golden

What:  size 8 glitter and sequin gold peep toe pumps with 2.5 inch heel
From:  Talbots (clearance store)
Purchased:  April 2011
Cost:  $16

They made it to 80% off!  So I could not pass them up.  These are totally impractical.  Seriously, how many times in your life will you wear gold glitter pumps?  I know a lot of people that will never wear glitter shoes once in their life, and I think they're perfectly fine with that.  But these are comfy.  And, well, tasteful.  For a gold glitter pump, that is. 

Right after I got them I wore them out to dinner with rolled jeans and an olive green jacket.  Sort of the juxtaposition of hard edge and fancy.  I guess it worked, and I could probably wear something like that a couple of times a year. 

But I never have fancy things to attend where these would work.  No fancy holiday parties, no super fabulous dress up dinners out, no fancy theater or orchestras......once again, my shoe mantra - I need a more fabulous life to match my shoes!  Sigh. 

bottom line:  keeper

black peep toes

What: size 8 black platform peep toe slingbacks with patent accents and flower bow on front
From:  AK Anne Klein (Lord&Taylor)
Purchased:  May 2011
Cost:  $32

Shoe-mageddon, which I still haven't covered, wiped out my black shoe collection.  Really, I had a number of black shoes that were staples in my wardrobe that just had too much wear, and TSM did a great job encouraging me to discard them.  

These hurt the most to discard - loved those sandals, but it was time.  When I wrote about them, I said I needed a slightly dressier, lady-like pair to replace them, and in the late spring, I started seeing some candidates in Lord&Taylor ads.  And so when a huge coupon coincided with a big shoe sale, plus an already planned trip to Friendship Heights, I was on a mission.  Tried on 4 pairs of black peep toe slingbacks and settled on the ones pictured above.  They're definitely dressier then the ones I discarded, which filled a niche of sandals-that-could-aspire-higher, but that niche is difficult and I needed the dressier shoe, since shoe-maggeddon also resulted in these going away, too.  OK, yes, I still have these, but I feel like they're not quite the same - I bought leather (with patent accents), and that last link is all patent, plus I think not quite as, well, for want of a better descriptor, lady-like for full skirts.

I'm still on the hunt for a low-heel almost-sandal (kitten heel, maybe?) that can be worn with skirts, but I was, and am, super satisfied with this pair, especially at the bargain price I got.

Bottom line:  keeper

Thurday: brown peep toes

What:  size 8.5 N croc-embossed brown sling back peep toes with 3-inch heel
From:  Talbots (clearance)
Purchased:  Late August 2011
Cost:  $32

When I saw these on the clearance racks of the Talbots clearance store I snapped them up immediately.  I've long complained about not having dark brown shoes - I have a lot of tan, or varying shades of brown, but plain simple dark brown has not been easy to find.  These are narrows, but once again they're not really that narrow. 

I've worn these a lot end of summer into early fall.  They are mostly perfect, though sometimes in the office the shoes squeak and the heel slides a little on marble floors.  But still, good buy.  No regrets.  The perfect fall/spring shoe - today might mark their last wearing until early spring.  If I was really following the strict one in/one out rule, I'd get rid of these brown slingbacks that I've never really loved.  Although the front of those is a little beat up, they're still good shoes, and a slightly different niche as they are not peeptoe, and a lower heel, so maybe I will hold onto both for just a bit longer.  We'll see. 

Bottom line:  total keeper

April 11 - red patent!

What:  size 7.5 red patent peep toe platform slingbacks
From:  AK Anne Klein (Lord&Taylor)
Purchased:  summer '07
Cost:  $40

Can't believe I didn't find way to wear these this past summer, but high heel red patent platform slingbacks aren't exactly my lifestyle right now, you know?  Oh, I do love these shoes, though.  These are the ones that started me on my AK Anne Klein kick, and later that same year I bought a pair of very similar but slightly different brick red patent slingback peep toes.  I grabbed these off the clearance racks and tried them on almost as a lark, and was surprised at how well they fit.  Love at first try on. 

But look!  City living is hard on heels.  One wrong step into a grate or coming off a curb and you get a little heel tear.  Sob!  This one isn't that terrible, but it certainly takes  away a little from the shoe.  I have never tried, so I wonder if that can be repaired, or if there is a way to prevent it from happening.  Oh well.  I need to learn to happily wear my shoes out and about in the city, and then gracefully let them go when it is time.  It's not time for these, yet, though!

Shoe-maggeddon has caused me to covet some new shoes, though, and I have my eye on several pairs of AK Anne Kleins for this summer, but with a much lower heel.  We'll see if I can score some good prices!  

Bottom line:  Keeper! 

March 24 - blue peeps need fashion advice

What:  size 8.5 nude peep toes with blue suede band and gold buckle
From:  Talbots (outlet)
Purchased:  fall '08
Cost:  Hmm.  $35

Last week I was writing about what I thought was the last of the shoes in the shoe wardrobe, but then these caught my eye.  So now finally here are the last of the shoes from my shoe wardrobe piece of furniture.  I liked these a lot from the spring '08 line at Talbots, and watched for them at the outlet.  The 8s were waaay too tight, and even these 8.5s pinch a wee bit on the sides, but they're definitely wearable.  I bought another pair of shoes from this line at super discount the next spring. 

Last week I wrote they matched a pair of pants that needed to be hemmed, and I was going to wear them, but big surprise did not get around to hemming the pants.  But I really thought I had the makings of a good outfit, so gathered it all up together.  Taupe pants, navy tshirt, and taupe jacket with gold thread (a 100% Talbots outfit, which I actually try not to do, but you go with what you have - oh I'd also wear gold jewelry and that's not Talbots, so whew.).  But now I'm not sure, so I need fashion advice.  The taupe of the shoe, the jacket, and the pant are slightly different.  (Taupe is a color that bedevils me and my trying-to-surpress-matchy-matchy mindset.)  I think the shoes might go with the pant (though it's a little questionable), and the shoe does go with the jacket.  But not sure the jacket and pant go?  

Maybe I need to hem the pants and put it all on and see?  Because they're all just neutrals that cancel each other out, letting the navy and gold pop?  Because if it does work it is a great outfit for Spring (hmm, Easter?).  I think it might work better (though certainly more casual) with jeans.  So if these pants aren't the right pants for the outfit, what would work?  Slightly more khaki-colored pants?  Not navy pants, then I'd need a different top?  What friggin' color would the top be, then, with navy pants?  (White dress shirt?)

What do you think of the outfit?  And if not that outfit, how would you wear these shoes? 

Bottom line:  shoes are keepers, though not sure how to wear

And a big PS.  I am starting to get nervous.  So by the end of February, I had shown 157 pairs of shoes + 24 days so far in March = 181.  The big shoe sort is scheduled for April 8, so 15 more days.  Will I finish going through the shoes in 15 more days?  I am not sure I will.  Off the top of my head I can count at least 12 more pairs, easy, and that's not all of them!  Do I have 200 PAIRS OF SHOES IN MY HOUSE??!!  Gulp.  Even with the 25+ already discarded, that is a freaking large amount of shoes.  I half-watched an author on the Today Show this morning talk about her new book, Lost and Found: Unexpected Revelations about Food and Money.  I may have to get this book (from the library!). 

Ok, but when I think of this more calmly, I think of spending $600 a year on shoes, and in the grand scheme of things, that's not really all that terribly much.  Not chump change, but as TSM tells me, if this is my hobby, I'm not spending more than many other people on their hobbies.  And, given that I never get rid of anything, the accumulated piles should not be that surprising.  But it does make me pause in that we live in a 1600 square foot house (not counting attic or basement, which pushes it up to probably close to 2800 square feet).  I will get through these shoes, eventually.  And then I will commit to decluttering again.

March 23 - black patent peep toes

What:  size 7.5 black patent peep toe slingbacks with platform and bow detail
From:  Anny Taylor
Purchased:  late winter '08
Cost:  $30 - the box says $60, and I distinctly recall them being 50% off (unlike yesterday's which I don't think were that cheap)

You know what I really need?  The iphone4, with the flash on the camera.  Deep black colors are just too saturated to photo well without a flash.  And yet it is so much easier to photo with the phone and email the pic and get it posted that way, so hence, crappy pics.  Anyway.
 

Another pair from next to my dresser, and another pair never worn.  The good part about pulling these shoes out and at least trying them on, if not full on wearing them, is that I usually remember what I first liked about them.  I haven't had much occasion for dress shoes lately, and as I pulled out the box I thought these were very dressy shoes.  But they really aren't super dressy, by which I mean too elaborate to wear for every day use.  Essentially, these are functionally the same as these - nicer in many ways than the Naturalizer, but the platform means the heel isn't really high.  The sides are slightly pinchy, but not terribly so - I was surprised the 7.5s fit, but I recall the 8s were just too loose. 

The Naturalizer ones are really shot (they are flimsy with no support), and actually not all that comfortable (around the peep toe).  These Ann Taylors should be the replacements for the Naturalizers.  They really should.  I've been walking around this morning wearing both and seriously I need to just discard the Naturalizers.  Hmmm.  OK, the Naturalizers are out.  I can make that decision even without TSM's push on the 8th of April, the day of the big sort.   Now I need to figure out how I want to go back and account for delayed discards..... edit the old post, link to this one, and account in this month's tally. 

Bottom line:  keeper! And discarding another! 

March 22 - black lace

 

What:  size 7.5 black lace peep toes with bow

From:  Ann Taylor

Purchased:  late winter '08

Cost:  $30 - the box says $40, but I definitely recall they were a percentage off, I think 25%

OK, so the shoes I own but have never, ever worn make me feel slightly ill and extraordinarily wasteful.  Perhaps I should put them for sale on ebay, though I doubt I'd get much interest.    But, really, I need to think of these purchases as sunk costs, as in the purchase happened, and now I own the shoes.  Deal with the present, not the past. 

For whatever reasons, in the early part of '08 I ended up buying a fair number of dressy clothes (major scores at post-Christmas sales).  I had a new job, maybe, and a new outlook on life in general, and so I was drawn to dressier, more adult items, including these shoes.  And then I was pregnant with Andrew, and the new job ended, and the Wearing Of The Pajamas period of my life began.  (I have GOT to get dressed for real today! Though I should say I put these on and walked around for a good period of time, ok 15 minutes, and they are perfectly comfortable - as I recall, the 8s were just too big, my foot slipped out of them.)  I do like these shoes, though, and I do have numerous things to wear with them, if I ever went out.  Lace was huge this past year, and will probably be big again next, so maybe by next fall I'll have an occasion to wear these.  Whatever, they are super cute.  

Working through the stack next to my dresser.  I think I am going to officially designate the top shelf of my closet for nicer, dressier shoes, so these will go live there.  I got rid of a BUNCH of shoes (4 pairs!) from that shelf so there is plenty of space. 

Bottom line:  keeper

March 16 - black peep toes

What:  size 8 black peep toes
From:  Talbots (outlet)
Purchased:  '07-'08
Cost:  Hmmm.  $24  guessing

So I had a pair of black patent peep toes that I liked a lot, though they were a bit uncomfortable, and were getting a lot of wear.  So then when I saw these on the clearance rack at Talbots, I snapped them up as an alternate pair of black peep toes.  These are pretty cool - the pic doesn't show it too well but they also have cutouts on the sides which makes them interesting.  They are getting a bit worn and the fronts rub a little on my toes, but they are fine shoes.  Better for an office job, but still perfectly fine. 

Bottom line:  keeper

March 15 - can these shoes be saved?

What:  size 7.5 dark brown peeptoes with gold buckle
From:  Etienne Aigner (bought online)
Purchased:  '06
Cost:  $40

Oh, these shoes annoy me.  Once again I tried a 7.5, and they were tight, but worked fine.  I really really coveted these and bought a far higher price point because I thought they'd get so much wear.  So I had brown slingbacks, but for some reason I did not love the brown slingbacks.  And then I fell in love with these and knew they were the answer to my problem and I constructed whole outfits around them.

But can you tell what the problem is?  Is it subtle enough that it's not noticeable? 

See the gold buckle?  Apparently my stupid feet are so wide they busted open the gold buckle across the front!!!  ARGH.  I've had them in storage under my bed for a while now, and I bring them out every once in a while and wonder if they can be saved.  I don't see how, but then again I am not a clever cobbler, so I need to get these to a GOOD shoe repair place and learn for sure one way or another so I can move on.  And then I also wonder if it's really just subtle and no one would notice but come on, it's pretty obvious once you spot it.  But maybe that means a fix could happen that would just trick the eye enough that it would work.  Grrr.  These really are good shoes. 

Bottom line:  Cobbler? 

November 27 - pink bows

What: size 8 pink satin peeptoe slingbacks with bows
From: Talbots (outlet)
Purchased: 2008 +/- 1 year
Cost: $20

I had seen these at Talbots and took note of them, but they were way too expensive and impractical. But then I ran across them in the outlet clearance center, and they were super cheap and still totally impractical, but I had to have them. So cute. I wore them to a black tie event in NYC in 2009, and then again this day to a wedding. Totally comfy (heel is not too high), totally cute, still pretty impractical. But you never know when you might have a chance to wear hot pink satin shoes with cute little bows on them! I hope to have many more chances.

Bottom line: keeper!

October 27 - ruby patent peeps

What: Size 7.5 dark red patent peep toe slingbacks with 3.5 inch heel and slight platform
From: AK Anne Klein (Lord and Taylor)
Purchased: 2007
Cost: $40

Love these shoes. But they are too high for any sort of regular wear. I actually wore them on the 26th - on Rich's birthday, he worked downtown and finished up early. I drove downtown to meet him and have a drink, and then we went home, got the kids, and Metro-ed back downtown to go out to dinner. I wore these for the driving part of getting downtown, scored great parking, and just knew there was no way I could walk from home to the metro with a stroller and two kids, then walk to the restaurant and then do it all in reverse. Kids are not conducive to a high heeled lifestyle. And let's face it, I'm also out of practice - I'm just not as comfortable in higher heels as I once was. Still, these are great shoes, comfortable and stylish.

Bottom line: keeper

October 1 - stalked heels

What: size 8 high heeled plaid peep toes
From: AK Anne Klein - cyber stalked not sure where
Purchased: 2008
Cost: $40 ?

I've written before that I went through an AK Anne Klein phase in 2007-08. I saw these shoes online and fell in love and cyberstalked them for a while. I can't remember what price I finally paid or where I got them, but I know I watched them for a while. (hmm, I may go back through my bank statements!) But once I got them, they waited in their box. I just never had the occasion or outfit to wear them. The heels are awfully high, so it has to be the right occasion, and while I love the glen plaid, I just don't know how to work it. The heel is brown, and the buckle is gold, and there is a bronze-y trim, so I think they'd go well with brown dressy trousers, of which I own zero. But then what else? Dark brown pants, red sweater? (what under the sweater? white? tan?) Dark brown suit with skirt (I own one), and red top? Tan pants/skirt with blue top and carry red bag?

I wore them out to dinner with friends with cuffed jeans, a red t-shirt, olive green cord jacket, and green long necklace. That worked, but how else could I wear them?

These remind me of a jacket Rich once bought - a plaid sportscoat for $25. But the mix of colors meant he never quite was happy with the rest of his outfit. See, the red is prominent, but the other colors are really blue and gray and a light tan. Any ideas?

These are the shoes that first made me think I was turning into a shoe collector, not a person who owned a fabulous shoe wardrobe. If you owned a pair of shoes you could never style (for want of a better word) would you get rid of them or keep looking for the right outfit?

Bottom line: keeper. I should sell them on ebay.

July 16 - wide brown

What: Size 8 Wide brown 2.5 inch heel peep toe sling backs with gold buckle
From: Naturalizer (outlet)
Purchased: end summer '08, maybe '09
Cost: <$25

Yet another from the brown show files. These are wide, so fairly comfortable. Perfectly fine shoes, too stylish for sitting in my home office, walking to Target, or playing. And another part of the perpetual brown problem - a slightly lighter shade of brown, so I worry they look weird with dark brown pants or skirts. Oh well. Wore them out and about for errands before we left for the weekend, then threw on the orange flip flops.

Bottom line: keeper

July 9 - lemon

What: yellow patent leather and cream silk shantung peep toes 2 inch pumps
From: Jones NY (outlet)
Purchased: '07/'08
Cost: $15

Love these shoes. LOVE them. I love the color, they fit great, they are unusual and striking, but not too out there or trendy. LOVE. I wear them with brown outfits that might have a peek of yellow. Sadly, I stumbled on a curb when wearing them Friday and the front got a little more beat up, so these will not last forever. Another shoe suffering from the work from home/mommy syndrome, as I have few opportunities to wear them. LOVE.

Bottom line: Keeper!

ps. How much I love these shoes kinda cracks me up because I am what, almost 40 days into this and still wearing shoes I absolutely love, interspersed with some shoes I am really over. I really do have a freaking lot of shoes.

June 10 - a litle painful

What: black patent 2.5 inch heel slingback peep toes
From: Naturalizer (outlet)
Purchased: ’06 or ‘07
Cost: $18

I think I got these on an outlet shopping trip with KG. I wore them a lot at my last office job. They are moderately uncomfortable – the peep toe opening rubs against the front toes a little. They’re also worn, especially along the front, though the patent on the heels is in decent shape. Also, I think I’ve re-heeled them once, but the nail head is starting to come through the heel again, so they need to be re-heeled. I ended up having to do a fair amount of walking Thursday, and my feet hurt by the end of the day. Hmm, this is where I need a push to get rid of shoes, but they’re still workable.

Bottom line: keep, but in the repair pile

*Edited March 24, 2011 - after careful consideration, I decided these shoes were functionally equivalent to these, so I am discarding this pair, thus removing any need to have them re-heeled. 

June 9 - back again

What: red/multi 1.5 inch peep toes
From: Naturalizer (outlet)
Purchased: winter ‘08
Cost: $18

Bought these from the sale racks at the Naturalizer outlet (love that extra 70 or 80% off!). And, I ended up wearing them at least 3 or 4 times a week the summer/fall of ’08, when I was pregnant with Andrew. They were comfortable with the low heel – I found most of my shoes just were not comfortable during that pregnancy, and I was job searching and doing a little consulting from home so when I would go out these were the go-to shoes. I did not wear them once in 2009. I think I’m not as sick of them now as I once was, so they’ll stay.


Bottom line: keeper

ps. And, I really do not wear the same pair of brown pants every day. Except when I do. I was supposed to be a conference, but had something pop up that required me to stay home for phone and e-mail. So spent nearly all day barefoot, but had to run out at the end of the day for a quick trip to the grocery store. So, same brown pants hurriedly thrown on!

June 6,7,8 - repeat, bare, pros

Catching up - Sunday June 6 we were suppsoed to be camping and I had brought ratty flip flops, but we bailed on camping in favor of airconditioned dorm, so I just rewore the orange espadrilles.

Monday June 7 I worked from home, and went barefoot all day long

June 8
What: 2.5 inch heeled cream peep toes
From: Circa Joan and David, Lord and Taylor
Purchased: January '08
Cost: $25

The first of the 5-shoes-in-one-month extravagance. Andrew was only 2 months old, I wasn't working (or even had a job!), in was January and fairly nice but a little cold, so to get out of the house I would head up to Friendship Heights and walk around a mix of stores and outdoors. Sadly for my (I have no money or job) budget, Lord and Taylor had some fabulous shoes for sale for super cheap and I could not resist them. And over the course of the month, bought 5 pairs, each less than $25, each fabulous and great, but still, a totally ridiculous extravagance for someone who didn't know if she was going to be able to go back to work anytime in the near future. Luckily it worked out.

I had seen these shoes over Christmas in both darker brown and this cream, and pointed them out to my sister who hated them and said they looked like granny shoes. I have to admit, I have a slight weakness for things that look a little 'granny' and fussy and I loved the buckles. I used to believe that you should not wear shoes that are lighter in tone than your outfit (I rarely wear white shoes, either before or after Labor Day!), but I've been slowly convinced that 'nude' shoes are flattering, so during my winter weakness I could not resist how cheap these were. They are also very comfortable. So yesterday for my work meeting, I decided to break them out. I bet it's only about the 5th wearing they've had. I love them, but still unsure of what they really go with, besides brown pants, with a lighter top that's cream, not white. I'm not entirely as adventurous as I claim to be.

Bottom line: keeper! Must find new outfits with which to wear.