MAYBE NOT

Royal Fashion Dilemma #2: Blue Suede ... Desert Boots?

‘The dancing vid is very cute. The blue suede shoes are not.’

When Prince Harry took to the dance floor in Jamaica yesterday for a boogie to ‘One Love’, it was hard not to be distracted by his blue suede shoes.

They were the same style—‘Chuck’—as the desert boots Harry has been sporting throughout this trip, and both pairs of shoes come from Britain’s sloaniest clothing chain store, Russell and Bromley. Cost: £115.

But are his desert boots an inspired piece of shopping or a crime against fashion?

The jury is still out.

Charlie Anderson, a fashion stylist who has been linked in the press with Princess Beatrice (but won’t comment herself on any royal connections) says, “The dancing vid is very cute. The blue shoes on the other hand aren’t. A better blue shoe from Russell & Bromley would have been their Tod’s style loafer. 0148

And what about buying two boots of the same style? “It shows he’s a ‘real guy’, and shopping is a chore not a pleasure,” says Anderson. “He’s not a fashion guy or a celebrity, so credit should be given for making a statement. When real guys make a bit of a fashion statement they should be praised—and then subtly yet firmly steered in the right direction.’

Bill Prince of British GQ however, approves of the typically male bulk-buying approach to fashion: “If Harry had ten pairs of these boots in the same colour, that would suggest a distinct lack of sartorial flexibility. But there’s nothing wrong with finding a style that fits and exploring the range.”

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Tom SykesEuropean Editor at Large

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