Yes, it’s back.  Much like Galligator, I’m hella excited to see Project Runway back for season 5.  And whaddaya know, it’s back to Season 1 for the famous supermarket challenge.

My god, a lot of them used tablecloths.  That makes for a boring supermarket challenge, folks.

But the new Bluefly shoes were lots of fun.

Let’s give Kelli her props for this winning outfit, which was a beautiful dress AND made of creative products (vacuum cleaner bags, coffee filters, push pins, and my very favorite element: the spine of a spiral notebook for hook & eyes on the back).  And the Charles Nolan Casey pump was a nice shoe to go along with it.

In other interesting shoe choices, we’ve got Emily’s bouncy ball collar dress with the Charles Nolan Tara boots in bronze.  Gotta say, the collar’s fun, but the boots are my favorite part of the outfit.

Following on in the school of “the shoes are the best part” was Jennifer’s paper towel dress.  The dress was cute enough (if a little snore-inducing), but the emerald green Roberto Cavalli sandals popped.

I liked Joe’s “Italian” themed pasta dress.  And much as I gasp in horror to imagine it, it looks like Bell (the model) may be shoving her feet into these funky Christian Dior Anniversary pumps without benefit of ankle strap or proper sizing.

On the rare “affordable shoe” front, it looks like Daniel (who when he first showed up in a camera angle that didn’t show his face, terrified me for a moment that Daniel Franco was back… AGAIN) used the Savior mules from Charles by Charles David.  Also Elena here was by far my favorite model.

And then we get to eliminated Jerry’s crazy shower curtain/tablecloth concoction that does indeed (as one of the contestants said on the show) look like it belongs in American Psycho.  And the Cesare Paciotti white boots (embellished with even more crazy ribbons) don’t help matters.  As far as I’m concerned, this Auf’d designer was good riddance.

I won’t go into all the shoes, because this post would go on for days, but I can’t wait to see how they use the shoes this season, and to figure out which is the Patron Shoe of Season 5.

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The fitness craze shoes of yesteryear are certainly MBTs.

But to be on top the latest rage in toning your gams while you walk, you have to be sporting Fitflops.

As a resident of a bustling metropolis full of people who (admit it, it’s true) will cling to ANYTHING trendy, not to mention anything that will supposedly help tone the bod with a minimum of effort, I am seeing these sandals everywhere.  EVERYWHERE.

They’re for sale in chichi designer shoe boutiques.  They’re on ads in the subways.  They’re on every third person’s foot flip-flopping down the sidewalk.

I have no idea if they’re effective.  I imagine that uncertainty is pretty widespread.  But I do know people are adopting them like Ugg boots.

And just like Ugg boots have the iconic Classic Tall in chestnut to lead the masses, so Fitflops have the WalkStar II in silver (here for $60).

Ladies, if you want to be the cream of the Fitflop trend crop, this is the pair for you.  This is the one I see probably twice as frequently as any of the other styles.

Of course, if I were about to go in for this shoe trend, I’d opt for something a little more outside the box.  Say, the diva-licious Electra in gold.

Or, if you really want to be a gal in the know, stick yourself on Net-a-porter’s mailing list for the release of the Aurelia, the gladiator-inspired Fitflop that’ll be available online in early August in limited editions in black ($150) or snakeskin ($165).

Good luck getting your hands on a pair, though.  They sold out at Kirna Zabete (the NYC store whose owners had a hand in bringing the Aurelia about) faster than your firm calves and thighs could get you in the door.

Gotta say, those are almost funky enough to make me want a pair.  Almost.

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Much like Shoesense, I am sometimes baffled by the exhorbitant prices charged for designer shoes.  Innovative design may count for something, and quality of materials, sure.  But there’s a ceiling.  Or there should be.  And then there are the shoes that break that ceiling with the giant numbers following those currency symbols.

New example?

The Zoe, designed by Christian Werner, a German industrial designer.

Yes, this shoe is handmade.  Yes, it is made of high grade aluminum.  Yes, it is light and airy and a design that (if not really brand new) shows a good deal of innovation and creativity.

But when it’s on, it looks a bit like stripper wear.

And it costs $3,940!

Consider me baffled.

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After packing last night for a weekend of beachy fun, I’m currently sitting here thinking recently about a phenomenon I’ve observed in myself for quite a while.

I feel pretty safe in asserting that anyone reading this blog has has a multitude of moments of coveting a shoe.

The one I’m currently coveting the most?  It’s the pewter Palladium Key Largo gladiator sandal that Shoesense posted about back here (don’t rush to buy them, though, they’re pretty much universally sold out by now).

But that’s not what I’m talking about here.  What I mean is just what the title says; I covet an entire category of shoes.  Yes, it’s true.  I covet those sporty slip-on “casual athletic” shoes that so many companies offer these days for women on the go.

There’s no rhyme or reason to this covetousness.  It’s not a type of shoe I actually wear all that often, and I’ve got two excellent and much-loved pairs of them: my Puma Mostros (mine are actually teal and brown, but they’re several seasons old, and you can find this shoe in just about any funky color combo you could dream of)

and my Tsubo Pingers, which I simply adore, and rarely leave my feet in the summertime.

 Now, like I said, I’m not really a big wearer of this kind of shoe (a bit more girly and funky with my style and less athletic), but every time I see a new offering in this category, I fall for it.  Something about how cute and comfy they all look.  Like I could walk around in them for hours without feeling a twinge.

The newest one to spark my covetous nature is the Teva Makayla.

How cute and fun is that shoe, I ask you?  Asymmetrical and flirty in a no-nonsense kind of way that I love.  I’m even more smitten by the red version.

Cole Haan always has a few of these, with a slightly girlier, more refined look that I think was designed to worm through all the non-purchasing willpower armor I have.  The one I love every season is the Bria, which comes in several variations.  It’s the Bria Ballet that makes me swoon, and in this season’s “vintage silver” color and stitched pattern… well, I’m having to restrain my purchasing fingers from running away with my mouse on me.

And the multi-metallic mary-jane version?  Oh, save me from the gods of impulse shopping!

I have to go.  I will be off, and thank my lucky stars that I didn’t sit here at the computer one minute longer, staring and lusting over shoes I surely don’t need, but want desperately nonetheless.

Happy weekending, Shoeblog readers.

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We all know Gwyneth Paltrow has been tottering around in sky-high heels recently.  But more than that, she’s been opting for interesting, outside-the-box styles.  Whether or not I could wear her shoes (and I most definitely could NOT, except for those Zanotti gladiator sandals), I pretty much universally love them.

Well, last night she struck again at the launch of Estée Lauder’s new perfume at Bloomingdale’s in NYC.

Hilary Rhoda: basic black (though with that nice thick ankle strap that’s happening this season).  Elizabeth Hurley: basic black.  Carolyn Murphy: basic black.  Gwyneth Paltrow: yet another funky pair of YSLs.

Laces.  Bells.  Grommets.  I love them.

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