Instagram: @kristins / @braindrizzles
Kristina Ermolenko,
SVA, Creative Strategist
Today I’m going to share a story about a pair of shoes that I don't have many associations with yet, but I think they’re the start of something big.
I remember that the day I bought them started off terribly. I had a silk screening class that morning and I had tried too hard and ended up spilling black ink all over myself — from top to bottom. I had black ink in my hair, in my clothes, I even tried to wash my t-shirt and skirt in the bathroom because it was a total mess. It was somehow also that same day when I needed to take a photo for my New York ID. It was stressful because, I’m a girl you know, and I wanted to have a nice picture.
So this is what happened that led me to letting myself be a bit indulgent; to spend some time away from school, and to go explore a bit.
I'm also a huge fan of Issey Miyake. When I visit his store, it’s almost like going to a museum for me — I walk around and look at the collections to get inspired. So I went that day just to see things and to enjoy the experience. That is, until I encountered this beautiful pair of shoes that blew my mind. At first I thought, I'm just going to try try them on, and of course the second I put them on I loved them. But I forced myself to take them off and leave the because they were just too expensive.
Coming out of the store I walked just one block before calling my mom to tell her about these amazing shoes and next thing I knew I had turned around and gone back to buy them. And I was so happy.
And you know how people say that it’s just a short happiness when you buy new shoes? Well this wasn't just a short happiness, it's long term. I'm actually still experiencing it every time I wear them and they make me feel more confident. This year I'm trying to wear them when I'm presenting. I think wearing them for presentations started out as a way to get people to not pay attention to my face but rather look at my feet, like a distraction. But I also think that these shoes have a lot in common with my future; I love them and hopefully they represent me as a person because I want to be as cool as they look.