PRADA F/W '10 Men's RTW Runway Fringe Loafer

With my depressingly-short time in south Florida all but a sweltery memory and the last remnants of a golden Miami Beach suntan fading from my skin, I am hunkered down, shoulders into the wind, and ready for a cold, traffic-crippling winter in the nation's capital.  ...at least, for the next three days anyway, before I fly to southern California.

Readers might recall a posting on the Bal Harbour shops in Miami Beach, in which I chronicled my haute adventure in what could possibly be most America's most swank "mall"(collection of boutiques.) While, upon reading that post, it may have seemed that I communicated all there was to tell about my experiences at Bal Harbour, I purposely left one additional story out, as I believed it was special enough to warrant its own post.

While the Prada boutique at Bal Harbour contained most items one could wish for from the then-current F/W collection, there were several items noticeably missing: the runway shoes directly below (continue reading):

There was something incredibly odd, original, vintage and modern about each of these shoes that only Prada could pull off--it's as if they were caricatures; modern versions of classic shoes. (Think: the minimalist, modern but traditional suits in 2001: A Space Odyssey.)  See below how seamlessly they pair with slim-cut dress pants.  (I'm purposely ignoring the oddly-proportioned non-seequitor coat.)  

I decided I needed to see if I could pull these shoes off.  The extremely limited stock of select styles (not to include any color variations of the fringe loafer) had been immediately sold out at the Prada boutique, the associate apologetically tells me: strike one.  Try Neiman Marcus he helpfully suggests.  No one in the men's department has any idea what I'm referring to when I get there: strike two.  I walk to Saks Fifth Avenue, where I find the pair below...

 ...in an exquisite oxblood color, but in a Lilliputian size that I squeezed into for approximately 10 seconds to take those photos: strike 3.  These weren't a total loss however.  To me, the fringe detail stood out just a bit too much for my tastes to render them unwearable as a daily work dress shoe.  Now...to track them down in a solid color...

Fast forward one month: dark brown, in my size, acquired.  My methods will remain proprietary as the best prestidigitators never reveal the secrets to their best tricks.  Please enjoy the fruits of my labor, I am whole-heartedly delighted with my sleuthing: