Help: my new vintage Bally booties?

jjl

jjl

Registered Guest
Hi all,

My first post, though I've been reading for a while! I'm an avid vintage fashion-hunter who loves the thrill of striking vintage gold :spin:

So I'm currently holidaying in Vienna..and today I found some stunning Bally booties in a charity shop which I just had to buy. They're in absolute mint condition, never worn. Black suede lined with some sort of grey "wool". Labelled "BALLY Wien" with the serial "4 5 2897 18". Could anyone shed some light on a date and any other info for me? Photos below - happy viewing!

**Edit: if it's any help at all, they're marked on the sole as being a size "4", yet my size 36 feet fit into them. Not 100% comfortably, but they do fit.

Cheers,
jjl


Shoes:
DSCN0818.jpg


Sole:
DSCN0820.jpg


Label:
DSCN0821.jpg
 
VERY Cute! As these are made by Bally for the Vienna market they follow the same sizing as German shoes, which is the same as English shoes, and an English size 4 is about a Paris point 36. They are 1950s - the shape of the heel, fleece lining, label type are all from then. The double sole, which looks like a tiny platform is for protecting the foot from cold - they were definately intended for wearing in cold weather! However, I don't think they were salting roads yet in the 1950s in Europe, because if you wear them in slushy weather with salted roads you will ruin them in a few wearings. They started using salt in North America in the late 1930s - but women were wearing rubber galoshes to protect their good shoes from the salt by then.
 
Jonathan, did this style make it into American fashion during the 60s? I remember my mom wearing black suede, heeled booties similar to this, although not as "fancy," with the scalloped ankle and laces. Hers were more plain, but since I seem to remember them pretty clearly, they must have been 60s... Although I was 6 in 1960, so I guess I could remember them if they were 50s, but probably not.

Just thinking this may have been a trend that made its way across the Atlantic several years later, or, because we lived in a backwater area, maybe it just came late to us.....
 
Wow, these are ever so cute!

Where did you find them - at a Humana shop? I live in Zurich and my best friend is in Vienna - I visit her quite a lot and we always go after the secondhand shops. Do you need any more hints re. vintage shopping in Vienna? I'd be glad to help! Neubaugasse is always a good place, there's quite a few, especially at the end towards Lerchenfelderstrasse. The Humana shop on the corner Neubaugasse/Lerchenfelderstrasse is always a good address - but you'll have to go through all the racks... I fished an unaltered 30s dress out of the dress rack that was mostly 60s/70s poly dresses otherwise :hysterical:.

Karin
 
Anne - you are remembering an early 60s plainer, American version. The European styles from the 50s were generally more styled. They look almost 1930s, except for the heel shape and fleece lining. I actually thought they might be late 40s at first glance but the heel shape and label style is wrong, but that double soled bottom is typical of late 40s continental European shoes.
 
Wow Jonathan, thank you very much for your help and the interesting info! I really enjoyed reading about all that and will keep it in mind on future vintage hunts. I'm over the moon to hear that I have mint 1950s Bally's on my hands :wub: Yet they still smell and feel like they were only made yesterday..! I can't believe someone kept these for 60 years without so much as taking a step in them - but, since that's the case, I definitely won't be wearing them except when I'm at home, on carpet, hosting guests etc.

@ Karin: Going after secondhand shops is what I like too - especially in a city like Vienna. Today is sadly my last day here, but I'll be back, so yes I'd love to hear your tips! I'll pay a visit to that Humana today. Anyway, I found my Bally's at the Caritas at Mittersteig 10. They were with some things in a cabinet, with a sign telling people to ask if interested. They caught my eye as soon as I walked in (don't beautiful things just have a way of doing that!), but I had no idea what they were or anything. I circled that cabinet like a shark haha..until I just had to satisfy my curiosity! They weren't exactly "cheap" for a charity shop item, but boy I didn't care.
 
Ah, Jonathan, good to know I'm not losing my memory altogether! Yes, my mom's were quite a bit plainer, as mentioned, but they were reminiscent of the style, and I guess for the same purpose--to wear during cold or snowy weather but not have to put on and take off boots, of slip on and off those silly galoshes with the holes in them for the shoe heels! Those were butt ugly.
 
jjl, thanks for the info! I'll have to keep that in mind, that's a shop I've never been to, I admit :bouncy:. My friend lives not too far from Neubaugasse, and she grew up in the 7th district as well, so that's her "terrain", and there are quite a few good shops around there, and in the 6th as well. I do seem to remember a Humana shop a few years ago around Wiedner Hauptstrasse, near where you found the Caritas shop. The Caritas has some very nice shops here in Zurich too - in fact there's one around just two corners from where I live, and I'm a regular there - both buying things there, and bringing them my old clothes that are still nice, to sell.

Karin
 
Actually, more like all the time Sarah :lol: And it can be quite amusing to see for onlookers who don't understand this vintage obsession, so I've been told..

Thanks Karin! Next time I'll further explore that area. I indeed visited the Humana you recommended and loved it. In fact, I felt that its selection was better than the Caritas I visited - less cheap useless stuff, more real vintage. That Caritas is a big warehouse, with more furniture than clothing. But you never know..I hope there's something nice waiting for you there when you visit! I had a question: do you know any other charity shop chains in Vienna besides Caritas and Humana? I've already left Europe, but would love to have some extra names in mind for next time.
 
Jonathan, if you happen to be reading, something just occurred to me. What were shoelaces like in the 1950s? As you can probably tell from my photos, the laces on these shoes seem to be the modern synthetic type, bound with small plastic tubes at the ends. Were such laces already being made in the 50s, or do you think these might not be the original laces?
 
THe laces that are in the boots are original. The laces are probably rayon, which were being made from the 1920s to the 1970s - there wasn't a lot of difference in shoe lace styles until you get pre 1930 when laces are silk or cotton and use tin tags instead of cellophane.
 
Ah yes, rayon would be right, with that very bright sheen and silky feel they have. Thank you for clearing that up! (My relatives were questioning me on it when they saw the boots. Suddenly, I'm the centre of attention in my family all because of a pair of shoes.. :D)
 
I don't know any other chains of secondhand shops in Vienna, except Humana, I just know a few more single shops. Humana has quite a few (try www.humana.at), but the one on Neubaugasse is the best, as it is the "trend" shop - they get all the good, and real vintage stuff. The other shops get mostly the newer "normal" secondhand clothes. But if you want to buy, say, a dirndl or a fur coat, the "normal" Humana on Neulerchenfelderstrasse is a pretty good choice. There's at least two more secondhand/vintage shops along Neubaugasse - just before you get to Humana, on the same side, is one that has more modern, designer stuff, and a bit before that, on the other side is what I call the "polyester paradise". I always forget the shop's name, and it isn't the cheapest, but they specialist mostly in 60s stuff - groovy :duh:!
I know what you mean about the warehouse-type Caritas store. There's a few charities here in Zurich that operate stores like that, they have books, furniture, kitchenware, toys, clothes... just about anything. The Salvation Army has one like that too. But I've found the occasional vintage clothing treasure at all of these - you just never know.
Humana has a "Stammkundenkarte" - a discount card. Cost nothing, but gives you a few percent discount if you buy for over 20 Euros. It used to be that you could only pay cash there - now they take credit cards too, which makes it even more dangerous :lol:

Karin.
 
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