shoe (in a nude patent finish, with pointed toe and multiple buckles). It was Valentino's studded, point-toe pump seen on Alexa Chung and such that encouraged my interest in flatter footwear and yet, as I unpacked the squeaky patent pair from the box, visions of the Queen, just-below-the-knee skirts and sensible heeled footwear propelled themselves across my brain; for a moment, I wasn't sure I could pull off such an obvious lack of height. In this instance however, the cuban style warrants sophistication and decorum, adding a modernistic formality to any outfit night or day: a worthy contestant for the start of my new shoe collection. And so, on this occasion, I will act on the advice of my surgeon by losing the ankle-twisting/cobble-wobbling stiletto heels and take welcome style advice from the Queen: keep it smart; practical and chic.

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