Pea green with envy

For about a month I successfully shoe-banned myself. Then these shoes happened. I'm fairly new (and will probably remain that way) to Rene Caovilla shoes, having only tried on a few pairs (I do own those snake shoes, too), but their allure keeps growing on me.

So, back to the shoe ban. I still have saved searches on eBay, and this brand is one of them, you know... in case a good deal comes along. Interestingly enough, just that deal came along last week and I ended up winning this pair of vintage gorgeousness... for $17. I couldn't believe it myself, and honestly I still can't believe no one bid more.

Vintage Rene Caovilla Grosgrain Ribbon, Mesh and Leather heels

With my new green heels in tow, I set out to find a dress for them. Armed with a J. Crew gift card, I took advantage of their extra 30% off sale code (which ends today, the 28th) and found a pretty dress that seemed to match the Mad Men vibe of these shoes.

I know a lot of people aren't a fan of matchy-matchy, but sometimes I think it's pretty great.

J. Crew Leighton dress in Pine

I can't wait to get the dress, and wear it (provided it fits okay). I'll be sure to post the results.

Fit on the shoes is small, but comparable to vintage sizing. These are a 37, and they are fine in length but narrow at the toe-box. Because of the mesh front of the shoe, I would be worried about the integrity of the shoe if I tried to stretch them, so I do not plan on it. In general, Caovilla shoes are not made for wider feet.

On my radar: Minimarket

I have long-admired the Minimarket zipper-back wedges, and when Outnet had a Minimarket sale, I was hoping to snag them. I didn't but instead, I was introduced to their bridge line -- Mini for Many.

There were a few pair of Mini for Many shoes I thought were cool, but my eyes zeroed in on these wedges that reminded me of "ones that got away" (Christian Louboutin Tigresse Wedges in the Zebra pattern). They were incredibly inexpensive, and I thought would be perfect for spring, so I took a chance.

In the order (which I also ordered a Mini for Many skirt -- which ran REALLY small), they arrived in the cutest bag!

Inside the bag was a pair of the most adorable cotton-canvas wedges, and I was even more excited upon seeing them on!

Mini for Many Cotton-Canvas striped Wedges

Fit on these is large. I followed Outnet's sizing advice and ordered down. These are a 36, and the length and width of them is perfect. They are incredibly comfortable, and I cannot wait for this weather to pass so I can wear them!

How I put it all together: an outfit to the Ballet

I know I'm not the only person who "saves" shoes (or clothes) for special occasions. I had just the special occasion recently. I knew what dress I wanted to wear, but was debating between two pair of shoes. In the end, I went for red to match the theme of the night.

These lovely shoes were a surprise eBay find. I think I've mentioned before, "strassed" shoes are decidedly out of my budget, but when these showed up million percent off retail online I decided to bite. Initially when I first saw them, I thought they might be kind of "eh" in person, but for the deal I got them for, I figured I could always make back what I paid for them if I didn't like them in person.

Well, as you can guess, I adored them in person -- but there was one issue. The seller listed them as having a 4" heel height, and when they came I could see they were very much 5"... without a platform. My experiences with non-platformed 5" heels has been that I cannot walk in them. I was pleasantly surprised when they arrived and I found them way easier to walk in than previous attempts.

Christian Louboutin Alta Rita Diam S/S 10

They look so tall, right? All in all, I'm glad I kept them, and even happier to have saved them for a lovely occasion: drinks with friends; then off to a local ballet company's performance of Dracula. The shoes were a big hit, and I felt they added the perfect touch to my outfit.

The dress was a huge discount find from Nordstrom. I love DVF wrap dresses and was happy to have this Svetlana in my collection.

Diane Von Furstenberg Svetlana in "Spanish Nights"

And of course, an obligatory "shoes in action" picture, as pictured with the gorgeous chandelier inside the performance space. I'm sure you can imagine the looks I got when taking the picture (obviously not taken *during* the performance).


Fit on these is small for open-toe, and especially small considering the pitch of the shoes. When I've tried 120mm shoes without a platform, generally I've had to size down a half to a full size. These are actually a half-size UP from my open-toe shoe size, and the length is just right. I have mild slippage with the strap at the ankle, but with strappy strips they were great. The comfort was actually very decent for the height. They certainly weren't slippers, but I wore them for several hours that night with no discomfort.

In the name of LOVE

Sharing these lovely Net-A-Porter exclusives that I scored at an Outnet sale.


This entry also marks the entrance of a new camera to take pictures with, given to me by my own Valentine. It's going to take some time to learn, but maybe the future pictures will be all winsome-blog worthy.

Christian Louboutin LOVE pumps in Black suede with Dorado strass

Happy Valentine's Day.

Fit is slightly bigger than true-to-size. I didn't know this at the time (and Outnet only had whole sizes available) but the LOVE pumps are based on the Ron Ron last (I had thought they were Decollete, which run VERY small for me). These are a 37, and very slightly big. Since they are suede and will stretch, a 36.5 would have been best, but nothing heel grips can't help!

Stuart Weitzman Kimbow

Shoes just keep getting higher and higher, don't they? I've been trying not to go too much above 4" on the heel height (right), but I love these feminine shoes from Stuart Weitzman.

At 5 1/4" inches in height, it's hard to deny their power. Anything that tall automatically makes me think "fierce", but not these shoes. They are so pretty and dainty, a feat for something so high, in my opinion. I am in love with the stitch detailing on the platform. I think I would prefer these as a closed-back peep-toe, but I admit they are pretty great as-is.

Stuart Weitzman Kimbow in Adobe Aniline

Fit seems to be slightly small for open-toe, and especially considering the height (where I usually have to size down because of the pitch). I took these in a 37. Because they are slingbacks, I perhaps could have taken my usual size, but I may have had a bit of overhang in the back. The comfort was "okay" given the height. I think the sling factor might make these slightly more difficult to walk in, but I didn't find them painful.

They come in black, adobe and cream patent. Available at Zappos and other retailers.

Tory Burch does tough girl

Tory Burch seems to be like Coach -- everywhere. Everyone swears by the comfort of the Revas, but they stabbed my foot when trying them on (my toes are very sensitive and the metal plate was hurty). I've avoided the brand for the most part, because I'm not a huge logo fan.

Fast forward to a recent trip to Nordstrom. "Oh hey, those blue shoes are niiiiice." And then I look closer and see the logo (on the inside of the shoe). I felt a little duped, but I'm not going to deny the beauty of these shoes. Plus they are named after me. Kind of.

Tory Burch Erinn

For the non-heel wearer out there, they style comes in a flat version, too.

Tory Burch Courtney flat shown with Erinn heel

I didn't try on the flats, but the heels fit large. I would have needed either a 6 or 6.5 with heel grips.

Note from the Shoe Lady: I'm going to be honest and admit I used to own a very discreet Tory Burch dress.

Celebrity designer doing it right (or at least doing a good job of copying others)

Jessica Simpson shoes have kind of been on my radar ever since she knocked off Louboutin Brogues (I think she did a patent/cork version? I remember seeing them sell for serious money on eBay). I find a lot of the shoes are "inspired bys", but sometimes there's something unique.


The Ely pump caught my eye immediately when I was at Macy's checking out the shoes. Very reminiscent of Ruthie Davis shoes (which I've lusted after but yet to try), I thought the powdery pink with the black was stunning.


Endless has them in three beautiful colorways, but I still like the one I tried on best. Fit was true-to-size to my open-toe size. I took these in a 6.5.

I haven't quite seen anything like these Cheetah pumps. The look of exotics without the guilt (or price, for that matter).


Fit was true-to-size. I tried on the 6.5, but the 7 would have been best for comfort.

Aldo shoes

I had a bit of time to stroll the mall recently, and checked out the new shoes in at Aldo. I was pleasantly surprised by the lovely styles (though some of them were very heavily "inspired by" other designers).

They had a pretty varied selection, but there were three pairs I liked best.





The Flothom, a gorgeous patent peep-toe wedge, had a cool vintage vibe to it. The nude was perfect for me, and I think these would look great with skirts and skinny jeans alike. It came in three colors (nude, black and red) but I liked nude best.



Fit was smallish. My open-toe size is usually 6.5 and I took the 37 in these and they are just shy of being short in length.

I am super drawn to the contrast of nude and black lately, so the Elyce definitely caught my eye. I love the drama of them and the cutout is pretty sexy, I think.



Fit was true to size, though I could have sized up and added an insole to make these more comfortable.

Lastly, since Spring seems so much about wedges this year, the Gayner style. I tried on the beige, so more details could be seen... but these in black were seriously smoking hot.


Fit on these was smallish for open-toe. I took these in a 37.

I didn't end up buying any of them, because let me get real here for a minute -- they felt like death. Synthetic shoes don't always feel painful to me, but I don't like to have to "break in" shoes. These shoes may actually break me.

That said, I may crack and get the Gayner if they hit sales, or I can find a similar style. (Maybe the Diane Von Furstenberg Opal? It has a similar feel.)

More Choos for you

I'm a shoe snob. Along those lines of snobbery, I've always kind of avoided Jimmy Choos. Not just because they are ridiculously expensive (though apparently less so than Louboutins), but because the styles have seemed a little bit... older, more staid. I haven't seen anything really "groundbreaking" or interesting from Choo, but the classics are pretty.

I was in Columbus this weekend, and as is always the case where I'm somewhere different, I checked out the shoes. My schedule was pretty tight and didn't really allow for time to explore, but I did happen to check out the Saks.

In general, I'm sad to say their selection was kind of underwhelming (though the service was excellent). Not a lot of the spring shoes were in-store, and the sale shoes were pretty meh. I did, however, see the perfect pair of python peep-toes.

I typically have a hard time wearing a thicker platform unless there is an ankle strap -- just because they get too heavy, but these felt perfect. Very lightweight and the platform and heel height were just so, that they didn't feel uncomfortable. I don't know that I could wear these for hours, but they felt wonderful traipsing my 5 ft area in the store.

Jimmy Choo Crown in python

Fit on these is true-to-size, at least true to my open-toe size. I took these in a 36.5 and they were great in length and width. I didn't even have any heel slippage issues that I usually do in higher heels.

I tried on one other pair of Choos, a nude platformed pump. Again, I usually have a difficult time wearing platforms. They are usually so heavy and combined with the fact that I am short and have small feet, they become overwhelming both in feeling and look.

Suffice to say, I was skeptical for no reason, as these also fit perfectly and the shoes themselves didn't feel like I was adding an extra 5 lbs to my outfit. The nude color was a bit too yellow for my skin, but not in a clashing manner.

Jimmy Choo Cosmic in Nude Patent

Fit on these seemed true-to-size. I took my usual 37 in heels, and didn't seem to need heel grips to make them work.

And you know, for fun, of course while I was there I tried on some Louboutins since my local Saks does not carry them. I tried on many of the styles (for fit, so when I track them down on eBay instead I know what size to look for), but only took pictures of one pair.

So here's the Lady Peep sling in glitter. I'm totally gaga over the glitter and gorgeousness of the shoe, but I couldn't walk in them at all. Pretty in a rickshaw!


Fit was small for open-toe for me. I tried on a 36 and I think I would have needed a 37 just because of the narrowness of the toe box.

FYI the polish pictured is something from OPI's halloween collection. I don't remember the name of it, but it is a matte black polish. Personally, I prefer shine. The polish kind of looks like I sharpied my toes :/