Island Style
Teens take a walk on the wild side of footwear

By Paula Rath
Advertiser Staff Columnist

KHON anchor Leslie Wilcox, seated at center, rear, remains calm while her daughter, Kai Dooley, totters around on clunky NYLA platform shoes at Nordstrom in Ala Moana. Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser

Her friend Chanson Fujioka, 15, of Wahiawa, wore high plaid sandals with a black-and-red corset top and long skirt (which she made herself) topped with a vintage black business jacket and feather boa.

In both cases, their mothers — with visions of classic little evening heels in their heads — looked on with amusement.

It's the current fashion generation gap: The shoes that young girls love, their mothers (aunts, elder sisters and over-40 friends) may loathe. And since shoes tend to be a particular fashion fetish with clothes-conscious women, the feelings run deep (think of the way Sarah Jessica Parker relates to her Manolo Blahniks — almost as characters in the drama — on "Sex and the City").

Come shopping with Kai and Chanson and Kai's mother, Leslie Wilcox, anchor of the Channel 2 Morning News, at Nordstrom in Ala Moana, where the layout of the store seems to characterize the differences between tastes among the generations.

Departmental divide

On the right rear, Brass Plum, stocked with platform sandals of outrageous heights and outsize designs in all manner of colors and patterns, including animal prints.

On the left, sophisticated career and evening shoes: sleek, pointy-toed pumps, strappy, high-heeled numbers, muted tones and lots of black.

Watch women wander into the store and you can predict by age where they'll go.

Brass Plum is for the younger generation, said Nordstrom assistant manager Scott Nakagawa: "Teens ... like Tulips and Steve Madden. They're attracted to sandals and slides, often with cork bottoms."

The left side of the store, he said, caters to sophisticated customers looking for career and evening shoes.

(On the right front are what Nakagawa called "comfort shoes." Teens, he said, don't go there.)

Annette Paet, a shoe buyer for Sandal Tree, said she also sees a clear generation gap when it comes to shoes. "The younger women like platforms, raffia, stacked heels — trendy looks. For the mothers, comfort plays a bigger role. We have a new category called fashion comfort that combines styling with comfort features." These provide a soft, cushiony foot bed along with a little height and updated styling. Even evening shoes have soft sock liners and more cushioning.

Certainly, Kai, Chanson and Kai's mother Leslie illustrate the differences.

Kai's closet contains Vans skater shoes and Converse high tops, in orange and black. Wilcox's shoe wardrobe consists of black, brown and navy pumps and a few sandals.

Chanson's shoe closet contains chunky mary janes, funky Vans and Converse. Her mother, Sharon Fujioka, "won't tolerate anything uncomfortable." Her shoe wardrobe is based on her hobby, dancing. She has a cupboard full of cowboy boots (for country western) and dressy sandals (for salsa).

Two different worlds

This summer, the two distinct style stories are told along generational lines: the sexy, strappy high heel and the big, clunky, tall shoe.

After a brief (very brief) foray into the comfort zone, Kai and Chanson head straight for Brass Plum.

"Sexy! I like these!" Chanson exclaimed over a pair of burgundy velvet ankle straps with little fabric flowers.

"Those are amazing," Kai exclaimed over a pair of NYLA wooden sculpted sky-highs. "So awesome!" Chanson agreed.

A shelf of pale pink ballet shoes elicited this response from Chanson: "Ewww! Are they used?"

"These look like wicked witch of the west," Kai cooed over a pair of black chunky high heels.

"Mary janes are my favorite shoes. I have two pairs," said Chanson as she picked up black Sketchers, a hip version of the classic mary jane, which were close-toed schoolgirl-style flats with a wide strap across the instep. As she tried them on, Chanson said, "This is my kind of elegant." She loved the visible stitching and red lining. "Black and red, my favorite colors." However, her budget was $30 — "No higher!" — and the price tag was $44.95, so the Sketchers were out.

The response of Wilcox, a bemused witness to the girls' gushing: "Those aren't like the mary janes I knew. Mary jane has gone astray."

Kai lit up at the sight of a pair of NYLA platform ankle straps. "They're not typical," she declared with satisfaction. (Translation: "typical" bad. "Unique" good.)

Her mother's response: "They look like the shoe equivalent of a Harley Davidson."

Chanson decided to try the towering 6-inch-high lace-ups. "I am Zena, Warrior Princess," she exclaimed as she tottered around the store.

Wilson turns to the other adult in the party and remarks that it seems to be rather difficult to look stylish and walk at the same time. "She can only turn left!"

She goes on to pass an opinion that has fallen from hundreds of mothers' mouths this past year: "(They) seem to be saying, 'Let's pick something that isn't flattering to the foot.'"

Kai, watching Chanson, acknowledges, "This is a lawsuit waiting to happen." Then adds, "On second thought, I'm up for the challenge. They look like fun." She tries on a pair. Totter, bend, shake, catch balance, totter. "I don't think I'd get very far, though," she says.

Wilcox shakes her head: "To me the shoes they want look like vehicles that don't travel well: hydrofoils, motorcycles, double-decker buses."

Okay, so let's see what Mom likes. "Let's go over to the 'old fut's' section," suggests Wilcox, good-humoredly.

The girls wander off to look at a small display of vintage shoes, walking right past the section that has caught Wilcox's eye.

For Wilcox, the watchwords are pretty and practical. "I'm looking for something that looks good without calling attention to myself. It needs to be dark so it can take coffee spills and mud stains. And it has to be comfortable so I can run after stories," she said.

Colors: brown, black or dark blue. "Sometimes I get wild and buy bronze or pewter, but that's my limited idea of fun."

She also likes to have the minimum number of shoes in her wardrobe. "Whereas the girls want to change shoes three times a day, I want to have one pair that will get me to all the places I need to go in a day."

The first pair she picked up was a black Stuart Weitzman slide with a low but sexy kitten heel: "This has a little 'attitude.' I'd wear this one," she said.

Her favorites were black leather Ferragamos with a plain, simple upper and a subtle logo detail on the 1à-inch heel.

And that was that. Simple needs, simple solutions.

Groovin' together

Another fashion track is the one represented by mother and daughter Estelle and Liana Green of Kane'ohe (19-year-old Liana is Miss Hawaii Teen).

Though Mom might prefer a bit more comfort and practicality, both like a fashion-driven look. And because of her work in pageants, Liana Green has more conventional tastes than teens Kai and Chanson, who are at a stage where individuality and being different are important.

"We are both Imelda Marcoses," Estelle said. They each own about 150 pairs of shoes. "It's really sinful. It's an addiction."

They often go shoe shopping together. And they almost always like the same styles. "Except that Liana wears higher heels," Estelle said. She would wear high heels if she could, but a foot problem prevents it.

Estelle Green often buys shoes for her daughter. And it never fails: She always likes them.

But for Kai and her mother Leslie, and the thousands of other mothers and daughters finding their bliss in different parts of the shoe department, the thought of sharing shoes, or buying shoes for each other, is beyond comprehension.