Ilse Jacobsen Rubber Boot Testimony

Just received word from a customer who purchased her Ilse Jacobsen tall boots yesterday:

Walked all the way downtown to the Monaco and they are ultra comfy. No break in blisters! And they DO breathe better than the Hunters. It's a noticeable difference. They rule. And some other thoughts: the laces make the calf size adjustable which is priceless for us ladies with shapely calves.

Available to order through the shop (Le Train Bleu ships worldwide!) ☛Shop Ilse Jacobsen

Blossom Dearies: They Say It's Spring

The Tango Lesson

I want to let you in on a secret. Tango shoes are the most comfortable heels in the world. They are magic. I wish somebody had told me sooner. I have been flirting with Argentine Tango for the past 10 years but never had a pair of proper Tango shoes until just recently and I was in for a big surprise. I am NOT a heel person--my choices are practical, generally maxing out at a 2.5" height.

Well, these babies are 4". On my Tango shoe shopping trip each subsequent shoe I tried on got higher and higher as all the shoes were so well balanced and comfortable. Tango dancers have a special relationship with their shoes and as I now know, there are LOTS of choices out there. Mine are from Nueva Epoca and I will be wearing them outside (which is not advised but these shoes make me want to live on the wild side). If you feel prepared to enter the Cult Of The Tango Shoe, then go check out the ultra chic line Comme Il Faut ("proper" in French), which is wildly popular and doesn't produce anything shorter than a 3" heel as far as I know (that would not be proper).


And if you want to catch the Tango dancing bug, all you have to do is watch Sally Potter's gorgeous film The Tango Lesson.

Strawberry Thief

My heart was racing in the final minutes of the ebay auction for this Liberty print blouse from J Crew. I had won one recently but it was too small, and here was a second chance. I won, it is mine, and I am so in love! This print is from William Morris and is a cornucopia of birds and flowers but I love the sort of muddied, moody feel of it. Very 1970's Pre-Raphaelite, don't you think?




Check out this painting by Frank Sidney Harper, 1919, showing the Strawberry Thief wallpaper in the background. Found here.

Fools Rush In

Happy April Fools Day! Enjoy 20% off all day with code "aprilfools" (not valid on preorders or past orders).