Giuseppe Zanotti’s Strappy Floral Sandals

Rain, rain, go away.

Is anybody else having weird spring weather? Rain one day, clear the next, then right on back to more rain?

This is not the weather one expects when living proximate to an area nicknamed, ‘The Palm Springs of Washington’.

Madame Nature needs to tell Old Man Winter to back off, already. After all, summer starts in less than a week. Most of the flowers I’ve seen are – sadly – attached to fast-growing weeds that have been thriving in this rapidly shifting weather.

So, here are  my consolation flowers for today:

Giuseppi Zanotti E90042 sandals $875 $411 at Zappos.com . . .  for one lucky size-10 foot out there &

$481.22 (size 8 ) at endless.com

Now, message to whoever is in charge of summer, ‘Hi. It’s  mid-way through June,and I’d like my flowers already.  Peep-toe appropriate weather would also be greatly appreciated. -G. ‘

Georgina Goodman’s playful pop of retro-80′s color

If you are young enough to have missed the last round of neon and ultra-brights the last time they visited the fashion scene (not counting the rave/club scene) , you are probably the perfect age to enjoy Georgina Goodman’s colorful and funky shoes.

And, with the resurgence of,  guyliner, 80′s reminiscent fashions from leggings to lace & underwear-as-outerwear, puffer vests, and multicolored/new new wave/emo mullets that would do Flock of Seagulls proud, such brilliant, neon colors feel entirely at home added to the mix.

One caution: If you, like me, are old enough to have rocked any (or heaven help us, all) of the above fashions for any length of time during your personal high school or college jaunt through the  80′s, there is a good chance you should not attempt to do the same today.

But, if you must imbibe of the fountain of the 80′s, these Georgina Goodman’s are a low-risk way to, rather literally, dip your foot into the water of memory lane….How’s that for painfully mixed metaphors!?

Georgina Goodman ‘Harlow’ $289.98 $725

Georgina Goodman ‘Elisha’ $211.98 $530

Georgina Goodman ‘Inga’ $235.98 $590

Georgina Goodman  Rowan $309.98 $776

Georgina Goodman ‘Jackson’ $555 $740

Georgina Goodman ‘Leon’ $920

Georgina Goodman ‘Pierce’ $875

Georgina Goodman ‘Noah’ $581.25 $775

I have to tell you. Those sandals with the color blocks of black, pink, turquoise, and yellow up there? They bring back fond memories of my first real ‘teenager’ outfit. Oh yeah.  This was no hand-me-down -  a common occurrence in a family with 4 older sisters. This outfit had not a single touch of little-kid frou-frou detail on it anywhere; it was just super-cool 1980-something goodness: a black button-down top with a turquoise collar, a just-at-the-knee colorblocked black, pink, and turquoise skirt, a pair of shockingly vibrant turquoise tights, and my first pair of ‘adult’ patent kitten heels with a bow over the vamp. Oh, baby.

I had those pumps for years.

Oh, yeah, good times & good memories.

These Georgina Goodman’s are just waiting to be made into somebody’s current fashion love and future fashion memory.

Let the good times start for both young and young-at-heart shoe-lovers.

Naughty Monkey: Tiara sandal brings big summer bling

I know I’ve mentioned sometime before that I’m somewhat like a crow

>>>>>Oh Look! …..A Sparkly!

or magpie and am very attracted to small luxuries and shiny, pretty things.

Case in point:

Naughty Monkey ‘Tiara’ $69.99 at Zappos.com,  $70.95 at Endless.com & sale priced @ Bakers.com for $49.99

These are a truly tempting replacement for the terribly worn and abused, sequined, toe-sandals that I got for a steal from Payless when my son was still just 6 months old …. He’s 5 1/2 now, so you do that math.  Any way you look at it, those once fit for a gypsy-princess sandals are due for a replacement.

So, while I really don’t like flip flops (and even less that they have become the de-facto summer uniform for 90% of the women I encounter when I am out and about), I can go for a blindingly bling-tastic summer toe-sandal if it is both  fancy enough to wear with my summer skirts yet not  to fancy to pair with classic jeans or summer capri pants.

These fit the bill nicely.

Now, to balance my June budget and see if I might realistically be able to make room for these.

As to closet space, that is another issue entirely….

The Ce Ce Chin ‘Signature’ Collection

Ce Ce Chin is the main creative mind behind 80%20 footwear, a brand I’ve discussed a couple of times this week.  The main 80%20 brand combines casual silhouettes with modern styling that seem perfect for urban gals on the go. These styles are meant to be wardrobe workhorses.

In contrast, the recent (April 2010) launch of the Ce Ce Chin collection website is all about classic influences and old-world elegance – all wrapped up in a fabulous  statement-shoe package. Even better is that it’s all been offered at an accessible, if not exactly inexpensive,  price point.

Originally revealed at the Project Tradeshow, these shoes are stunners.  The heels were inspired by classic glass perfume bottles and the uppers are made of satins, lace overlays,  and soft leathers.

What’s not to love?

80%20 Ce Ce Chin Collection.

More styles are available through boutiques whose locations and contact information are available at the Ce Ce Chin website. But, the gorgeous princess oxfords shown above are available at Karmaloop right now – and they are all on sale for under $130 (0riginal retail was around $175-190).  Shoe deals don’t come much better than this.

Which leads me to a dirty little confession. I buckled and ordered a pair before I finished writing this post. I apparently didn’t trust that a pair in size 7.5 would be left for me once our readers got their eyes on these.

Of course, I might be wrong about that, but why take the chance?

Related Links:

Karmaloop Lookbook.

Daily Candy interview & Sneek Peek.

Moxsie guest blogger (MISS) interview.

MISS Sneek Peek.

Venuszine interview.

Design Glut interview.

Riffin’ interview.

Designer Shoe Deja Vu: Gucci Tattoo Cruise Slingbacks

Some of you may recall that I liked the Gucci Cruise ’09 Heart Slingbacks quite a bit when they were available for sale last fall.

These displayed more than a little echo of Christian Audigier / Ed Hardy styling without being terribly over the top. Plus, I’m a sucker for slingbacks that make my feet look all pretty and disguise flaws while still having a bit of sassy peek-a-boo appeal, so I was double tempted than had these merely been pumps.

Alas, I passed on purchasing them since they were not in my cash-flow plan at that time.

…As a side note, I have actually managed to stick to my attempts at a budget  – for the most part.  I’m only human and things do come up – but, over the last year I have declined to make any shoe purchases over $200, and at that,  rarely.  In fact, my last shoe purchase was back at the end of February, so self control for me has been generally successful, even if it is all about staying on the cold-turkey wagon and keeping my mindset on the task of  new shoe-finds for our readers here on Shoeblog to vicariously fill my shoe needs.

Anyway, I keep reminding myself that  paying down my debt is one of my most important goals for 2010.   The road to financial stability is worth it, but temptation arises in unexpected ways.

This Martinez Valero Gucci-twin is one of those temptations.  These are copies, not counterfeits, and therefore legal; they make no claims to being an actual Gucci product. But, comparing these two products, the source shoe  is unmistakable:

Martinez Valero ‘Onaway’ $159, on sale for $55.98 at Smartbargains & $96.22 at Endless.com

I had written the Gucci’s off as an ebay aftermarket hunt for sometime in 2011, after my bills are paid off, if at all. Now temptation rears its ugly head.

Should I feel bad that I am tempted by these Valero’s? I am still undecided on the whole legal copies issue, which is much more complicated than initial observations might suggest.

Maybe my weird mental guilt issues would be calmed if I mini-splurged on the black rather than the tan since I don’t recall that color being offered by Gucci?

Or, am I over-thinking this?