John Fluevog’s shoes evade easy categorization. They have a vintage feel, but their distinct era is unplaceable. There’s a Victorian silhouette, a 70’s color scheme and a sprinkling of 80’s grunge. Fluevog stems from the name of a Norwegian town–but also cross-cultural, taking inspiration from Mexican buckle shoes, mirroring their vaguely European style. How can a shoe be so many things at once? You’d expect them to never work: they reach across so many periods, meaning that most of Fluevog’s shoes must be out of style. 

 

You’d think that including so many distinctive times, cultures and styles would strip away the timelessness of Fluevog’s shoes, but you'd be wrong.

 

Fluevog has remained steadily prevalent in fashion due to the brand’s eccentricity. Their flamboyant and camp nature make Fluevog’s designs draw an easy comparison to Wes Anderson’s 2014 film, The Grand Budapest Hotel. 1970s pastel color grading washes over characters wearing baroque costumes while immersed in 1930s architecture. Just like Fluevog, the film mixes and mashes eras.

 

This approach allows Anderson’s films to be consistently relevant as the influence of past decades return. When the 30s are in, so is Anderson. When the 70s comes back, so do his films. Same with Fluevog, he says fuck it, we’ll take the metallics of the 2000s and the grunge of the 80s and mix them together, creating fashion that is impossible to place. 

 

But, it goes further than this. In the age of the internet, trends come and go at lightning speed. Expedited by TikTok, new styles are being created quickly: E-girl, Y2K, new money, clean girl, you name it. How can Anderson and Fluevog’s styles be timeless, despite our ever-changing and ever-critical digital landscape? Remember in 2019, when the 80s were so in? When we were all buying scrunchies? Now you (or at least I) wouldn’t be caught dead with one. There’s got to be a time when Wes or Fluevog just aren’t ‘in’, right?

 

Here’s the secret: there’s no timeless design. Art will always be a revolving door. Colors become popular, then unpopular, then popular again. The only fashion that is truly timeless must be rooted in timeless feelings. 

 

Considering we’re seeing a surge of minimalist fashion following the intense maximalism of 2020, how are Fluevog’s eclectic shoes still in? How are Wes’ films still continuously discussed? The answer is that they don’t dip into the past at random. Anderson and Fleuvog take the parts of the past that feel the most nostalgic: warm colors, intricate architectural details– whether it's the trim of a building or the lace on a shoe. That’s the timeless part. Borrowing from a variety of eras supports their vision, but the foundation is built out of the familiar sensation of nostalgia. 

 

Fluevog’s shoes and Anderson’s films curate a certain vintage warmth, which will always speak to our longing for the past. For timeless is not a trend, an era, or a color but a feeling. Anderson and Fluevog understand this and have cultivated a transcendent branding around it.

 

Bebop - Metallic Orange | Lace-up brogue boot | Fluevog Shoes

Pilgrim - Lipstick | Buckled Victorian loafer | Fluevog Shoes

Lolly - Pink/Yellow | Contrast buckle shoe | Fluevog Shoes