Sports shoes are, these days, a whole multi-million pound industry with laboratories, institutes and technologies all their own. What’s wrong with the good old plimsoll is what I say.
That first day at school, where the smell of rubber plimsolls permeated everything including your lunch is an experience that kids these days just don’t get. They’re more concerned with whether they are wearing the right sports shoe according to the fashion stakes than anything else.
So, let’s take a look at the modern day sports shoes and see how the old fashioned plimsoll compares. Shock absorption is an important aspect of the modern day sports shoe, according to scientists. Have these people seen the rubber bumper you get round the toe of a plimsoll? You can kick a chair leg or stub your toe on any pointy surface and this little rubber bumper absorbs all the shock. The plimsoll is the inspiration behind many a fairground ride.
Lightness is another aspect athletes want from a sports shoe to make them go faster. Plimsolls are made of lightweight fabric without all the extra added gizmos. Personally, I think this is mind over matter. Put a go faster stripe on the side and they’ll think they can run faster, no matter how heavy the trainer. And let’s face it, just how heavy can they get?
Stability. How about stability? I’ve been completely trolleyed in these plimsolls of mine and stood upright longer than any drunk in a modern sports shoe. It’s something to do with that amazing rubber grip on the bottom. Once on, they ain’t going anywhere. Not that easy to detach once they have that one way grip on your skin but they’re stability on the feet of a self confessed alcoholic are beyond compare. (more…)
So many things can come from someone’s heart. The heart as the number one symbol for love has endured through ages. Similar images of the heart as a love symbol can be found as far back as Egyptian times, and some tribes in Africa, but the most known sources of the heart history is through Christianity.
The Catholic religion believes that the symbol of the heart began when Saint Margaret Marie Alacoque had a vision of a heart shape surrounded by thorns in the late 17th century. In an even earlier time the heart shape had been placed in stained glass windows and cloister decorations. The heart shape in Christianity represents Christ and his soul.
The heart symbol gained it most recent popularity during the Victorian period. The heart locket was worn by many women to keep their small treasures in. Photographs and locks of hair of loved ones could be found inside. During the following years hearts were being used in all kinds of jewelry pieces.
Pendants, rings, and charms for bracelets. Today they are one of the most popular items to give as gifts. Antique and vintage heart jewelry is very collectible and there is a lot of it around in all kinds of qualities and price ranges. (more…)
Since the 1960’s, the fashion world has taken a stand on numerous social causes. The antiwar movements and women’s rights are just a couple of the areas in which the fashion world has made strong statements. More recently, fashion has taken to assisting and speaking for individual charitable causes and in some cases, it has been questioned just whose best interests are involved.
A prime example of this has been the partnership between Gucci, Prada and Armani and UNICEF; the United Nations Childrens Fund. The reasons and motivation behind this particular collaboration have been questioned by some international groups and, perhaps most telling for the United Nations, by the very front line workers who would receive the proceeds.
Senior staff members of UNICEF have strongly stated their displeasure with the charity’s close ties with the world of glamour and celebrity, saying it is both demeaning to the work that the UN is doing as well as having a strong smell of hypocrisy about it.
UNICEF staff in Pakistan and India have spoken against the alleged working practices of the French conglomerate PPR (formerly Pinault-Printemps-Redoute), the owners of Gucci and whose Asian suppliers have, for a number of years, been linked to sweatshops in Mumbai and Karachi. (more…)
Handbags will always be a mystery to men but for women a handbag isn’t just a fashion accessory it also holds so many items that a woman cannot function properly without. If you were to take woman’s handbag away from her she would feel very lost indeed. There are many brands of handbag that women aspire to and these can often include Gucci, Chloe and Prada.
Handbags can be very practical however they are also often chosen purely to look good with whatever outfit is being worn. Normally a woman won’t receive many compliments about her bag, especially not from men, however other women who take a keen interest in fashion will often dole out the compliments. This is something that a women especially looks to happen.
However not everyone will have the same opinion on what makes up an attractive handbag. For instance, one of the most popular bag is by Louis Vuitton. Despite the fact that it is brown and the fact that it is often copied and sold cheaply at markets, many women with the cash to spend will happily buy one. There are other colors and styles of handbag of course and every woman who adores handbags will have their very own “wish list”. (more…)