Shoe blog

Dana Davis Does it Right

One of the things that has sadly been lost a bit in the madness of the recent ready-to-wear season is one of things I like to do most here at Shoeblog.  Namely, ferreting out shoe lines that mesh both chic and comfort.  Much as I might love to drool over John Galliano and Viktor & Rolf and all the other beautiful footwear on display on the catwalks, there’s no way in hell I’d ever actually put my body through the pain of wearing those shoes.

So, in this season of particularly painfully high heels that no woman should have to wear to feel sexy and confident, I’m going to turn to Dana Davis to save me from the agony and bone-damage.

Who is Dana Davis, you might ask?

She’s a woman who, after spending much of her life as a Type 1 diabetic and dealing with multiple resulting foot surgeries, finally decided to take matters into her own hands and started a shoe line intended to offer women stylish, sleek shoe options that wouldn’t send them hobbling to the hospital after a night out.

She’s worked orthopaedic technology into her collection, which includes both flats and heels (up to about 3 1/2″), and she hasn’t sacrificed the style.  In fact, she’s hitting the classic vintage 1940s-inspired look really well with some of her shoes.

For example, the Volterra, which may look familiar to those of you who (like me) found your eyes caught on Anne Hathaway’s feet during her Frost/Nixon-aping performance with Hugh Jackman during this year’s Oscar ceremony opening number.

You can snap up your own pair of Volterras in several colors, but my favorite is this beautiful pink textured leather with chocolate accents.

The Campania in matte gold and metallic bronze will add some sizzle to your spring/summer wardrobe.

Or if you’re after a walkable sandal that’ll be low-profile in the way of sleek styling but high-profile in the way of fashionability, either the Elba or the Veneto will keep you (and your feet, of course) taken care of.

There are some pretty jewel tones coming for the fall 2009 collection, so keep an eye out.  But in the meanwhile, as the weather in some parts of the world starts to warm up, here are some ways to be well-shod for the upcoming season without killing yourself with blisters in the process.  OK, so they’re not cheap (they run in the $400-500 range).  But that’s what many designer label shoes cost, and I’d have a hard time buying a justification that dropping that kind of dough is worth it for a certain brand name but not for a shoe that’ll actually keep your feet supported and well cared for.