These Cynthia Vincent “Harper” wedge gladiators caught my eye, probably because there’s a lot going on there, you have to admit. There are about 47 straps and 38 buckles and about 12 pounds of solid wedges. (Oh, it’s apparently 10 oz each, according to Zappos. Nevermind.) These things are SOLID and grounded while performing the extraordinary feat of lifting you up from the ground for about a foot or two (I know, I know! I can’t stop the hyperboles from coming, but it’s the shoes’ fault, I swear!)  At any rate, I think their over-the-topness (totally a word) is what renders them powerful and endearing and sexy and oh-so-well matched with a denim mini or short shorts, perhaps, and tan, luscious, long gams. I you don’t have said gams, no worries: these wedges will grant them to you, that’s how awesome they are. $404 at Zappos.  

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It’s time again for Ask the Shoebloggers, and this time it’s not shoes for the bride, but for her bridesmaids.

Here are the initial parameters for this, our newest mission (which, of course, we chose to accept):

My best friend is getting married in September and we’re trying to find the perfect bridesmaid shoes—please help! Our dresses will be black, and she’s hoping to find a black shoe with some red and/or yellow on it (the colors of the wedding and bouquets). Our dresses are knee-length, and very 50s style with a wider skirt and fitted top—not too fancy.  Our location is in the U.S., we’d love to keep the price below $75, but could go up to $100 if need be. A mid- to high heel would be great!

With that, our very own Shoesense went on the hunt and came up with a first round of suggestions. First up was the gorgeous, but too pricey (at $270, and that’s on sale at Piperlime down from a full price of over $400!) Sophie by Cynthia Vincent.

Piperlime also has the Nine West Drazly 2 pump in black and red for $80.

From Nordstrom comes the pretty red/black version of the Boutique Nordstrom Melina pump (also $80).

And finally, the all-black Bruno Premi Deja-Vu slingback ($85).

That was our first round of suggestions. Then our bridesmaid-to-be responded with this:

Thank you so much for your help! We took a look at what you suggested and our bride thinks she would prefer to do a solid yellow shoe, and then put a sash on our dresses or a headband in our hair or something. So now we have changed the focus to yellow. I liked the style of the Nine West one you sent, and we really like a few at J. Crew, but they are a bit out of our price range.

The J. Crew styles she particularly liked are the Gwendolyn satin t-straps ($225)

and the Cleo patent leather t-straps ($195) that are so juicily lemon colored I want to make them into footwear lemonade.

And so now I’ve taken up the call for a yellow shoe, the official Shoeblog favorite color of spring, and very hot right now.

The rsvp Daina is a pretty lemony yellow patent leather sandal ($70) with a swooping heel detail I pretty much love.

The Nine West Argent in yellow satin is a pretty good substitute for the J. Crew Gwendolyn’s, but it’s only $64 at Endless instead of over $200. This one also comes in a yellow leather, but the color doesn’t pop nearly so much as it does in satin.

In other Nine West yellow options (of which there are several), there’s the Doverly ($80), which isn’t solid yellow, but might work anyway.

And if you want to go the super-dainty feminine route, there’s the lovely, refined Solelyn ($64).

The Jessica Simpson Chasie slingback ($100) has that same dark heel/yellow combination as the J. Crew Cleo, though with a heel of 4.75″ I can’t imagine dancing the night away in these at the reception.

There’s a new batch of suggestions for our wedding planners. Let’s see if any of them work out.

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Some 2000 and odd years ago, an otherwise civilized Roman Empire would get the same kick out of gladiator fights that we now get, say, from watching professional football:

As you can see from this ancient mosaic, gladiator footwear was serious business, complete with over-the-knee plates to protect the precious shins. Those shin-plates have been underrepresented in the long and glorious tradition of classical paintings, which more often than not depict sturdy, beefed-up warriors wearing the most ridiculously fragile footwear contraptions, made of delicate strings woven and attached in fanciful ways. They’re also underrepresented in the current resurgence of the so-called gladiator-trend sandals, because, let’s be honest, if anything, we want to showcase our shins, not protect them from the world (although in certain crowded subways that wouldn’t be such a bad idea–but I digress).

And so! I’ve finally accepted the fact that gladiator sandals are EVERYWHERE, I mean, just pick your shoe store of choice, online or not, and voila! There they are, and they have been there for a few seasons now, so I can’t willfully ignore them any longer. For here’s the thing: I stayed away from gladiators because they tend to “cut” the foot from your leg, often with bulky plates and multiple ankle straps, and disrupt the natural lines and the illusion of “elongated” that I so direly need to create. Which is to say, I’ve often thought that unless you’ve got wispy legs like a runway model, why, those gladiators are likely to turn you into the spitting image of those two beefcakes duking it out in my introductory mosaic. And that’s not a good look for me, is all I’m saying.

But! I think I’ve reached the critical point in time when I’ve got to get into a pair of gladiator sandals, or my summer wardrobe my life won’t be complete. A cursory perusal of my favorite shoe haunts on the internet has presented me with approximately 322,485 handy choices, give or take two. Ayyyyy! to quote the Manolo. What to do? After a rigorous selection process consisting mainly of “let’s just stick to one website, or I’m going to shoot myself,” I’ve narrowed down my choices to two:

The curiously-named Dolce Vita “Daisy-11″ sandal, in gold or pewter (probably gold, since gold and gladiator go together like that), $60 at Piperlime:

Or, the more high-end Cynthia Vincent “Dinah,” $200 at Piperlime (hey, Zappos has it listed for $214–what’s up, Zappos? Piperlime’s delivery is also free, you know!):

They both have that classic woven look on the vamp, and multiple ankle straps (which are pretty cool, if you ask me). I’m not completely sure I should spend so much money for a shoe that might as well go out of style next year (what? it’s been known to happen!), but the Cynthia Vincent sandals do have a quite excellent design. On the other hand, the Dolce Vitas are cheap and attractive and definitely satisfy the gladiator tooth. What say you, Internet? Which should I choose?

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Yellow is a hard color to pull off, especially when it’s on your shoes. I never owned yellow shoes, and I’m pretty sure that since the time I turned 12 I never wore anything yellow.

This spring, however, things are going to change. Yellow is big, and some of yellow shoes proposed by the designers are positively delightful. Every year I make one big shoe resolution–a couple of years ago it was throwing out my high heels; last year was buying more peep-toes; and this year, I think I’m going to make the leap to yellow.

I’m not sure what to choose though, especially when the choices are so varied!

Cynthia Vincent Sophie in black and yellow, 270 at Piperlime.

Kenneth Cole Button Up yellow suede flat, $120 at Piperlime.

Rafe Irina bow flat, $220 at Piperlime.

Dolce Vita Moritz peep-toe Mary Jane, $100 at Piperlime.

Frye Cameron skimmer, $148 at Piperlime.

AK Anne Klein Foxie, $89 at Piperlime.

Paul Green Vienna thong sandal, $219 at Zappos.

Kate Spade satin and crystals sandal, $299 at Zappos.

Gabriella Rocha Studio Cota, $109 at Zappos.

Franco Sarto Fancy, $89 at Piperlime.

Tory Burch Reva2, $195 at Plaza Too.

Chie Mihara Quake flat, $310 at Nordstrom.

…I’ll tell you what, I’m going to go and mull over this for a while…

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Hola, shoe-lovers! One of your bloggers (c’est moi, bien sûr) has been head over well-shod heels in a project that has consumed her life for…oh, too long to count now. The project is more or less out of my hands now, and the anxious wait for a review has commenced.

The point is, I am just now starting to realize how much of a solace shoes have been to me. There is nothing like a good session of shoe-shopping/browsing to restore my faith in joy and beauty after a prolonged session of dreary alliterative drudgery. I am slowly rediscovering — and savoring every minute of it!– what The Manolo has dubbed “the joy that is the shoes.” Let me tell you, he knows what he’s talking about!

I’ve been seeing so much sparkle, color, and wit (yes, wit!) browsing for the shoes of this season that, well, my spirits have been almost restored. Oh, and here’s what I got out of this:

Cynthia Vincent’s Judy silver ballet flat from the good folks at Heels.com (see, they also have flats!). My wardrobe was missing something silver (so hot right now), and what is great about these is that they have the ombre shading, so they’re really a gray-pewter in the back and a shinier silver in front. Very versatile!

I had misgivings about two things with this pair: the elastic back, and the flimsy sole. Both were unfounded–the shoes conformed to my feet and stayed put without a problem, and the sole is generously padded, so they’re really really comfy.

Ah, it’s good to be back in shoe-world. Remember, gals, when you’re in a funk, take comfort in the joy that is the shoes!

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