No matter what the weather’s like around me these days (alternately cold and spring-like, sunny and rainy by turns), I’m determined to think about pretty pretty shoes for any season. And after a visit a few weeks ago to a showroom full of Elizabeth Brady’s Spring 08 line, these have stayed in my head.

The spring line (which isn’t available to buy online yet) is full of colors and textures inspired by Elizabeth’s trips to the green market, which makes me long for green market weather. Check out the easy chic Diane.

And the Fall 07 collection (which you can shop through over here) is full of shoes inspired by great women of the 1920s and 30s, like the Ella (presumably after Ella Fitzgerald), which is steely gray strength and pretty embroidered femininity in one sexy pump package.

And Elizabeth herself is a great example of a strong and independent-minded woman. She started up her business all on her own in 2005 with an eye to producing artisan-crafted shoes made with the highest quality leathers, skins, and fabrics (most of which come from Italy and are pieced together in her factories there). She came armed with an inside view on the shoe industry from her grandmother’s successful shoe business, and once Elizabeth taught herself Italian, she was off to Florence to set up her design studio.

Her shoes are creative and a touch playful, but stick to classic silhouettes that are universally appealing. And her shoe design philosophy is something I think every woman can get behind.

There should be a beautiful shoe for every part of a woman’s life! I truly believe that shoes are an expression of who you are and the sensibilities that you carry. We all have a sexy side, a daring side and an “I just want to feel beautiful” side. When I design, I develop collections that can challenge women to make a statement no matter what they are doing. Each collection includes styles that go from day to night and every shoe is an interesting mix of color and texture. Shoes should be fun. Shoes should be a part of who you are!

I say we all go out and arm ourselves (or leg ourselves) for the new season with shoes that make a statement and let us have the footwear to match the women (and men) we want to be.

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Forgive me the Latin-related pun in this post title, but I just wanted to remind you all out there in shoe land that there’s only a day left to enter your name (over here) in our contest for $100 off at the Nota Bene online store.

I know I mentioned it in the original post, but seriously, Jennifer Lovitt Riggs, the founder of Nota Bene, has her priorities in SO the right place when it comes to fashion and comfort in ladies footwear.

On women wearing painful, pointy, high heels:

“It is not that women are being silly,” Riggs said. “We are taught things like ‘beauty is painful’ and ‘no pain, no gain.’ So, we grit our teeth and bear it – the pointed toe and the stiletto heel are a badge of feminine machismo.”

On the importance of comfort in women’s shoes:

“Comfort is not a nicety. Shoes are the only article of clothing that can impact women’s long-term health and mobility.”

Her Nota Bene’s are put to the test in a serious way. Every style is road tested for 4-6 days (at least a mile a day) by real women, then refined based on their feedback, then tested again. That’s all before the shoe goes into full production.And she’s done wonders, with a line that offers refined, stylish women’s shoes that are made of shock-absorbent, high-quality materials. Come on, do these look like your average “comfort shoe”? I don’t think so!

As Ms. Riggs puts it:

“You only get one pair of feet, and they have a long journey. They are worth protecting.”

She’s so right. Drop your name in the “hat” if you want in on this highly admirable philosophy.

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Roses are red.
Violets are blue.
We love our feet,
And Nota Bene does, too.

Yes, shoe lovers, hot on the heels of our Glory Chen contest (and congrats to our lucky winner), here’s another chance to help yourself into a great new pair of shoes that will let you love your feet the way they deserve. Valentine’s Day may have passed, but there’s no reason not to treat your feet well for the rest of the year, too.

Nota Bene is a company that’s got their priorities in the right place. Here’s a quote from their mission statement:

Whoever she is, when the Nota Bene woman stands in front of her closet in the morning getting ready for work, she wants a beautiful pair of shoes she trusts will take her everywhere she wants to go that day. When she packs her suitcase, she wants versatile shoes. When she shops, she wants to find what she is looking for quickly and reliably. And at the end of the day, she still wants to love her beautiful shoes.

Who can’t get behind that kind of philosophy, I ask you? Shoeblog certainly can.

Nota Bene has worked out how to make shoes that don’t look like “comfort shoes” and still offer all the important features that keep your feet happy and comfortable through the day. Check out this comparison x-ray shot. The shoe on the left is a high end designer shoe, and the one on the right is by Nota Bene.

Look at all the ways the toes on the left are crunched and cramped into that space. They have no room to move, and that stresses the small bones in your toes in a major way. On the other hand (other foot?), the Nota Bene shoes keep the toes nice and straight and well separated, giving them freedom to flex and spread and grip and all those other great things toes do for us.

I took a pair of Nota Bene’s for a test drive (the Anne in bronze leather), and I have to say they did very well.

I’m always a little worried about a shoe like this, because they often end up rubbing in unforeseen places on my feet. But the Anne not only didn’t do that (the only rubbing I had was a bit on the inside of my heels, which is actually because they were a tad big–damn me and my size 8.25 feet–a toe pad will fix that right up), but it also kept my feet nice and comfy on a day when I ended up doing a higher than average amount of walking. I often have trouble with pointy toes, because my feet are very square and fairly wide at the base of my toes, but these left plenty of room for my feet, and only started to taper past the point where they’d have squeezed uncomfortably. Overall, quite enjoyable.

And I must also say that of the other styles Nota Bene sent me to try, a number of them were quite nice as well. Surprisingly, I found their heels to be the most stable, supporting, and comfortable to wear. I can’t rave highly enough about the sexy, chic Rosalind, which was pointy and sleek and toe-cleavage-y in just the right way, and yet managed to feel like a shoe you could actually wear and walk in all day long (although I would recommend going up a half size in that one, since most of the size 8s I tried were the best fit, but the Rosalind in 8.5 was just right).

So, how does this translate to you? Well, the folks at Nota Bene and the folks here at Shoeblog wanted to encourage some not-just-on-Valentine’s-Day love (since, after all, partners may come and go, but your feet are likely to be there for the long haul), so we’re offering you a shot at a $100 gift certificate at Nota Bene’s online shop. Leave a comment here to enter yourself in the contest (by midnight PST on February 26), and we’ll pick a winner at random.

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Here’s another excellent example of a once-fuddy-duddy brand that’s been working on a total style revamp without giving up their comfort.  Think Easy Spirit.  Think Aerosoles.  Think Naturalizer.

They’ve been working to make well-fitting, comfortable women’s shoes since 1927, when women’s suffrage had succeeded and was offering women all kinds of opportunities they didn’t have before.  Including (and I do not mock here) fashion ones.  They had a chance at shoes that weren’t torture devices, and the rising hemlines to show those shoes off.

And Naturalizer has been making shoes with that spirit of fashion and comfort ever since.  The style emphasis has recently gone leaps and bounds forward.

Want proof that this ain’t your mama’s walking shoe company anymore?  Just look at the smart and sassy Ami peep-toe wedge ($75).

Love the button, love the gray, love the sleek silhouette.

The Castell (from the Signature collection) will make you blink and rub your eyes and pinch yourself to make sure you’re really looking at something from a comfort shoe brand.  Sexy and divalicious, no?  Plus, it’s currently on sale for only $40!!

 How about the sexy vintage styled Focus t-strap?  Also on sale for $50 right now, this one’s begging for a spin around the salsa dance floor.

 I’m particularly all about the Marc Jacobs-esque Looloo kitten heel, which you can snap up for only $30 on sale.  The navy patent leather and the cut-outs at the heel are stylish and modern, and I love them.

 Any one of these could show up in a high fashion line, and I wouldn’t think twice about its style belonging there.  Nice going, Naturalizer!  Keep em coming!

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ECCO is one of those brands that’s pretty synonymous with comfort footwear. They’re a classic staple of the field, and there’s good reason for that. The Danish-based company have been making good quality, walkable shoes since 1963. And (hear the bells ring out), for the last few years their style has been improving by Superman-size leaps and bounds.

I remember about 5 years ago, I was on a trip to Scandinavia and Iceland.  Every store had those excellent boxer-inspired boots on display, and they hadn’t reached the USA yet.  I was dying for a pair, but my shopping day in Copenhagen was a Sunday, and most stores were closed.  I remember a mad dash through the Copenhagen airport as soon as I saw they had a duty-free ECCO store, the fastest shoe try-on in memory, and a lightning speed payment for a seriously awesome (and comfy, of course) pair of ECCO boxer boots that weren’t being sold in the States.

And things have only gotten better.  I mean, who’d think that these sexy Bonn tall boots would actually be built for comfort?

The pointy toe, the laser cut-out cuff, the sleek skinny heel. All normally trappings of high fashion (aka high discomfort) styles. But not so here! ECCO makes shoes to fit your feel, not shoes to force your feet into. And the price on these gorgeous things? A mere $210, which is highly reasonable for a pair of high quality, high fashion, comfortable knee boots.

And the style offerings out now range from the sleekly chic to the rocker fantastic. The Bern ankle boot ($160) might as well be straight off Debbie Harry in her Blondie heyday.

It’ll bring just enough attitude to your wardrobe without leaving the realm of the “work appropriate.”

And speaking of work appropriate, that’s a whole new realm ECCO’s begun to offer over the past few years. No longer are they just walking shoes. Now you can head to the office and the office party in any number of classy ECCO pumps, like the Bristol line, which includes a basic 3″ version and a patent t-strap (both $140).

And keep your eyes open for the upcoming Spring 2008 shoes. We got a sneak peek at some of them at the Las Vegas WSA show last summer, and they are ADORABLE!

Of course, in the name of our Shoeblogging duty, your intrepid bloggers test-ran some of the fall ECCOs, and we’re here to report on our exceedingly impressive findings.

Jitterbugbaby–Bremen boot

I had a bit of a runaround before I finally ended up with the Bremen boots. At first, I was really drawn to the “biker with style” look of the Supreme High boot:

But when I got them, although there were removable insoles that let me fit my orthotics in quite nicely, the circumference of the calf was much too wide. I should have paid closer attention to the website, where the calf circumference is listed as 16″ (I generally look for 14″ and smaller).

Ah well, back to the drawing board. And the drawing board brought me to the Bremen tall boot, which was a smarter option for me, anyway, since I’ve been looking for a good knee-high, classy brown leather boot.

This boot certainly fits that bill well. From the picture I was afraid the heel would be too chunky for me (I prefer thinner heels), but in person that’s not an issue. They’re very nice looking, hitting a good compromise between dress boots and the riding boot style that I quite like. The calf circumference is 14 3/4″, which is better for me, but still would be a bit loose except for the fact that the little buckle up at the top is not just there for decoration. It’s functional and cinched in the top of the boot so it was just right. The brown is a bit lighter in person than this picture (I’d say chocolate rather than espresso), but it’s a very rich brown and soft leather.

So, that’s the review looks-wise. Now, how does it feel? In the main, very good. The soles are flexible and have a good non-slip traction to them. The toe tapers in a bit, but not too much, so my wide feet didn’t feel squeezed at all. And it’s roomier than many brands, so no place on my feet was cramped. I wore them all day at work and then out to dinner and a movie with friends, and the only issue I’d say I had with them was that there’s not enough arch support for me. Of course, this is a subjective statement, and someone with lower arches than mine might be perfectly satisfied. But for me the combination of not enough arch support and a comfortably roomy fit meant that my feet slid forward a little in the shoe, so by the end of my day walking around, I was feeling a bit of discomfort in the balls of my feet.

However, all that said, the day I wore them involved more walking around the pavement than I usually go in for during my normal day, and it was only at the very end of that day that any pain at all cropped up. Overall, I give these boots two thumbs up in both the looks and comfort departments and am very satisfied with my new brown boots.

Shomore– Manila Peek-A-Boo Toe

For me, ECCO has always been a reputable shoe brand known for their comfort but not so much for their sense of style (see post of the ECCO Shade 3 that I purchased for my mom. BTW she loves the shoes.). Fortunately, it looks like they’ve upped the ante on the style quotient. Case in point, don’t ECCO’s Bonn Ankle Boot look like great rocker boots? I couldn’t believe they were made by ECCO.

The Bonn boots were not available at the time, but I did get a chance to try the Manila Peek-A-Boo pump instead. I chose these pumps because they are feminine and classy - perfect for wearing into the office (even ones that discourage showing any toes) but also good to wear under jeans too.

The fit - Out of the box, the Manila shoes were a half size larger than I expected. No worries, I exchanged and soon had a pair in the right size. Once I exchanged into a half size smaller, the shoes fit me well. In the past, I’ve run into issues with peep toe shoes. One toe would always find a way at peeping out uncomfortably on its own. No toe issues here. Also nice was an ample toe box, good for wiggle room.

The feel- With any pumps over 2 inches, I usually have a few problems. The range of maladies include have my feet slide down the pump, an unstable heel which leave me teetering, and overall discomfort after wearing shoes for more than an hour. I discovered NONE of these issues with the Manila! After wearing these to a charity dinner (I paired them under a black suit), my feet were still as happy as can be. The heel was thick and stable enough without being chunky and I soon discovered that I had confidence to walk around freely in the pumps. Best of all, although I didn’t wear any nylons, I didn’t experience issues with sweaty feet.

The fashion - These ECCO shoes are no Louboutins but that was okay with me. I was happy to sacrifice a bit of style for comfort. The Manila Peek-A-Boo pumps are super cute and feminine. I liked the detailed stitching on the vamp. It added a little bit of flair to the peep-toes.

Overall, I will continue to observe ECCO. ECCO already has the comfort formula down and it is good to see that style is now coming into play too. I used to think ECCO shoes were for my mother’s age group, but find that notion fading away.

Shoesense: Budapest Mini T-strap

I chose a bright, colorful patent shoe-the Budapest Mini T-strap ($120), which is available in three colors: black, olive, and brick. Mine was the brick version below:

Simply put, these shoes are AWESOME. In person, they seem brighter, almost deep-red (I initially expected a darker terracotta, I guess); they are cheerful, well made, and overall, extremely attractive (and yes, they will get noticed!). But the real bombshell was the fit: The Budapest flat is outrageously comfortable, something you don’t really expect from a pointy-toe flat. The toe-box is so well made that your toes have room to wiggle despite the pointy-design, which almost makes me mad at other designers of pointy-toe shoes: how come their shoes torture our feet, whereas ECCO has got it exactly right? Hm? Think about that!

The outsole is rubber, very flexible and cushy, and the design is such that you can wear them barefoot, too, without any fears of rubbing and blisters. In fact, this shoe demonstrates that well-made shoes do NOT need a break-in period: they felt supremely comfortable right out of the box. I wore them with dark jeans and a horizontal-striped black-and-white H&M T-shirt, and they finished the outfit with just the right amount of pizzazz.

The price is right (a little on the higher-end, but definitely not outrageous), the patent is right-on-trend, the cute mini T-strap is just the right amount of detail, and the colors are extremely wearable. Overall, I give this shoe a glowing A, and I look forward to other ECCO offerings!

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