Penny Loafers

Two cosmic forces aligned near the same time and the penny loafer entered our school scene.  The first force was that the Stride Rite Shoe Company developed and marketed a "sturdy" version of the penny loafer.  It had all of the essential features...

Penny Loafers - Pencil on 300 series Strathmore mixed media paper.  Click on the image to enlarge.

 ...you could slide them on your feet and they would stay on without shoe laces,.......

Penny Loafers - Pencil and .5 black Micron pen on 300 series Strathmore mixed media paper.  Click on the image to enlarge.

 you could wear them with a variety of sock styles, including anklets, tube socks (both high and low,) and nylons, ...

Penny Loafers - Pencil and .5 black Micron pen on 300 series Strathmore mixed media paper.  Click on the image to enlarge.

 ...they had top stitching, a reinforced shank and heel (no metal toes, however)....

Penny Loafers - Pencil , .5 black Micron pen, and Faber-Castille Indian ink on  300 series Strathmore mixed media paper.  Click on the image to enlarge.

 .....and most importantly, a slot for a penny in each shoe! 

Penny Loafers - Pencil , .5 black Micron pen, and Faber-Castille Indian ink on  300 series Strathmore mixed media paper.  Click on the image to enlarge.

 The second cosmic force that nearly aligned with Stride Rite manufacturing was a shift in thinking by the authorities that created and enforced our school dress code.  For more than a decade only tie shoes had been allowed in school.  The rationale included the need for strong ankles to negotiate the school terrain both indoors and out, and the ever persistent concern that if shoes didn't tie, children would simply walk out of their shoes and run wildly down the hallways in their stocking feet....how would laundering every get the soles of those socks clean????? Plus, there might be sliding, both intentional and accidental, and injuries.  

Penny Loafers - Pencil , .5 black Micron pen, and Faber-Castille Indian ink on  300 series Strathmore mixed media paper.  Click on the image to enlarge.

As I suggested in an earlier post, I also think there was a third reason for the shift, not nearly as cosmoc,  in thinking that was only discussed in the teacher's lounge. I suspect that teachers were also tired of wearing tie oxford shoes and were anxious to explore the world of shoe fashion.  Not only were all students held to the rigid tie-shoe mandate, teachers were also held to the same mandate.  As students, we never saw an enforcement of the rule for the staff, but those "sensible tie oxfords" were everywhere.

Having a mother who was a teacher in another location also provided a little insight into the way in which her school did business.  She and her colleagues would sometimes refer to a part of teacher meetings, from time to time, that dealt with teacher attire, such as skirt length, sleeves vs. sleeveless, stocking (also called hose,) jewelry, make-up and I remember one reference to a discussion about hair.  Women were allowed to wear trousers under a dress or skirt when entering or exiting the building if there was particularly cold weather, but pants could not remain on in the classroom.    Specific dress codes were well established for everyone.

Kind of helps to explain the late 1960's and early 1970's, doesn't it?