Camilla Skovgaard London Lace-up Oxford Ankle Boot

I am intrigued by the Camilla Skovgaard London A9007 ankle boot with the wrap-around ankle detail.

At first glance, they reminded me  of the Balenciaga  2006 harness boots that were so popular (thanks in large part to Mary Kate Olson) – which spawned the wildly popular Sam Edelman ‘Zoe’ – a silhouette that has become a staple for that shoe brand, including a recent, studded variation.

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Happy Birthday Robert Clergerie

Robert Clergerie turns 76 today.   Born in Paris in 1934, he started as a manager in the Charles Jourdan factory in the 1970s, then worked his way up to designer.  His first women’s line debuted in 1981 with a pair of menswear oxfords.  He later designed pumps with parallelogram heels that were copied enough that the shape was referred to as the Clergerie heel.  He then introduced a steel high heel which is thought to be the pioneer of the spike heel.   The factory is still in France and Mr. Clergerie is still in France.

Until working on this post, I had never really paid attention to Clergerie shoes.  Now, I am quite intrigued with them. (more…)

Nordstrom’s Anniversary Sale Has Begun

Nordstrom’s annual Anniversary Sale just started.  Unlike most sales which are designed to clear out past season’s merchandise that did not sell, Nordstrom’s sale includes new items for the upcoming fall season.  This makes it one of my favorite sales of the year because you are guaranteed to find fresh, hot items that you can wear for the next season.  There are so many shoes to choose from, but here are some of my picks:

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Sports Sandals for the Grand Canyon

When you own a business, it seems that everyone invites you to their fund raising auctions.  One of our fund raisers offered a whitewater rafting trip down the Grand Canyon, which Mr. R5 and I won.  I am quite excited about it because this is my first rafting trip down the Colorado River.  I am a little concerned because this is the hottest time of year and next week is supposed to be really hot, so I am not looking forward to a week of 105 degree weather.

I have been to the Grand Canyon several times.  I hiked about half way down, a couple of years ago, which was fun, but the altitude on the South Rim averages 7000 feet.  After about 4 heart attacks (not really, but it felt like it),  we had to turn around because our friend had to get to the airport.   I love The Canyon.

Anyways, I had to pick up some hikey, watery, sportsy sandals, so off to Cabellas I went.  I wanted something functional, comfortable and stylin’.  What I wanted was something like this:

Stuart Weitzman Trustee $395 at Nordstrom

Right.  Next option:

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Fall 2011 Couture: Chanel Shoes

Ever wonder what warrants the high price tag for designer couture?  For the Chanel Fall 2011 couture show, the devil really was in the details.   I can only imagine how many hours it took to create this floral motif boot – the level of detail in the white flowers and golden leaves is just amazing.

More Chanel Couture Fall 2011 shoes, including slouchy boots, after the jump.

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