Tag Archives: cage sandals

Average Woman Looks at Springtime Shoes (and what they say about you)

26 Mar

Spring is here!  The weather’s getting warmer, the trees are budding and the forsythia is in bloom!  Which means it’s time to put away the suede shooties and shearling booties (mostly) and start thinking pedicures and peep-toe pumps.  That is, if it doesn’t snow the first week of April….

On the Spring 2012 Runways we saw a lot of what we’ve been seeing and wearing: sky

gorgeous Meredith platforms available at charlotteolympia.com

high-heels, chunky platforms, and barely-there flat sandals in every color of the rainbow (almost) including color block.  This is definitely one of the most exciting springtimes for shoes I’ve seen in years!

But let’s face a few small facts:  it’s hard to get around town in sky-high heels.  Chunky platforms on over 40 legs aren’t always fun, let alone attractive.    So what’s a woman to do?

Christian Siriano "Michelle" ballet flat at payless.com has a trendy keyhole peep-toe.

My favorite fashion guru, Bill Cunningham, recently noticed that women in New York City (a place where it’s important to be quick on your feet) have put the huge heels in their tote bags, and are traversing the streets in ballet flats.  If you have to move fast, nothing beats a good-fitting ballet flat!   I have several inexpensive pair that I use for kicking around in the spring and summer, esp. when I don’t have heavy-duty walking ahead of me.  That’s the great thing about ballet flats:  you don’t need an expensive pair to look great.

That’s not to say that heels and platforms will go by the wayside.  Not at all!  And if you want to wear them, by all means do!  I’m so looking forward to getting into my 4.5 inch red Guess platform sandals that I bought last year, even if I don’t wear them while traipsing through the streets of New York City or to the local grocery store — although the latter can be lots of fun, esp. if I want to turn a few heads…

Which leads me to another reason why you might want to wear some high heels every now and then.  Not only can they lengthen your legs, but they’re great eye-catchers.  Yes, even if you have a husband or a boyfriend, please just admit that it’s great fun to catch some good-looking guy eyeing up your shoes.  It’s a thrill!  I find it even more fun when the good-looking guys are a whole lot younger than myself (shoes are one of those things that are, well, ageless if you let them be.)   This cute little feature from Glamour.com let’s you in on what goes through the brains of men when they’re looking at your shoes.  Totally darling!

For Fun:   Check out Bill Cunningham’s latest on the beauty of springtime in Manhattan  and my Pinterest “Shoe Fetishist” pinboard of cool, beautiful shoes.

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Fashion Find: ‘Atessa’ sandal is a designer look for a fraction of $$

16 May

If you have an eye–and photographic memory–for fashion and design,  you will come across amazing finds in unusual places….

Take, for instance, my local mall (Holyoke Mall off Rt. 91).    We’re not a fashion bastion out here in the Pioneer Valley, so imagine my surprise when I spotted the Worthington ‘Atessa’ sandal at JC Penney.  It has the look of an expensive designer “cage” sandal for the fashionably frugal price of $39.99.  Here’s a quick pic I took wearing the shoes this afternoon:

So similar to what I’ve seen in Alexander McQueen, BCBG, and other collections!

They sport a 4- inch heel (ok, 3 5/16-inches.  close enough to 4) with a nice padded footbed.  All stitching is trimmed nicely so there is nothing poking on the inside.  Beautifully finished, man-made embossed snake-skin that feels and (so far) wears like leather.

Would I wear these out to an important event?  Yes, indeed.  The heel is the right height to be contemporary and non-”menopausal”, and as long as I don’t beat them to death (I can be tough on shoes) they should maintain their shape and shine.

That is, unless everyone at the event will be wearing high-end labels.  Then I might have to break the budget for a pair of Jimmy Choos.

A quick note on buying good budget-conscious fashion:  materials in budget fashions don’t need to last forever.  A good budget fashion piece should last at least to the end of the season.  Sometimes, depending on how many times it’s worn, a piece might last longer.  If stored properly, it can even be used into the beginning of the season of the following year.  Unless you are buying “fast fashion.”  In that case, you definitely get what you don’t pay for.  If it lasts through one washing, you’re lucky.

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