Spats Tabulations (for the curious)
1. Are you:
22% A. Male
78%B. Female
2. What are spats?
90% A. Covering for the top of the shoe and the lower part of the leg (correct)
10% B. Two tone leather shoes
0% C. Leggings (correct in Japan!)
0% D. Leather suspenders
3. When do you think people wore spats? (all answers are correct!)
50% A. Pre WWI
29% B. 1930s-40s
6% C. 1700s
15% D. They still do!
4. Who wears spats? (all answers are correct!)
44% A. Military personnel (6% said only military)
32% B. Women
88% C. Men (16% said only men)
65% D. Fashionable people (6% said only fashionable people)
29% E. Workers like welders, loggers, etc.
26% F. My ancestors/relatives
41% G. Movie stars
(12.5% chose all answers)
5. Have you ever worn spats?
12.5% A. Yes
87.5% B. No
(0 men ever wore spats)
6. If not, would you in future?
41% (15% men, 50% women) A. Yes
50% (85% men, 40% women) B. No
(9% wrote in 'maybe' (0% men, 10% women))
7. Do you think spats are in style now?
12.5% (20% women, 0% men) A. Yes
87.5% (80% women, 100% men) B. No
8. Please list any designers or shops where you have seen spats:
–http://wwwshoeblog.com/blog/spats
–There's a tiny mens haberdashery in the East Villiage--9th St. I think I saw them there. Maybe vintage though...
–Does Mr. Peanut cout?How about Scrooge McDuck? Mickey Mouse wore spats sometimes.
–I have no idea what spats are
–SJP used to wear a pair of Calvin Klein ones
–Camper had a pair of heels with a removable spat (only covered the foot, not the ankle), Oh and I also really wanted to get this pair of boots from Sacco a few years ago that had snap off spats so you either had flats or boots. Turned out the flats were a bad shape though.
–none
–Chanel & Prada
–Never, except for the History Channel
–Tuxedo shops
–Have never seen them in the last 55 years. I think my mother had some in the old halloween box when I was a kid.
9. If not, do you think spats will come back in style?
56% A. Yes
34% B. No
(11% wrote in 'maybe')
10. What do you think is the future of spats?
-I don't think about the future of spats
-I think of them as a top hat or cane
-Actually, I think current fashion is spat-inspired. You know the long skinny jean pulled way over the top of the show, even over stillettos. I guess the tops of shoes are stilll considered unsightly.
-The damdest things always manage to come back once--I doubt spats will be any exception.
-I think they will be very popular unless stirrup pants beat them out.
-need a famous movie star or singer to bring it back in style but it will be short lived.
-Not my style...who knows!
-If anything, a short lived comeback in fashion. Mostly, I think nothing of them as I had to google it just to know what they were.
-I have always wanted a pair honestly. I would love a pair of monochromatic, non-contrasty ones to fit over a nice stylish ankle boot to give the option of wearing knee high boots.
-They might come back as part of the whole new dapper thing, esp. among chic black men.
-I think spats will come back in style as a runway thing (gimmick?), but that there won't be popular or widespread adaptation of them. In fact, I know I have seen them portrayed this way in magazines, but I forget when/where, Kind of like how I got an email the other day about the return of the bowler hat. Okay, maybe for the few, but not for the many.
-No future
-Bring them on!
-You never know, fashion seems to look back a lot, perhaps they will find a new life for a time.
-The cabaret, burlesque thing is big now so maybe
-I'm not sure. i think it would be great to have a standard shoe and utilize spats as an accessory.
-Thigh high tights, leg warmers, thigh high boots, I saw a pair on Zappos that were knee high but had decorative leather overlay that went from mid-calf down over the heel and toe. Boots with built in leather spats!
-only a very limited market (for the flamboyant among us)
-paired with wedges or high heels in bright plaids or dyed leather with unusual textures and unexpected features (eg leather frog clasps) and worn as an alternative to boots
-As long as there are marching bands...there's a future for spats (hahahahaha) Seriously, I think they have the potential to be a "cool" accessory for people/consumers who like to deviate a but frm the "typical" fashion trends. They seem like fun to me!
-Alternative styles stemmiing from spats (i.e. spats incorporated into sandals)
-A bright one!
-They could replace legwarmers
-I don't see a future for them
-I suspect they will continue to be reserved for period costumes, marching bands, and maybe military
-I can see some variation in women's footwear coming back around in the next couple of years--maybe with a high heel.
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Thanks everyone for your answers! I will be presenting my survey results in a small class for work....I found it very interesting to see all the different viewpoints on the future of spats especially.