When I discovered Hi Tops...

I got my first pair of high tops for my 18th birthday two years ago. They were a pair of Etnies and I fell in love immediately! They looked so sweet when they were new, but being 2 years old in the photo they look a little battered!

I wore them everywhere, so much so that they were almost a part of me for a while! The print is just so cool, metallic rainbow roses, pretty apt really, and the pink details, they just ticked every box for me!

The difference between normal trainers and hi tops is that in a pair of normal skate shoes, the plastic in the heel will wear through before they even looked knackered, but these sneaks have been doing me well for the last 2 years and they're still well comfy! Value for money? Hell yeah!

The other thing I love is how good they look, I think it's the fact that the shoe has more to it, it's obviously taller than a normal shoe so it adds something more to the top. Being a size 7 some shoes make my feet look like little canal boats, but hi tops give me that balance.

These are Odessa Dylan G's, they are by far the coolest trainers I have seen. (Apart from the Adidas Originals Jeremy Scott sneaks, but I'll talk about them in a later blog!)

I got these in September and even though I have to wear three pairs of socks to make them comfortable, they're my babies! I just love all the little details, like the strap with the metal emblem on the loop and the yellow piping round the heel. The colours are bright and the material is shiny! I just think they're so cool!

They have lasted really well so far too. Usually when you get a pair of shoes that are more fashion than function they tend to fall apart rapidly. But even after accidentally jumping into a puddle in them, they still look amazing and feel as good as when i got them!

I think Odessa did a whole range of Dylan G's in a multitude of colours, from pastels to metallics and earth tones! I'd love to get a different pair for each day of the week, I think they're ace!!!

Tale of the Converse and Jesse James...

Tunbridge Wells in Kent is where I spent most of my time as a teenager. I lived 2 stops away by train and it was the closest town to where I grew up. My first experience of going to gigs happened in a little venue there called The Forum, which was previously a public toilet building!

The Forum has housed the sounds of; Oasis, Muse, Lost Prophets, The Kooks, Green Day, Coldplay, Biffy Clyro, Alphabeat and Stereophonics, along with many others. Ellie Goulding, who's now at number four in the UK chart, also graced Tunbridge Wells with her presence at the end of January. Although this is an impressive line-up for any venue in it's time, the gig I would never miss was when Jesse James came to town.

Jesse James were a pop-punk band from London, they got together in 2000 and toured in Europe and Canada as well as the UK. Their single 'Shoes' was a massive success in the UK and music channels were playing it regularly! The bit in the song that I really love goes like this...

I think your shoes can say a lot,

'bout who you are or who you're not

so much more than gloves or coats or hats or trouser

s can,

but when i see you out in heels,

then i know your not for me.

but it's a different thing if your wearing converse

all stars

Its just the shoes you wear,

its your shoes that turn me on,

I don't choose to stare,

so please don't get me wrong

This song was a bit of a teenage inspiration for me, I even managed to get the whole band to sign my camo print Converse! Much to my stupidity it didn't click that to keep them that way, it might be a good idea to not wear them! Alas the signatures slowly rubbed off as the canvas disintegrated and started to show holes.

So in 2006 they released their album 'The assassination of...' however this was closely followed by a farewell tour in 2007 as the band decided to part ways.

I'll still remember Jesse James for years to come, mainly because 'Shoes' is Mums ring tone! But also because the excitement of my first gigging experiences was sparked by someone else's love love of shoes!

That's not the end though, in the years that Jesse James were visiting Tunbridge Wells, my Converse became a trademark for me! Imagine it's a warm and clear Saturday afternoon, the sun is blazing. Young people are starting to gather on the common, armed with sunglasses, bottles of cheap cider, packs of Marlboro' lights and dirty Converse. The gig won't start until at least 7pm, but this is the pre-drinks of the underage society!

The days when the Converse army gathered on the green were good times. We might look back on some things we've done and cringe, maybe even regret. The best thing I ever learnt was that you've got to embrace everything you do and never regret, because at one point everything you did was exactly what you wanted to!

(Photography Courtesy of Hophoptuing, Ginnerobot and Marika - Flickr)