And I Want Those Shoes

By 6A Alex Tsang

 

    Having a tight budget changes your lifestyle and psyche, but it never reaves my desire to indulge myself in fashion. Or does it? From walking to schools, to traveling on the bus, there are always distractions that catch our eyes. Take the Versace x H&M advertisement as an example- embodied on skyscrapers, printed in alluring colors, featured top models in vogue and clothes from Versace. When the sun enlightened the scenario with halo, magic happened. It was the finest thing on earth, comparable to Pablo Picasso’s paintings. So later the day, I went to the H&M store, picked up the Versace shirt, handed it in to the counter where I found my wallet void with a hundred dollar. That moment, fashion slammed me in the face.

    Granted, wearing a Versace shirt is worth anything but that moment of embarrassment had dragged me in a dreadful plight that I went out of words. After all, it was vanity that drives us into a believer in brands like Louis Vuitton and Givenchy. The unsullied silk, polished leather with labels tagged at the bag unleashed our possession to search for those superior goods. Yet, underneath the labels are numerous figures and debts. So what drives us to pass that money we have toiled for to the salesperson?

  Patently, the brands themselves cause an abracadabra on us. Advertisements of those branded goods always project a fantasy as if the products are magic tools that change life and matters. For most of the city dwellers living in Hong Kong, a fast paced city crowned the title of international financial center, the atmosphere of affluence is everywhere. A Chanel leather clutch doesn’t only look good. It offers a voice to the user. It is elegance and grace. Given the picture, we can just let our mind be taken over by those commercial images. To overcome the baptism of fire, we should think about wants and needs which are, indeed, two different matters.

  Wants are unlimited. We crave for more as we satisfy more. The situation happened when we had our first sneakers. At first, we bought one pair from Adidas, with white strips on black suede. A few months later, other sneakers were displayed in the glimmering store’s window. The sneakers were a mix of materials of vibrant colors. Undoubtedly, that was the one that fitted your feet at that time.

  

Needs, however, tell a different story. That vibrant colors-coated sneakers were indeed not what you needed. Instead, that pair of classic Adidas was doing a good job in fitting your feet. It was a classic design, everlasting. What’s more? It could go with anything ranging from jeans to chic leggings. So do you still need those pairs of  new sneakers?

   Having said that, still, I always succumb to fashion, regardless of the budget I have. In theory, I have a good budget control. In reality, I lose my budget to designers’ goods. And the next time, when I walk past the store where a pair of sneakers was being nicely displayed, I will still say ‘I want those shoes.’ What a guilty pleasure!