Cherries Jubilee

Well, today I am taking a moment to bid a fond farewell to the recently-ended Cherry season here in the Pac Northwest (and folks think we just make coffee). I’m not sure how good this season was for the local farmers; I do know that the majority of the blossoms on the trees at the back of our property were lost due to a late 3-day freeze this spring. This caused just enough cherries for my children to enjoy in small handfuls while leaving little else for pies or preserves.  And, while you might be familiar with the classic Bing cherries, until you’ve had the Rainier varieties that come out of Washington state, you are missing something special.

So, I’ll see you little guys again next year. Until then I have rounded up some cherry-centric kicks in honor of these tasty tidbits.

First off is my personal favorite, Oh Deer’s ‘Cha Cha’ ($149.95 at Endless.com; If you are a size 10 you can get the last of these for $37.99 at Amazon.com* c/o Designer athletic.)   This shoe also comes in a flats option, the ‘Garcia’ ($90.97 Endless.com).

Next we see that even Sergio Rossi couldn’t resist the allure of the cherry print (‘Lady AT-5722′ $356.85 Zappos.com)

Of course, cherry prints are always a popular option with the goth crowd, so I would be remiss if I didn’t include a chunky platform like this T.U.K. ‘Cherry Maryjane’ ($38.95 Endless.com).

Yet another option is this picnic-inspired, gingham-check ‘Teacher’s Pet’ wedge by Not Rated ($20.70 6pm.com). See those little cherry skull-and-crossbones? Swoon; I would wear these in a heartbeat.

Also in wedges are these flirty little Draven ‘Forbidden Blossom’ shoes with perforated oxford detail at the toe ($39.59 Shoes.com).

If you like a more open look, you might like the Mia ‘Lyza’ slide ($27.60 6pm.com) or maybe the sparkly vinyl slingback offered by J. Renee ($75.60 Zappos.com).

Then again, if you like allover detail including a decorated sole, Naughty Monkey’s ‘Cherry Pop’ in red or brown may be more your style ($32.97 Endless.com).

Finally, for flats-lovers, are the Gabriella Rocha ‘Cameron’ ($26.95 6pm.com) or Shelly’s London ‘Cherie’ ankle-strap flat($38.39 Shoes.com).

And what to wear with these? Well, if you want to push it even more over-the-top, you can always go the extra step by pairing your printed shoes with these Leg Avenue knee-highs $5.50 at Divatreats.com.

*A note on Amazon.com marketplace pricing, based on my own past purchase experiences: In cases like this where there is a price range “$37.99 – 149.95″ noted. This reflects price and stock at multiple sellers which may or may not include Amazon’s own shoe site, endless.com.  Once stock from the lowest priced vendor is depleted, prices will appear to ‘jump’ to the next lowest vendor’s price.  I have seen at least one customer review that accused Amazon of unethical practices when there was an overnight price change. I have purchase enough marketplace items that I am familiar with the process and practices and believe that understanding this process helps us all to get the best deals on items we love.

Shoe Store Windows: Bi-Coastal Edition

My dear and darling Shoeblog readers!

How I have missed you!

I have been involved in preparing for and then accomplishing a move from New York to London, and I’ve been at the mercy of a million things to do, spotty internet access, and a jam-packed schedule.

But I’m back now.  Settled into my place in London and ready to resume shoe coverage from this side of the Atlantic.

What better post to start with for this inaugural post from the land of tea and crumpets than a comparison of the fantabulous shoes in the windows of two retail giants: Saks Fifth Avenue in NYC and Harvey Nichols in London Town.

Saks, before I left, was displaying a neat little thing.  The results of this charity project.  Yes, every Wizard of Oz lover’s dream: designer versions of Dorothy’s fabulous ruby slippers (incidentally, the subject of my very first ever Shoeblog post).

Here are a few snaps from the super clever window displays out on the street.

The other designers’ efforts were in glass cases on the shoe floor upstairs, but the star of the show was this pair of alternate ruby slippers that were screen-tested, but never made it into the film.

Pretty glam, no?

What a lovely farewell to the shoe world of New York.

And one transatlantic flight and a lot of running around later, here’s a welcome to the shoe world of London.  And it’s for sure nothing to scoff at.

Because the windows of London fashion mecca, Harvey Nichols, are also brim-full of gorgeous designer footwear.  To wit:

Pretty fab, right?

And then, around the corner in the windows on Knightsbridge were these GORGEOUS Louboutins:

All that blue and black feathery divine frou frou business had me at hello, as they say.

Oh, and before I forget, the Chanel store down the street had a familiar pair of pocket pumps prominently put forward.

And so, welcome to Shoeblog’s bi-continental era.  Stay tuned for more glam shoes from London.

Shoe Crimes.

This is an Emergency Interruption of your normal Trends and current Fashion Week coverage.

I am trying rather unsuccessfully to reign in my inner drama queen here.  I can’t do it.  This is enough to make any shoe lover cringe in horror.

This is blatant and intentional shoe abuse. There is no excuse, no store policy that can excuse these blatant actions. There must be better ways to reduce retail shrinkage. Ones that don’t result in mutilation of  otherwise innocent and flirty pairs of shoes.

Exhibit 1 (Pierced right through the leather/vinyl!):

Exhibit 2 (Just to confirm this is not an isolated case):

Exhibit 3 (Along the stitching; maybe someone realizes we like to buy shoes with minimal damage):

Exhibit 4 (Compare and Contrast):

Exhibit 5 (Okay, there must be at least one tortured shoe-lover working here):

I can only assume that with the current tight economy a larger number of ‘morally flexible’ women have begun availing themselves of the rather shameful five-finger discount. However, is it really best to destroy the product in order to prevent shrinkage? Does a huge discount off the original retail forgive carelessness? How about the side note that this also makes it impossible to even try on the darned things. One thing that is obvious is that no shoe-lovers were consulted or involved in establishing this policy. 

It Just Keeps Getting Weirder: Aminaka Wilmont Spring 2009 Shoes

I just finished writing an entire post about fashion designers, Victoria Beckham and their evident love for shoes with ridiculous heels, oddly placed heels, or no heels at all. And then I flipped through the Aminaka Wilmont Spring 2009 collection, shown recently in London. I had never heard of this particular line before, so I did a little research. It is named after the designers: Marcus Wilmont and Maki Aminaka. They are a London based duo and their range is very classy and yet super edgy at the same time. You can even buy their stuff on Net-a-Porter.

All this seems fairly straight-forward. The Spring collection had a much more futuristic feel to it than their past stuff. Here are a few photos of their recent line:

Ok, so you decided to wrap your models’ feet in ribbons. Who needs shoes anyway, right?

WRONG!

(via Lengvi Daiktai)

Ladies and gentlemen, may I present Heels without Shoes! I am baffled. Completely and totally. This looks cool on the runway and I am all about wearable art. I totally get the concept that some stuff that designers put up there is not really intended to be worn (Gasp! Perish the thought). But can you imagine the ramifications of a normal(?) person owning these? Imagine: you are at a fancy cocktail party and suddenly you step down on an hors d’oeuvre gone rogue. Trauma ensues. You have to remove bits o’shrimp from the ball of your foot.

With all this taken into consideration, it’s clearly only a matter of time until Posh gets herself a pair.

Shoes of Project Runway 5.11

Jitterbugbaby is a bit occupied right now with her move ‘across the pond’.  As a result, I am filling in to highlight this weeks episode, and of course, shoes.

Has it been eleven episodes already? Wow, time really does fly.

Kenley angers Suede by stealing Suede’s model. Suede talks in the third person: ‘Suede is going to win this challenge and get his model back’ (Paraphrased).Kenley treats Tim with disrespect, angering hordes of viewers who love the Silver Fox. LL Cool J is the guest judge. Hip Hop Kenley is in the deep end without her floaties.

On to the Challenge.  Kenley doesn’t get to use her stolen model, the designers are also the models for the challenge.  They must design an outfit for their ‘model’ according to a particular musical style: Rock, Pop, Punk, Country, and Hip Hip. 

Trying to remember who’s doing what makes my head hurt.

Quick Chaotic Visual of the fitting Conga Line:

[Project Runway photos all courtesy of Bravotv.com]

Korto’s model is Suede and the theme is Punk Rock. Suede totally sells this look on the runway. Korto wins the challenge with well-made bleach distressed jeans and chain-detailed top.  Korto was right-on for this challenge; this outfit would sell like crazy if it were on display at Hot Topic. 

As for the shoes, they appeared to be black leather and nylon tennis-shoes.  Since Korto bleached these as well in order to match the jeans, you need to find a comfortable pair of black tennies and channel your inner craft-guru to get this look.

Jerell’s model is Kenley and the theme is Pop Music. Jerell does a respectable job of making Kenley over into Brunette Brittany.  The judges love the mesh inserts and spangly attached bra (which I find distracting since the sparkly inserts look unintentionally asymmetrical to me). However, the judges do not love it enough to outscore Korto’s winning look.

Kenley is wearing a metallic knee-high boot that appears to be the Stuart Weitzman ‘Crushable’ Tall boot but could also be the Charles Nolan ‘Tara’ Wedge boot; both are currently available at Bluefly.

Leanne’s model is Korto and the theme is Country-Western. This is a play it safe outfit that luckily did just that.  Happily, none of the judges seemed to notice the Wonder Woman vibe from the gold chevron hip-yoke on this otherwise simple skirt. Hey, Leanne, I’m expecting you to step up and win this thing; I know you have the skill to own this competition.

Korto’s footwear is almost impossible to see. It is most likely a simple low-heeled knee-boot. So, instead I am offering here a few footwear options by Prada that fulfill the Western sensibility of this challenge and are currently available at Bluefly.com: a brown floral detailed pump, a cocoa floral pump with ankle strap, and a bronze western-wingtip pump.

Kenley’s model is Leanne and the theme is Hip Hop. Leanne is painful to watch on the runway. This outfit is so off the mark and poorly fitted that many viewers are crying ‘Suede was Robbed’. Kenley is a one-trick pony who will probably do well designing for the niche retro-swing crowd.  Yes, she has a chance to make it to the final three, but only if Jerell really messes up.

Leanne is wearing the popular Prada cut-out ankle-cuff fairy boot that we have seen used in several other challenges this season; still available at Bluefly.

Suede’s model is Jerell and the theme is Rock and Roll. Apparently his history of time ‘at the bottom’ combined with an outfit the judges found boring, led to his being Auf’d.  Both he and Kenley are overdue. Maybe the judges tossed a coin? Bye Bye Suede.

Jerell’s boots are a classic guy’s industrial-goth style that you can find made by T.U.K. ; pictured here are the T.U.K. A6215 and  A6072.

Two episodes plus the fan favorite episode left to go.  Time to check the cupboard and make sure the popcorn is all stocked up.