Converse Chuck Taylor All Star: authentic or counterfeit?
In January 2009 I bought my very first pair of Converse ever, and I got them off eBay. I always thought they would be horrible to wear since they look so flat, but I was amazed by how comfortable they felt. When we were in Paris I bought my second pair, a pair of Chuck Taylor All Star Lo-Top Navy as they would be perfect with any type of jeans. I was planning to get a pair of their famous red ones before we left Paris, but I kinda suspected they were fake so I ended up with a pair exclusively to France called Chuck Taylor All Star Lo-Top Monocrome Ox Blanc instead.
And here's where I need your help, people! We all know that most brands are being counterfeited today. eBay is overrun with fake product sold as the real thing, and people keep buying them because they don't know any better. You never have any guarantee that the items you buy are actually authentic, and whenever you buy a counterfeited product you also contribute to the business of supplying the world with crap.
Personally I don't care much for wearing expensive brands or names on my clothing, but in addition to not supporting counterfeiting I really don't want to be wearing cheap copies unknowingly. I've googled and googled to try and find some kind of guide telling me how to spot a pair of fake Converse Chuck Taylor All Star without any luck. Sure, I found websites with information, but I don't really need a website telling me that a pair of All Stars with a marijuana leaf instead of the star is counterfeit. I'm not dumb. I did find a tiny little guide with some interesting information which I based my purchases on, but I later found that not all of these little tell-tales are consistent. One of these tell-tales were the little ® mark below the All Star logo on the fabric tag. I went to a shoe store yesterday to double check their Converse for these tiny details, and found that several of the shoes didn't have the ® mark - so I e-mailed Converse in USA and asked if they could tell me how to spot a pair of fake Converse. Unfortunately they couldn't provide me with any information, but they did confirm that they stopped using the ® mark and ™ mark in their company name and logos in early 2009.
I now have three pairs of Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars in my possession, and I'm completely in the dark when it comes to whether or not these are actually authentic. I did check all the little tell-tales I could find online, doing my very best to ensure that I didn't buy fake ones, but unfortunately there's never any guarantee when you don't buy your products from an officially licensed store.
My question is therefore:
Do any of you know how to spot a fake pair of Converse Chuck Taylor All Star?
Photo © Converse Inc.
Shoe Shopping
I wasn't really planning on going shopping today, but somehow I suddenly found myself at Falkanger Sko AS where I discovered these gorgeous booties. Well, there's usually no harm in looking, but last fall I was desperately looking for a nice pair of booties, exactly like these ones, so how could I leave them behind? I couldn't. Epic fail.
But the truth is that I absolutely love them! Trust me, they look a lot better in real life than in the picture. I got them in size 36 (3½ US), and they look so cute on my foot - perfect to wear with just about anything, and without having to endure any pain in the process. Anyone who's been wearing heels one time or another knows that it can be quite painful, and I can't say I disagree (even though I don't actually walk on them). Sneakers are nice, but not always fitting if you're wearing a nice dress or maybe a cute skirt, and I'm quite picky when it comes to shoes and boots.
Apart from my new booties, Mr. Postman came knocking as well. He brought me a small package from the US containing two nail polishes: Sephora by OPI Iris I Was Thinner (medium iris purple) and essie® Midnight Cami (shimmering deep twilight blue) - two absolutely gorgeous colors! I'm hoping he'll be back with more packages the following days - I'm still waiting for my two prizes from Sleek MakeUP, and a few other goodies I've ordered for myself to celebrate something I'll tell you about very soon. I'm also expecting Mr. DHL to come by sometime during next week, and I know someone who'll be extremely happy to receive a few of the treasures he's bearing - apart from myself of course!
I wonder if maybe a collective M·A·C haul post is coming up? ![]()
Photo © Falkanger Sko AS
Wristlets
Look what Mr. Postman brought me yesterday! Øyvind's mother Else has knitted these gorgeous wristlets for me, and I simply love them. The pattern is very special, but unfortunately it doesn't really come out in picture. I'll try to take another one where I'm wearing them, maybe it's more visible when the wristlet is a little stretched. They fit my hands perfectly, and I adore the color. White and Ecru looks so good with my skin tone, they make me look a little more tanned than I usually am during winter. They are so gorgeous, and I know I'll be using them a lot even after Jack Frost has decided to leave us, to make room for the glorious spring.

A few weeks ago she also sent me a pair of leg warmers, which was something I had already asked my mom to knit for me as I actually needed a pair. Perfect coincidence, and I love them as well. They were knitted in black and white wool, in a pattern I haven't seen before. My mom used to be knitting a lot when I was a kid. We had several knitting machines which was used by just about everyone in the family, to design and make all kinds of knitted clothing. Very cool indeed. I even remember myself designing my very own patterns which mom used for making sweaters for me, and then I remember my dad washing (or rather boiling) them, shrinking them into clothing for my dolls instead - making my mom very angry in the process. I was devastated. Be sure, I've thoroughly taught Øyvind how to wash woolen items, so I'm hoping I don't have to experience that again.
Thank you so much, Else - for both the wristlets and the leg warmers! I really appreciate it, and you know I love anything that helps keeping me warm. Thank you for thinking of me! ![]()

What gift is better than the one you put love and effort into making for someone else? None.
Photo © Shamini Thevarajah '10
Jeans! Jeans! Jeans!
Do you believe me when I tell you that I just had to check out my nearest Bik Bok store when I discovered that they had started their annual 50% sale? Of course you do. I love jeans. Always have. Especially those you can find at stores like Vero Moda, Voice of Europe and Bik Bok, because these stores sell jeans that fit even the slenderest girls in the world - they even sell sizes too small to fit me, imagine that.
Last January I wrote about Bik Bok and their new line of jeans called Never Denim. Unfortunately this post is written in Norwegian, so some of you might not be able to read it. To briefly sum it up I mainly ranted about size and price, and that I ended up buying a pair of White Label Legsley Holes even though it cost 699,- NOK, which would translate into something like $130 USD at the time. Way too much for a pair of jeans, if you ask me - but I couldn't resist it when it was a pair that really fitted me, felt and looked good on me, and didn't give me any problems at all (since I always sit I sometimes experience problems with back-pockets and seams, and most buttons make my stomach itch like crazy). I simply loved them to death, so I splurged the money. In March I found another pair of jeans from Never Denim called Runaway, a pair of coral jeans with ripped legs, which I got at another annual sale with a 30% discount. Perfect for summer, and very unlike anything else I have in my closet.
A week ago I was passing my local Bik Bok store, and I noticed the 50% sale announcements. I decided to go in and have a look, and I wanted to see if I could find another pair of Legsley Holes when I had the chance to get one 50% off the original price. I asked the nearest saleslady, and she actually found a pair in my size. I asked her what the price was just to be sure that they were actually on sale, and she replied: "these are 99,- NOK", with a smile. That's about $18 USD according to today's exchange rate! I didn't really know what to say, other than "yes please, I'll take them", paid for them and left the store - extremely pleased with the fact that I had found another pair of my favorite jeans and got a lot more than 50% off. I barely looked at anything else while I was there, so I decided to go back before their sale ended to look for more treasures. Because of the extreme cold we've been experiencing the past weeks I've been prevented from going outside, but yesterday I just had to get out of the apartment for a few hours. I went back to Bik Bok and found another pair of Never Denim jeans I decided to add to my precious jeans collection (no, I don't collect jeans for real, but I do have a few since I don't wear them out), a pair of really cool Black Label Slinky Lux! Don't pay attention to the picture on their website though, they are actually a lot more white and black than washed out grey, and the one pair they had left in my size was less ripped on the knees which I actually preferred. Seeing that it was 50% off I paid 349,50 NOK, which would be approximately $62 USD.
But now.. no more shopping for jeans for a while! ![]()
Laos by Nelly Shoes
I'm really not your typical shoe-loving girl who's got a closet full of shoes, but some booties are just too hard to give up on even for me. Unfortunately I never wear any of my shoes out, since I'm in a wheelchair and all, so they do accumulate in my closet - sometimes I just have to buy a new pair for the sake of variation. Originally I found a pair of Ash booties when I was browsing through Asos' sale, but £175 was a little too steep for a pair of booties, even though they were perfect. With perfect I mean easy to put on, and comfortable on the foot (not too high heels). These booties did even have a zipper on the back, but still.. not worth £175, which would be around 1600,- NOK with today's exchange rate. So I did my best to forget them, and in the attempt I discovered another pair of booties at Nelly which caught my attention instead. They had a zipper on the inside, which should make them fairly easy to put on, and they looked so cute! I couldn't find any information on what they are made of, but it seems like it's some kind of faux leather, and since they had my size I decided to give them a chance. It's awesome to have the possibility to return them if they don't fit, and at the same time get your money back. One has to love home shopping!
This is the second time I order from Nelly, and this time the order took 9 working days to reach me. Looks like they're shipping from Sweden, so I'm content with 9 days. And I absolutely love them! Easy to put on, feels nice to wear, and they don't make my feet look huge. Perfect booties to wear with jeans, and now I like them even better than the Ash boots from Asos I originally fell in love with. Good buy? Absolutely. ![]()
Photo © Nelly

Uncurable shopaholic and makeup addict with an unhealthy love for everything colorful. Medium dark brunette with dark brown eyes. Also known as KinoGodt or Psychedelic Wheels.

