Hello everyone! I’m Lenne from ÆTIENNE.NET, and I’m really pleased to be guest blogging for Yesterday.sg.

When I was first approached by Yesterday.sg, I had no idea what I should write about. Being born in the year 1991 meant that I had no blast-from-the-past kind of fashion-related memory to recount, and despite the “vintage rage” in recent years, I’m not a huge fan of that.

So before we delve right into Fashion from my parent’s era, let us take a second to look at a staple in every Singaporean’s wardrobe: Slippers.

I can’t recall the last time I saw Orchard Road slipper-free. In fact, just a few months ago, I saw a Swensen’s campaign in which Mickey and Minnie Mouse were dressed in the “national costume” from various countries. So we had the “Japanese” Minnie Mouse dressed in a Kimono, and the “Thai” Minnie Mouse wearing a traditional Thai dance costume.

I vividly recall what I saw next- the “Singaporean” Micky Mouse wearing shirts with orchid prints and abandoning his signature yellow shoes for… slippers.

That’s right, kids! Slippers!

This led me to wonder: Is this how we perceive our fashion culture? Or is this how foreigners perceive us? I wonder if the artist is a Singaporean.

Look, even the Singapore Girl from SIA wears slippers!

Speaking of the Singapore Girl, here’s a fun fact: Did you know that Pierre Balmain, founder of the House of Balmain designed the SIA Uniform?

This feels like a conspiracy theory moment, but I guess it’s possible that, aside from the practical reasons, the whole Slipper trend may have been a result of Balmain’s influence via the SIA girls!

Balmain of Old vs. Balmain of New

Let’s get back to the topic of slippers before I get completely sidetracked by Balmain.

Since it’s highly unlikely that we’re going to throw out slippers from our wardrobes any time soon, why not use our dependency on them for a charitable cause?

http://www.selfless-shoe.blogspot.com/

Dubbing themselves a fashion brand that exists for social causes, meet Soule, a social enterprise run by three Singaporean youths. Soule’s policy is to “buy one and give one free”. This means that for every pair of flip-flops they sell, they donate a pair of school shoes to a child in need.

I personally feel that it’s an amazing cause, and that this is a perfectly legitimate reason to wear flip-flops despite how much I hate them.

What do you think?

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