Boden ‘Alice’ polka dot high heel t-bar shoes, £119
These shoes have been doing the rounds on Instagram ever since they first appeared at the Boden spring/summer preview last year, and I have a suspicion they’re set to be one of the big shoe hits of the summer.
They’re called ‘Alice’, and there’s a low-heeled version and a high-heeled one, although, to be perfectly honest, neither are what you’d call ‘skyscrapers’, with the higher of the two coming in at just over 3″. I think this is the main reason my reaction to these is a little more muted than might otherwise have been the case: they’re fabulous shoes, and I adore the polka dot upper, but, me being me, I’d have liked a slightly higher heel, which I think would also make them feel slightly more “grown up”.
That, however, is purely a personal thing, and these shoes are truly a breath of fresh air, from the dotted insole, to the little coral tassel on the front of the t-bar. In addition to the two polka dot colourways shown above, these also come in a range of other, two-tone suede uppers, which are also very cute.
As sweet though these shoes are, I have a feeling they could be a little tricky to style without looking very twee. One way to avoid that would be to wear them with a simple pair of jeans, and I think they’d look fantastic as the focal point of an otherwise dressed-down look, but for this outfit I’ve actually chosen to go in the opposite direction, and created a 60s-inspired look, with a blue mini dress and funnel-neck coat. Just add a big ol’ beehive hairdo and some thick eyeliner to finish off the look!
(P.S Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter to stay updated with the site!)
I think the tassel makes them look very twee. I wonder if it would be hard to remove…
Dear Amber,
I bought Alice heels in pink spots in Boden preview and they arrived in december… Quite early for spring… And I completely agree with you saying they might be difficult to style. I love higher heels. Trying them with a dress was not elongating the leg enough. (5’2″) And I thought the lace looked a bit like a moustache. Maybe It was just too strange seeing my bare legs in a summer dress… I hesitated sending them back, but from France, it-s expensive.
Still the spots are gorgeous. Monday I tried them with a 7/8 salmon pink trouser and the result was very nice. I didn’t dare going out with them since it was so rainy.
And then, the following day, I read your post. (In France we say: “Les grands esprits se rencontrent” i.e. Meeting of smart minds + funny coincidence…)
So you are right: denim, white, plain color or another simple trouser could be the way to style these eye-catching pair of shoes. I keep them. I even have an eye on the purple bicolor version…