Oct 12, 20226 min read

Style Diary: Curse of the New Black Shoes

First, let me preface this post by acknowledging it's going to be a bit off the wall. It's going to sound crazy, but I'm going to document it, here, for the sake of gathering witnesses or for the purpose of debunking something that just may be a series of unfortunate coincidences, because when this post is published, I'm going to do the deed I'm afraid to do. And we will see how it plays out. I apologize in advance to whoever becomes the unfortunate soul lost by my actions.

Here's my story:

It started somewhere at the end of the 90s, maybe 1998 or 1999. I purchased a badass pair of black ankle boots with cute crossover buckles. It was my very 1st pair of stylish ankle boots that weren't lace up. Lace ups always worked for my spindly ankles because I could adjust the fit and for years I stayed in that comfort zone. This pair, however, was my first venture into the side zip variety.

I saw them in a shoe store window and fell in love. The ankle area looked fairly narrow, but I was convinced my ankles would look terrible in them. I went inside to browse around and just couldn't leave the store without trying them on. They were so different from any shoe I'd ever owned and high heeled. As a dear friend of flat shoes - only wearing heels for special occasions - I hesitated , wondering if I'd get much wear out of them. They were on the pricey side for what I liked to pay, but I was becoming more adventurous with my style around this time, so experimenting with things outside my usual was worth it. Lo and behold, the boots fit like a dream. Not only did they fit my ankle nicely, but when I modeled them in the mirror, I loved them even more. Bonus: I was able to walk comfortably in them. Almost instantly, I began envisioning all the cute outfits I'd be able to style them up with.

Turns out the very 1st place I wore them to was the funeral of my grand-aunt who passed away a few days after I purchased them. She was elderly and had been ill for decades, but managed to continue living life to the fullest. Suddenly, her health took a turn for the worse and she was gone. As family got ready for the funeral, I picked up a new black skirt suit, but the shoes I planned to wear with it, just didn't work. The suit was slightly on the Mod side, which was trendy that year. I looked over at my spanking new boots and wondered...and then I tried them on with the suit. It was a match made in fashion heaven. Thus began the curse, or a pattern I should say, of me buying new black shoes and someone departing this earth soon after.

Now, I didn't notice this trend until years later, when I started to realize every time I bought a new pair of black shoes, one of the first places I ended up wearing them would be someone's funeral. At first, it felt like luck, as in "I just bought a new pair of black shoes so I have something to wear, already". And then it hit me how often this fortuitous scenario would unfold...for years! It got to the point where even my mother used to cringe when she saw I bought a new pair of black shoes. And then we would cross ourselves and hope nobody died. But someone always did.

It became such a superstition that if I knew someone close to me was ill I would refrain from purchasing black shoes until I knew they were better. When my mother became severely ill I went on a black shoe fast. After she eventually passed away, however, I went on a black shoe feast. After losing her, there was no one I knew who was ill so I risked it all. And, to my knowledge, no one passed away. The curse was broken, I thought. That was 2013.

It was a year or so before it started again. Not just with people who were ill, but unexpected deaths, too. So, again, I went on a black shoe fast. By that time, I had enough of them in every style, for any occasion, to take a no-buy break for a few years...until 2020. During the pandemic I fell in love with a pair of black shoes; on sale for a steal. Granted, it was not the most ideal to be falling in love with black shoes, but the heart wants what the heart wants. A pair of black faux leather sneakers was the one thing I didn't have in my wardrobe. And here they were, super-cute and perfect and on sale for less than $20...AND IN MY SIZE!!

September 2020

Sneakers from boohoo (SOLD OUT)

I knew a relative close to me had been in the hospital for an extended period of time (non Covid-related), so, when I fell in love with the shoes, I simply put them in my cart for later. And then time passed and word came that their condition was improving. I convinced myself that "this black shoe curse thing" was crazy. People had died and I hadn't even looked at a black shoe, so it was nonsense, right? I went online, checked out with the sneakers in my cart and took a deep breath. It was going to be alright.

The very next day, I was on a call with another family member who mentioned my ill relative had taken a turn for the worst. Our call was interrupted with news that the ill relative had passed away. It happened...again. The shoes hadn't even arrived at my home, but the damage was done. I was devastated! When it was all said and done, just like when my mom passed away, I risked it all afterwards and picked up a couple pairs of new knee boots. My reasoning was lightning wouldn't strike back to back. And I was right. Just like with my mom, no one else died, to my knowledge.

More recently, I've discovered another relative I'm close to isn't doing too well, but most of the black shoes I've purchased over the past decade have been falling apart. A broken heel here, peeling there, extreme wear, too tight, etc. The amount of black shoes I've had to trash or donate in the past year has been insane. I'm literally down to 2 special occasion pairs and a bunch of flats or sandals. I have no heels for everyday wear and I'm scared to make a purchase. Fall and Winter are approaching, which is black shoe season, and all I have are boots and sneakers. The last pair of black heels I owned for everyday wear got destroyed at a funeral. They were old, needed to be replaced, and traipsing through the grass of the cemetery ruined the heel. When I got home, they went into the trash. Here's the kicker. The black leather sneakers that were the demise of one relative put me off wearing them for over a year. And THE ONE DAY I finally wore them outside, I found out when I got home that another relative died unexpectedly. That was the 1st time I had one pair of black shoes seemingly responsible for 2 separate deaths a year apart.

December 2021

Should I retire these sneaker? What do you think?

Tee: SHEIN

Joggers: Rainbow Shops (N/A)

Steve Madden Bag: Ebay (N/A)

Now, here we are - in black shoe season- and I'm fresh out of black heels for work or casual occasions. I've purposely put off buying any for nearly a year, but I can't any longer. So, I'm going to roll the dice and pray. Pray with me and let's see if this curse thing is the real deal.

*Note: Before I published this post, I came across the perfect pair of black shoes on sale in a store and I did the deed (September 2022). By the end of the week, someone I work fairly closely with had a death in the family. The guilty purchase can be seen in photos below.