Red Shoe, Flat Shoe

By now both the ballet flat and the red shoe are well established must haves in every woman's closet. Naturally, a red flat is a must have.

The red shoe in general adds a pop of colour, an element of style, a bit of daring, a hint of sexy... it's red, it can do all that.

The ballet flat is comfort in a modern, trendy way. You're at ease with yourself, you're confident in your outfit. But today, you're not wearing just any pair of flats....you stand out in the sea of feet dressed in their neutral colours, chosen specifically to blend in. You are confident, stylish and daring... and that's sexy no matter who's looking.

BARRE, by Capezio

Shoe Review: Naturalizer, Danya

The Naturalizer Danya open toe strappy sandal is stylish, comfortable and sturdy enough for a night of dancing.  

My only complaint is the Velcro closure used on the heel strap.  This was poorly thought out since the “hook” side is on the bottom, meaning that it will hook into the fabric if you’re wearing pants, a long summer dress or skirt.  It will and it does and by the end of the previously mentioned night of dancing, you will have worn in area on said pant, dress or skirt hem.

Faux leather, non-slip out sole, 3 inch heel.  $80.

Shoe Review: Nine West, BookNow

I love little details on a shoe that add that extra little touch of fun, flair, elegance, or just that hint of something different... like the lace-up on the back of this shoe.

Honestly, I'm not sure what caught my eye first, the lace-up accent or the scalloped sides and high top-line (also called the vamp). And eye catching it is, creating a sophisticated profile for your foot.

It is such a beautiful classic look and will go perfectly with pretty much any outfit, but particularly your little dress, black or any other colour.  They dress up a pair of skinny jeans (just please, make sure that you should actually be wearing skinny jeans, because let's face it, a great pair of shoes will not redeem your fashion "Don't" if, like me, your body was not meant to be dressed in skinny jeans... face that reality, buy other great jeans and move on to buying beautiful shoes instead.)  ... where was I...?  right, great with jeans. 

Anyway. They are amazingly comfortable; soft suede, medium+ heel. Comes in standard black and a stunning look-at-me red.  $125.

Arturo Chiang: Noemy

The tireless black pump. I was looking for a pair with a medium height heel and that is not as easy a task as you might think.

The lightly padded insole and round toe make this shoe very comfortable. The heel is covered and at only 3 inches is easy to walk in.

It comes in black, nude and a stunning dark red.

The right shoe of the first pair I tried on was rather painful across the top of my foot, so I tried on a different pair and was delighted to find that this pair was exactly as comfortable as they're pretty. 

At a very reasonable $110.00 (lower on some websites), these shoes are a must for your closet. 

5 Essential Shoes of a Man: The Rugged Boot

As I mentioned in Essential Shoes of a Man, The Dressy Brown, after a few comments pointing out the lack of content about men's shoes, Julian from Jack of All Travels, has graciously agreed to guest write a few posts about men's shoes.

Here is the fourth in his five part series.

Part 4 of 5 Essential Shoes of a Man: The Rugged Boot

If you look at the shoes in parts 1-3 of the series, I have chosen shoes that embody the essential things a man should be: classy (The Dressy Brown), relaxed (The Laid Back Slip-on), and athletic (The Sporty Runner). This week is no exception. A man should be - big surprise - manly. As the 4th Essential Shoe of a Man, you should own a pair of Rugged Boots. If you don't have 'em, get yourself a pair of brown, leather boots. Here's why:

Rugged boots get you through messy situations (snow, rain, mud, etc.). They're relatively low maintenance; leather is easy to clean and condition these days. They will last you nearly forever (10+ years if you take a little care of them, 5-7 years otherwise). They support your feet and ankles for heavy loads (long days of work, hiking with a pack, shoveling snow). And, depending on what you choose, they look good.

The styles of rugged boots are too numerous to go into much detail here; you've got Timberlands, hiking boots, cowboy boots, steal toe work boots, Euro-style boots, and hunting boots. Personally, I like having a pair of good-looking hiking boots around. If you change the laces to something subtle, they do very well pretending to be all of the boot styles and are the most comfortable of all the Rugged Boots out there.

Be prepared to drop some dough on a good pair of boots, leather isn't cheap, and you're buying something that lasts you 10 years (Asolo TPS 520 shown, $289). It's a lot of money, but it's a good investment and essential for your manhood.

Thanks for reading part 4, the Rugged Boot, of the 5 Essential Shoes of a Man. Check back soon for the finale of the series: The Casual Nike.

The Trend: Glitter and Caps

When it comes to fashion and trends, I've traditionally been a little bit late on figuring out what is going on.

In case you're like me, I can't help you with the fashion trends in clothes... or jewelry... or hair. But luckily, we're talking about shoes!

The two prominent trends I've noticed: glitter and cap toes.

So, whether I like it or not, it seems that glitter is here to stay for while. Therefore it's worth looking around at who does it the best because honestly, those first shoes at Nine West were just atrocious! While I'm still not a big fan, Nine West made a significant improvement with Sheryl ($135). The glitter is all over the place, from the already mentioned NW to Jimmy Choo. My advice, pick a classic design for the shoe and go with a very fine glitter in either silver or gold so that it will not be completely dated by next fall.

Nine West

Jimmy Choo, Abel

Next, toe caps.  I quite like this look. It's not new but let's face it, very few things in fashion are. However, the way it's being done this time around, mixing it with many other current trends, is resulting in some really beautiful shoes!  One trend right now seems to be metal and other shiny material (seriously, who can resist shiny?!) Again, Nine West has a nice example with the Baroque ($125).  And this trend is also seen across the board; I really like these beautiful twotone pumps by Narciso Rodriguez.

Nine West

Narciso Rodriguez

And just to completely solidify these two trends, let's combine them into one shoe!

Giuseppe Zanotti

Christian Louboutan, Maggie

Shoe Review: Boutique9, Geniffer

Warning: These sandals are not for the faint of heart... or, feet.

This is Geniffer by Boutique9. The heel is high, the platform is high. If you're not used to walking in heels, you may want to do a bit of practice before heading out in these! But, once you have your stride down, damn! They're nice!

Key features I've mentioned the past that give comfort to a sandal are present here: wide straps eliminate pressure points around the ankles and heels and the insole is continous with no break at the toe (one of my pet peeves about sandals!) making this sandal surprising comfortable.

The raffia wrapped heel is 5 inches and the stacked platform is 1 inch. 

Currently on sale for anywhere between $85-$100... we still have enough summer left, go ahead!

Now, I'm going to go practice to be ready to hit the dance floor in them this weekend...