This could probably make this exhibit 1 in a "How not to wear stripes" fashion advice column:

The E!Online folks are right to recoil in horror at the sight of Paris Hilton in striped Louboutin wedges (sold out at Net-a-Porter). They do indeed make her size 11 feet look like a size 20–and who needs THAT? These shoes are evidently a showstopper–but they would work so much better on someone with a petite frame, and possibly, if worn with white instead of black to minimize the drama. Let that be a lesson for all of us!

UPDATE: The girl obviously loves her stripes–she apparently wore these TWO days in a row, this time accessorized with a Missoni (or at least, Missoni-esque) mini-dress. Oh, they’re striking, all right!

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So! It’s been a while since I posted about my newest shoe purchases; partly, it’s because my camera has given up on me lately (it’s the battery, and instead of replacing the battery, I’m seriously considering a new camera–but that will have to wait a little, what with all these new shoes and all. Ahem.)

I had to perform several serious purges of my shoe closet before I could take new guests in, if you know what I’m saying–but that’s going to be the object of another post.

And now–the reveal!

First up: Espace black crinkled patent leather sandals (or shoes? shoendals? whatever).

I got them at a sale at the Joan Shepp boutique in Center City Philadelphia; they were about $110 (half-off). They’ve got a serious wedge and thick sole on them, which makes them some of the most comfortable shoes I have every worn. Unlike other shoes, these don’t rub at any spot, and the thick sole protects me from the harshness of any surface I have to walk on. They go great with jeans and even capris and I proudly count them towards one of my better purchases. Plus, I felt like having something rough and chunky-chic to indulge my tomboyish ways.

Unlike this next pair: Lundi Bleu satin floral print kitten heels, which are as frilly and non-tomboyish as can be:

These I got at Shoefly, about 60% off (maybe $50? I can’t remember). I’ve got to say they looked better on the website than in person; for one thing, the picture didn’t show the kitten heels–I thought there were flats. Second, I wore them without stockings and they gave me hellish blisters. Haven’t worn them since–I’ll give them another try (with stockings!) and see how they fare.

Next up: Morenatom mules from fabulous Elena’s Bus Stop Boutique:

Very cute, no? The colors are a bit off in the picture–the green is a tad more intense, and the crochet flowers on the vamp are purple. They’re very comfy and casual; my only complaint is that the leather at the toe rubs against the pavement and peels off–at least, it did in my case, after only two wears.

This next pair quickly became one of my favorites: Anna Sui patent flats with laser-cut flower details:

I got them at Net-a-porter, about half-off, for $120; you can get them now on sale for $175 at Anthropologie. They are cute, they are comfy (though they do need a little break-in period), they’re a show stealer. I lov’em!

These next ones are from Jean Paul Barriol Accessoire line:

They are dove-gray suede with elastic criss-cross straps, light as a feather and as comfortable as they can be. Asta de Blue, a boutique in my neighborhood, went out of business, and they were offering these for $29. Given that the Accessoire shoes are usually $250 and over, I considered that a very good deal, indeed, for practical, comfortable, light shoes, fit to wear all day long.

I had long coveted a pair of Anyi Lu shoes, but the prices were quite prohibitive (upwards of $350). Well, I got lucky for once with these gorgeous gold and zebra-pattern hair-calf low wedges, discounted down to $118 (from $375) at Benjamin Lovell in downtown Philly:

The leather is soft as butter, the pattern unusual, and the comfort factor is high. I’m very proud of this purchase!

Finally (whew!), here’s an impulse purchase I still have doubts about but which I still think is gorgeous: Le Due raspberry demi-wedges from Anthroplogie, $100:

This is the highest heel I’ve bought in three years, and I still haven’t worn them outside. The cut looks great on the foot, though, and the color is extremely flattering. They’re gorgeous shoes, but I just hope I can wear them without pain outside. I obviously couldn’t resist their charms. They’d be perfect some socially appropriate function which requires minimum mobility.

So, now that’s been off my chest–what kind of shoe mischief have YOU been up to lately?

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Many of you may already know about and/or have tried Insolia, and I’ve been meaning to give them a good testing, but this past weekend was my first real opportunity to do so.

I had a wedding to go to, and the shoes I wanted to wear are 3 inch heels, seen here (although the grass is covering much of the shoe).

Now, just to be clear, since you can’t really see it well in this photo. These shoes are heels. Not wedges. They’re not stilleto, or anything, but it’s a fairly thin stacked wood heel. These have proven fairly comfortable in the past (they’re from Circa Joan+David, and they were my very first ever purchase at a DSW store), but I’ve never worn them to an event for an extended period of time. And I wanted a bit of a help for the comfort of them. So, Insolia, it was finally time for me to try you out.

For those of you who don’t know Insolia, it’s a brand of shoe inserts for heels. They’re little gel inserts that adhere to the insole of your shoes (only heels… these aren’t going to do you any good in flats).

What they do is reduce the pressure on the ball of your feet that usually comes with wearing heels. They have a little ridge just where the shoe starts to slope down into the arch area, so it keeps your foot from sliding all the way forward and adding that pressure to the forefoot area. Here’s the neat little Insolia diagram that shoes the distribution of weight with and without the inserts.

And in case you’re worried that this is just another gimmick, these have been approved by the American Podiatric Medical Association and everything. Plus, you can buy them for about $10 in most chain pharmacies (or online in a pack of 3 for $20).

DKNY shoes have started incorporating Insolia into their insoles already, which means they should hopefully be a bit less uncomfortable for all day shoes.

So, how did these stack up? Well, I must say that while my feet still weren’t all that happy with me after dancing and standing for several hours at the reception, the pressure did indeed seem even between my heel and forefoot. I was pretty pleased with how the Insolia inserts made a difference in my shoes, and I’d certainly consider getting more for other heels (they’re not interchangeable, so when you put a pair in your shoes, they’re in there for that one pair of shoes). If you’re trying to sort through all the options for inserts, I’d give these a thumbs up, since they actually deal with the cause of the pain from heels, not just cushioning and treating the symptoms of the problem. Plus, since they’re clear and very low-profile, you can put them in any kind of heels you want (as seen in the picture above), not just closed shoes. Wedges, sandals, pumps, or this fall’s trendy oxford heels and booties. Insolia can help them all!

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Gisele Bundchen topped Forbes’ list of top earning supermodels with a reported income of $33 million last year. If you’re wondering how that’s possible, let’s take a look at this simple, but non-extraordinary sandal from her shoe line, Ipanema Gisele Bundchen.

Now let’s look at the same sandal with Gisele modelling the Ipanema sandals in a rather interesting Photoshopped water dress.

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It’s hard to believe that Vanessa Hudgens is only 18. She already has a long resume for her age, has the pose down, and possesses great fashion style (or has a great stylist). Take, for example, these pumps that she wore while promoting Disney’s High School Musical 2 on various morning shows. Vanessa gets two fashion thumbs up for wearing shoes by Cole Haan, one of my favorite shoe brands. Cole Haan is owned by Nike so there is a certain level of comfort that you know you’ll get in their shoes. I’m guessing that Vanessa is all smiles in these photos because her feet aren’t hurting. Besides comfort, I love how elegant this d’Orsay looks - with a beautiful grayish-blue color and leather with snake detail, what more can you ask for?

The Cole Haan Alicia D’Orsay is available at ColeHaan.com for $195.

Photo Sources: Fan websites Miss Vanessa, Vanessa-Anne Online, and Vanessa Hudgens

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