Trading places

If you recall, I used to have a pair of the infamous "Mad Marys". They were gorgeous and fierce and everything I loved, but I couldn't walk in them (at all). In interest of not hanging on to shoes that I can't wear, I sold them and used the money towards unhurty shoes.

Fast forward to Thanksgiving time. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving, a wonderful lady I had the delight of meeting at a shoe signing last year let me know she found a pair of Mads, the cousin of Mad Mary, in my size for a really good deal.

I had to think about it, because honestly I'd sworn off Rolando-style shoes. (So painful despite how hot I find them) On Black Friday she called to say she happened to be going to the store and she got a 20% discount on top of the sale, which sealed the deal for me.

Christian Louboutin Mad in Black Kid leather FW 08

Fit on these is true-to-size for me. I could have gone up a half size, and they do have the ankle strap to hold me in, but the snugness of them makes them easier to walk in. I wore them for the first time this weekend, hence my talking about them now. These aren't "comfortable", but I can actually walk in them unlike the Mad Marys. I wore them for two hours, and swapped out shoes when my toes started to feel it. I would say for anyone that doesn't have a narrow foot, a half size up is best.

Please note, if you happen to track down a pair in your size -- the ankle strap is SMALL. These barely fit my ankles, and I have pretty small ankles.

Snowed-in DIY and Cap-toe shoes

I've been sewing non-stop the last few days, and I'm almost finished with a DIY version of the Kiki de Montparnasse garter tank. I've been in love with the style awhile now, but I cannot rationalize spending so much money for what essentially amounts to a white undershirt with an attached garter.

Kiki de Montparnasse Garter Tank

My version isn't perfect, and it's not totally done yet, but for about $16 dollars (cost of material and notions) vs. $150, I love it. I still need to attach the garter clasps to the back, and iron it to make it more presentable, but not bad I think.


If you are curious about the process, I drafted a pattern on muslin from a tank top I own that fits me well, and laid a garter at the bottom to approximate this look. After checking the fit on the muslin, I then cut the pieces from the jersey material to sew. I tried this with muslin first because I had some leftover from another project, and jersey is a bit expensive at $12 a yard to just experiment with.

While I was out getting material at JoAnn's, I happened to stop by TjMaxx to see any kind of stocking and shoe deals. You know, for research purposes. I frequently see Tahari shoes there and wonder "do they sell those retail, or are they made for discount chains?" The styles are cute, and I would be surprised if they are only made for outlets.

I really loved this cap-toe style in-store. It reminds me of the Chanel cap-toes I lust after (without the annoying logo), or a new Louboutin style called "Mago" (that is the blue colorway, but they also come in beige/black and grey/black).

Tahari Laura Pump in Beige Kid/Black Patent

Fit on these shoes is slightly big. Pictured on my foot is the 9, but only because I didn't see the 7 until after I took the picture (I'm lazy). The 7 fit big, but would be fine with padding. The heel height was great and they felt very comfortable. They are available online at Endless, and come in black as well.

Black Milk Clothing

Awhile ago (perhaps on a blog?) I came across Black Milk Clothing. I was very intrigued, especially with their Sheer Spartans. I liked a lot of things in the shop, actually. I rarely wear leggings, though, and figured it wasn't practical for me to buy another pair (especially at their prices).

I also saw they had "wet look stockings". I thought they seemed really interesting and the price seemed more decent than their other items in stock. I typically wear heels year-round, and like the idea of a shiny stocking peeking out of peep-toes. They kind of reminded me of latex, without the hassle of getting them on.

I ordered, unsure of what to expect, and then a bodysuit showed up on eBay as well. I used my eBay bucks and the bodysuit was free (still waiting on that gem in the mail).

They arrived pretty quickly, and the packaging was great. The stockings are a little less shiny than I expected, but overall nice quality. I was hoping they would be warm as the website suggests they are, but I don't find them any warmer than other tights. I don't know how to describe them accurately other than to say they kind of seem like really thick dance tights?

All in all, I think the idea behind them is genius, but the finished product doesn't really wow me as much as I had hoped. I am currently trying to learn how to make latex clothing, so maybe I will fashion a pair of stockings that seem more what I was hoping for.

Black Milk Wet Look Stockings, shown with Forever 21 shoes

Fit on these is accurate to their website size chart. These are a large and they fit perfectly in the waist (but a bit large everywhere else -- the curse of being short and thick-waisted).

The shoes pictured are actually a pair that may be recognized by some. I did attempt to clean my closet of them, but I ended up keeping them. They are Giuseppe Zanotti knockoffs that Forever 21 did last year.

The eagle has landed

I made a post semi-recently about the only shoes I was really wanting lately (and was willing to rationalize). I saved up my Amex rewards points and armed myself with a gift card for Saks, because it's easiest to order from them in case I need to exchange (as I have a brick and mortar store here). Well, I ordered my gift card, waited for it to arrive... and then they sold out of my size. I called and called for days, weeks, bookmarked the site hoping my size would pop up. No such luck.

Finally, after about a month of periodic calling and stalking the website, a store in New Orleans had my size. Eureka! I called the store, and sure enough they were there. Except... I couldn't use my gift card over the phone. Really? Really. I couldn't find them anywhere else at this point, so I said send them anyhow.

If you'll recall, I also talked about the not-so-stellar service in the shoe department at my local Saks. Maybe they saw my blog post. Either way, the shoes arrived on Friday, I called and asked if I could return/rebuy so that I *could* use my gift card and they gave me the okay. I had really great customer service this time, and I don't have his card handy but I will update with his information. Incidentally, there were 5 pairs of Louboutins someone had returned from online. Who are you?! They were all my size-ish, and I got to try on some really cool pairs.

Initially I wanted these in black, but after seeing the nude patent on a fellow shoepal online, I changed my mind, and I didn't have a nude patent heel anyhow.

So, here are the nude patent Maudissimas. They are possibly the most unique style I've ever seen, and I'm so happy to be able to own them. I still love the black, so here's hoping they go on super sale.

Christian Louboutin Maudissima pump in Nude Patent, S/S 2011, shown with Jonathan Aston knee-highs

I couldn't help but take a million gratuitous pictures of these shoes (including with knee-highs I thought looked cute with them). I love them so much. As you can see, they are quite a bit darker than my skin tone (or than I expected). I would say these will look "nude" on tanner, more camel-toned skin, but I don't find them unflattering on me.

I ended up wearing them out that very night and I paired them with a vintage dress. I thought they looked perfect together.

Fit on these seems true to size. They are a bit big in length, but the shoe itself is pretty narrow. I ordered a 37, and maybe I could have gone down to a 36.5 but I think my toes would have been crushed. I am a baby about painful shoes. I would say if you have a wider foot, size up a half size, even if the length might be a bit long. I wore these out with ball-of-foot pads, but they need heel grips as well.

Comfort is so-so, not amazing. They are 110mm, instead of 100, and I think that extra 10mm makes them a little less comfortable than I was hoping.

They are available at Saks, Neiman Marcus and Louboutin boutiques. The colors and materials available as far as I know are black kid, black patent, nude patent and royal blue suede.

Goodbye Lover

New year, new resolutions. (reso-shoetions) I am trying to get rid of shoes that don't fit me well. Yesterday I did away with the first pair. It killed me, but I said goodbye to these beautiful glittered babies. They were hard to find, because Louboutin has changed the glitter on his shoes and made them a more refined finer glitter instead of a chunky glitter, but I am hoping I can find something like them again, or maybe try to DIY another pair to make them like these.

I only got to wear them once, to a theater, and I think maybe a lady was making fun of me to her friend about these (REALLY!). Though it may have been the combined tackiness of glitter and fishnets. In that one wearing I managed two blisters and a world of faux hate towards these shoes.

Au revoir beautiful pain makers.

Christian Louboutin Multi-Glitter Pigalle 70mm

In their place I made a non-shoe purchase, some gorgeous lingerie from the Figleaves sale.

What do $8 shoes look like?

I'll tell you what they look like: AWESOME.

I don't go to Gabriel Brothers that often, but when I do I usually find something pretty amazing. The shoe selection is sometimes really nice (I've gotten Theory, Delman and Cole Haan shoes there before), but it's hit or miss as any discount chain is.

I stopped by yesterday and the shoes were a goldmine. All lovely and cheap, probably belonging in Bare Feet Shoes, but I stopped short when I saw these! I think I had heard of this brand, Anne Michelle, before because they did a knockoff of some Louboutin boots I wanted (the Nitoinimois). I'm always skeptical of cheap shoes because they stab my feet, but for $8 I decided it was worth the risk and bought these shoes in both colors the store had. I don't know if I'll keep both, but I think they are pretty great.

All man-made materials, with "leather" on the bottom and a "suede" ruffle. The materials feel really great, and in walking around on carpet in them, they feel pretty comfortable.

The socks were a clearance bin find there as well, from Steve Madden. I can't think of a more appropriate slogan for me.

Anne Michelle Symphony 87 pumps in Black and Pink

Fit on these is pretty true to size. These are the 6.5, and while I have slight heel slippage, the length is perfect. (nail polish is OPI "Give Me Moor")

Socks!

I don't usually do much gifting (or gift receiving) for the holidays, but this year I got a special treat by receiving two of my new favorite pairs of socks. Truthfully, I'm usually more of a stocking girl than sock girl, but I think these may have converted me in the freezing weather.

Both from Sock Dreams, I am enamored with the quality, warmth and feel of these. The first pair is unfortunately sold out (but I think the frequently restock? it's worth an email), but they are the coziest ever. The material is incredibly soft, and very warm for how thin they are. They are a bit more transparent than I'd like, but the pattern and stripes distract from the transparency. A bit more wild than I usually veer towards, but perfect for sitting by the fire (at Panera, as it happens. I don't have a fireplace).

Love Lite Precision Tie Dye Extraordinary Tie Dye Stripes

Fit on these seems more generous than other over-the-knee socks I've tried. Because of how thin and soft they are, would stretch quite a bit more. Unfortunately, that also means they tend to fall down a bit. Other than for pictures, or when I made an effort to fix them, they mostly hung around scrunched at my knees.

The second pair has more stay-up power (because they are a bit tighter) but were definitely meant to be scrunched.

Long Cuffable Scrunchable Socks from Dream Stockings

According to the fit guide on Sock Dreams, the Seafoam color is the smallest band width at the tops of the thighs (as seen by how tight they are) but they are still workable. They stay up but I think they look cool scrunched down as slightly over-the-knee. Were I to buy these again, I'd try to get a pair made a bit bigger as some of the other colors are mentioned to be sized differently.

A convert, but don't worry - I haven't left stockings for dead by any means. I did pick up a few really great pair of stockings recently which I shall post hopefully sooner than later.