by Cathy Manson

The economy might be depressed[蕭條的]， but the British are still splashing out on wellies. One shoe company has reported sales of the boots are up 673% this year—theyre selling 15 pairs a minute. They thank the snow for our enthusiastic[熱情的] welly-buying. Its true we have had a few cold winters in recent years， but our love of wellingtons[高筒靴] probably has more to do with fashion sense than common sense.

Ten years ago， wellies came in black or dull[（顏色等）暗淡的] green. Farmers wore them. But now shops are selling wellingtons of every colour， decorated with[以……來裝飾] stripes， spots， flowers， animals and even fake[假的] diamonds.

Thats because the wellington boot has been fashionable since around 2004， when fashionistas in New York were spotted wearing them. British model Kate Moss made a splash in 2005 when she wore wellies to the Glastonbury Festival注1.

But the welly has been fashion-forward before. It began in 1817 when the Duke of Wellington注2 started wearing a narrower， simpler boot. Being a famous war hero， men were quick to copy his style and the wellington boot was soon all the rage. It went out of fashion at the end of the 19th century， but farmers， workers and dog walkers carried on wearing them.

So why have they become fashionable again？ Its part of a general trend[趨勢] for big boots： biker boots， cowboy boots and Doc Martens are all popular. Wellies also benefit from music festival chic， with models and music stars being photographed in them at muddy outdoor events. But surely its a class thing too. The British upper classes have an outdoorsy image—often seen with waterproof coats， dogs and wellington boots. This aristocratic connection gives wellies a certain social cachet which trainers[軟運動鞋] will never have.

But retailers should enjoy the welly craze while they can. Wellington boots are probably at their peak now， and will soon start to lose favour. The last big boot fad was UGG boots. Worn by the stars， they were soon so desirable that everyone had a pair—or a cheaper copycat version. And that was their downfall. Now everyone has them， theyre not special anymore and sales have fallen by a third.

經(jīng)濟可能不太景氣，但是英國人仍然把錢大肆花在購買長筒雨靴上。一家制鞋公司報告說今年長筒靴的銷售量上漲了6.73倍，意即他們每分鐘賣出15雙長筒靴。對于我們購買雨靴的熱情，他們感謝大雪紛飛的天氣。近年來我們確實經(jīng)歷了幾個寒冬，但是我們對長筒雨靴的喜愛可能更多源于時尚感而非常識。

十年前，市面上出售的長筒雨靴是黑色或暗綠色的，供農(nóng)民穿著。但如今，商店里賣各種顏色的長筒雨靴，用條紋、圓點、花朵圖案、動物圖案甚至水鉆裝飾。

這是因為大約從2004年開始，當紐約的時尚達人被拍到穿著它們，長筒雨靴就成為時髦了。英國模特凱特·摩斯2005年穿著長筒雨靴去格拉斯頓伯里音樂節(jié)時，引起了一時轟動。

可是長筒雨靴曾經(jīng)就很前衛(wèi)，自從1817年威靈頓公爵穿了一雙更窄更簡潔的靴子開始。作為一位著名的戰(zhàn)斗英雄，人們立即模仿他的風格，于是長筒雨靴很快風靡一時，到十九世紀末才不再流行，但是農(nóng)民、工人和遛狗者繼續(xù)穿著它們。

那么它們?yōu)楹卧俣攘餍衅饋砹四?？這是大靴子趨勢的一部分：機車靴、牛仔靴和馬丁靴都很受歡迎。長筒雨靴還得益于音樂節(jié)風尚，因為模特和歌星穿著它們在泥濘的戶外活動中拍照。但是當然這也和階級地位有關。英國上流社會給人一種熱愛戶外活動的印象——常被看到身著雨衣，腳穿長筒雨靴遛狗。這種貴族背景讓長筒雨靴有了某種運動鞋永遠無法擁有的社會聲望。

但是零售商應該在他們可以的時候盡情享受這種長筒雨靴熱。現(xiàn)在長筒雨靴很可能處于其高峰期，并且很快就會開始失寵。上一次的大靴子熱是UGG雪地靴。明星們穿了它們以后，它們就變得炙手可熱，以至于每個人都有了一雙——或是便宜些的山寨版本。而那就是它們不再流行的原因?，F(xiàn)在每個人都有了（雪地靴），它們不再特別，銷售量也下跌了三分之一。

Quiz小測驗

選擇恰當?shù)拇鸢柑钊刖渥拥目崭裉帯?/p>

1. Shes very clever， but she does such silly things. She has no _______ sense.

A. fashion B. intelligent C. common D. normal

2. Why does she spend so long getting ready？ I think _______ girl thing.

A. shes a B. its a C. it has a D. she has a

3. Hes mad about learning French at the moment. It wont last， its just a _______.

A. fashion B. fad C. welly D. chic

4. I like that sofa. But I dont like it in red. Does it come _______ any other colours？

A. in B.of C. with D. about

5. I know its expensive， but Ive got a bit of money and I feel like splashing _______！

A. about B. in C. over D. out

注1：格拉斯頓伯里當代表演藝術節(jié)，始創(chuàng)于1970年，是目前世界上最大的的露天音樂節(jié)和表演藝術節(jié)。因其以音樂出名，故通常被稱為音樂節(jié)。

注2：指第一代威靈頓公爵阿瑟·韋爾斯利（1769-1852），十九世紀英國軍事家、政治家。因在歷代威靈頓公爵中最為人熟悉，所以他常被稱為威靈頓公爵。其一生總共參與了60場戰(zhàn)役，曾在1815年的滑鐵盧戰(zhàn)役中擊敗拿破侖。