Sale season among us

We won't see crazy firehouse sales like we did last year at Saks, but the sale season is among us. It's so hard to remain good when everywhere you look it's like the devil is sitting on your shoulder going "buy, buy, BUY!" So far I've remained staunchly on the not buying it side of the fence, but every day, every slash of price gets a little bit more difficult.

When I went on my DC trip, I had a Sales Associate hold two pair of shoes for me to try on. I ended up getting the Numero Prive in gold glitter, but I actually loved these more -- I just couldn't walk in them.

Whether I can actually walk in them seems like such a tiny detail when comparing that thought to how gorgeous the shoes are. Shoes this beautiful should come with a rickshaw voucher so I don't actually have to worry about tumbling to my death on the streets.

These were the first shoes I tried on at Neimans, and I was worried about chastised for taking pictures, so I took a quick "spy picture". I look a bit like the Wicked Witch of the East from this angle. Too bad I didn't have striped stockings with me.

Christian Louboutin Lady Page in Oxblood Patent, F/W 09

Fit on this pair of shoes is strange. The 37 was fine length-wise, but felt very short in the toe-box. I had heel slippage but could not have gone down to 36.5. There is a small hidden platform, but the pitch of the shoe is so steep that they feel like walking in 120mm without a platform. My advice? These are pretty and pretty perfect if you have a car-to-door kind of lifestyle. Otherwise you and me both need to work on that rickshaw front.

Light on your feet

What's that you say? Another eBay find? It's true, you'll rarely hear me talk about the great score of the century on hard-to-find shoes at a retail shop, but eBay is chock-full of finds like this. The other day I was lamenting on the woes of a speeding ticket and I wrote a haiku.

so many sale shoes
all vying for my closet
speeding ticket blues

So now you can see why the pricier gems haven't entered my closet lately. Thanks to a $600 speeding ticket (not obtained by moi, of course) some of the lovelies I've been eying have been put on hold. Don't worry, I rarely let things like that stop me completely, but it's definitely curtailed things.

Even worse than the speeding ticket, is "helpful" Sales Associates who have been emailing me to let me know what's available in my size. It's like they want me to slip up and just buy everything! (Okay, they do)

No matter, I was doing a cursory browsing through eBay (yeah, "just browsing"), and I saw these with less than an hour to go and the bidding unbelievably low. The shoes were a size smaller than I normally wear in open-toe, but with the open-toe AND open-back, I figured why not. I low-balled a snipe bid and voila, the shoes were mine.

I rarely buy satin, because I don't find it practical, but these are gorgeous special occasion shoes. The color manages to be understated, despite being red and the roses have a multi-color effect to them -- paler on some petals than others.

After trying them on with little black dresses and jeans alike, it's unsurprising that Msr. Louboutin had created another versatile pair of shoes that seem to go with everything.

Christian Louboutin Guitone in Red/Orange Satin, 2005

Fit on these is true-to-size, perhaps slightly large. These are a 36, and the 36.5 would have been perfect, but I don't find the heel overhang unbearable enough to complain.

The Quest for Ankle Booties

For a few years now, I have been trying to find a really nice pair of ankle boots. It seemed a simple quest, but I couldn't quite find something the right heel height, shape or material. I thought I had found the perfect pair in Rock & Republic's Sabra Bootie, but I was thwarted by the fact that said bootie was sold out in my size everywhere I looked. And who was I kidding, really? Suede in Pittsburgh's brutal weather?

I finally decided I wasn't going to find perfection, and didn't want to spend the money to find it for a pair of shoes that might possibly get ruined. In comes Mossimo's Kalila boot (available at target). I had read various reviews talking about the comfort level of the shoe and decided to check it out myself.

After walking around the house in these booties, I have to say they are quite comfortable. The shoes aren't leather, but for the price that isn't surprising.

Mossimo Kalila, Fall 09, shown with American Apparel Thermal Leggings

Next up is a bootie my lovely friend Cecilia recommended to me. (Recommended may not be the right word so much as pointing out to me shoes she was considering, and then me swiftly single-white-femaling her) They looked really cute online, but took quite a bit of searching to find my size. In the end, I sized up and ordered from a site that has easy returns.

The leather and shape of the shoe looks quite nice... off my foot. I can't decide if the shoes are just too big for me, and that is what is causing my "eh"ness about them, or if the shape is just not suited for me. From the front they look fantastic, but the side view is a bit clog-like. This is not helped by the large ankle opening. All-in-all, they are nice shoes. Leather uppers and rubber soles - perfect for rough winters, but I am not sure they are "me".

Me Too Lunar, Fall 09, shown with Givenchy Chevron Tights

Fit on both shoes seems true-to-size. I took a US 7 in the Target boots, which is perfect to wear with thicker socks and tights. The shoes are, again, non-leather and cheap material. I don't expect them to look stellar for longer than one winter.

The Me Too shoes are a US 7.5, and a 7 would probably suit me better, but I've yet to find it in-stock. I think the Mossimo pair may win out, at least to get me through another winter until I decide I've found a more perfect pair.

Diamond in the Rough

Shopping on eBay can be very frustrating at times, but it's always worth it if you are willing to dig a little for the gems. On my recent trip to DC I pretty much trashed my favorite pair of black maryjanes. They are salvageable, and I will certainly save them for dancing, or on rainy days when I don't way to ruin other shoes, but I still needed a replacement pair of black maryjanes.

I came across these shoes when someone on The Purse Forum had posted another of pair of shoes from the same seller. I bid on both pairs, but ultimately lost out on the second pair (black pony hair and lizard heels). Because the seller listed the item with only one picture, and had a vague description, I was skeptical of what condition they would arrive in. They arrived this morning and while the soles are a bit more worn than I'd like, for 80% off retail I'm not complaining. All in all, a great find for an incredible price.

The fishnets are from the ubiquitous sockdreams order. They are quite well-made and feature great diamond-net detailing on the sides (that go from the toe to the tops of the stockings). They don't seem to be available on the site anymore, but are available for purchase at several other websites.

Christian Louboutin Double-Strapper Maryjane in Black Nappa, shown with Leg Avenue #9053

Fit on the shoes is true-to-US size (37). They are a touch big on me, but I imagine as I purchased them used they have stretched quite a bit. Fit on the fishnets is "one size fits most, 90-160 lbs". They are very comfortable and the net pattern is pretty even from top to bottom.

Secrets and Lies

I really need to tell you the truth about my feet: I have fat pinkie toes. It's a shameful secret that I try to hide in shoes that don't reveal this, but every once in awhile I find a pair of shoes that make me want to forget about my pinkie toes (or at least get cosmetic surgery on them).

Nine West is kind of a cheapish guilty pleasure. The quality is decent for the price, and I generally find them pretty comfortable. When these shoes first came out they sold out and I couldn't find them in my size. Since I tend to think (and am usually right about this) that nothing is ever really "sold out", I held steadfast on my quest for these shoes. Sure enough, they produced more and more to meet demand, and then found their way to clearance.

While strolling through the mall with a fussy toddler, I stopped in the store to check if my size was in-stock. It was and 5 minutes of protest and a cursory glance at the shoes on me later, I was wearing them out the door. It was only later, when I arrived home did i realize my pinkie toes were trying to escape the confines of these shoes. I guess I'll just have to relegate them to night-time so no one notices. I haven't seen them in-stores, but they are still available many places online.

Nine West Balboa, Spring 09, shown with Forever 21 Lurex Leggings

Fit is slightly large, but true to my US open-toe size. My feet slid forward in these, but rather than size down, I will just have my cobbler add another notch so I can buckle them tighter. Comfort is just "okay" for the height (4"). I wore them out dancing for hours, and while my feet felt like they'd been through the ringer, they at least didn't look like it.

Time to Scale Back

The Decollete style is one of the most classic Louboutin styles of shoes, in my opinion. A tall, but not overbearing heel and a sexy shape and line to the shoe make them a staple for anyone's closet. This fall brought us the shoe in blue acid python (available at Saks). It's really gorgeous in real life, a deep jeans-colored blue with flecks of orange and brown. Acid python is so beautiful, but I think I prefer the color/leather in an open-toe shoe. Nonetheless, after admiring these online and in-store, I couldn't help but try them on.

Christian Louboutin Decollete in Blue Acid Python, F/W 09

Fit is small, in my opinion. While these shoes might stretch, I have not had luck with python stretching much in the past. Saks (the only stockist I've seen for these) recommends ordering true size, but the pair I tried on is a 37.5 (half-size up from my true size), and seems to be my standard size in the Decollete (that I have tried on, I do not own any). This style is not made for wider feet.

All That Shines

The first time I came across Eileen Shields, was in admiring the Juliette t-strap flat. Not being very familiar with the brand, I had just heard the shoes were incredibly comfortable and I was intrigued. I had spied the Marilyn shoe on shopbop, in an electric blue and proceeded to stalk the website for a sale on those. After awhile, I forgot about them and then opened my email to an extra 20% off code for the website. Armed with the code and a mission on finding cute sale shoes, I saw both the blue and the silver pair were on sale. I hadn't even noticed the silver pair before but I loved them even more. They are gorgeous with the embossed leather that looks so similar to real exotics, a metal tipped heel and the ribbon detailing at the toe. The low heels (less than 3") make them perfect for weddings or holiday parties where you know you will be on your feet for awhile. The d'orsay style isn't quite for everyone, I will say. If you have wide feet it will only emphasize that, especially as these are particularly unusual with the opening on the outside of the shoe instead of the inside.

Eileen Shields Marilyn in Silver, F/W 08

Fit is slightly small. These are a 37, but translate roughly to a US 6.5. There is a slight gap in the heel, but I could not have worn a smaller size. The toe polish is one of my new favorites, OPI's "No Spain, No Gain" from their Coleccion de Espana (available at amazon). It is a true, rich berry that seems to match everything.