Rocky start (or: Why Ralph and I are not currently friends)

Last week, I went to Bellingham with my mum, as per usual.

We stopped at Value Village, as per usual.

I made a bee-line for the shoes, as per usual.

I discovered a pair of beautiful velvet smoking slippers with gold crests, as per not-so-usual.

They had leather soles. I was intrigued.

Turning them over, I discovered that they are Ralph Lauren. And they were 5$.

Needless to say, they're mine now. And, today was the first day that I decided to wear them. So, upon arriving at work (back to the usual now), I swapped my rainboots (yes, the sunshine is gone, alas!) for my fabulous, pratically-new Ralph Lauren smoking slippers. Two minutes in, I started to limp.

I've lamented the trouble with flats before, but I thought these might be different, because they're, well, Ralph Lauren. No dice. The backs are driving me crazy, and I'm worried I'll be coated in blisters by quitting time.

But, not one to give up easily, I'm trying to stretch them out a little. I have no ice on hand, so I've doing this:

Ridiculous, I know, but I have jammed a stack of post-its in either shoe (yes, I only order bright coloured post-its. Who says you can't have pretty notes?) in a desperate attempt to save my heels.

And it looks insane, but it seems to be working... Fingers crossed. Note to self: Always buy 5$ designer shoes from Value Village, but be ready for a world of pain if they're flat.

I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Hurricane Shopping

I've returned, once again, from New York. Ah, New York, shopping mecca of North America, fountain of life for my sizeable closet! My second home.

It was, as always, a whirlwind trip, a hurricane of retail insanity, if you will (too soon?).

And, of course, there were shoes.

The plane ride was spent doing some much needed research in InStyle, and I have a few quick gems to share (pick up the issue if you have a chance, there's some good stuff in there, footwear and otherwise!) before I get on with my stories!

Just a couple of cute things!

After a good nap and some page flipping, we had arrived! Then it was off to the hotel, then straight out to shop. And we didn't stop for three days.

At one point during this spree, my mum spied these in the window of New York Look:

Naturally, we popped in for a closer look. And, that was when I found something glorious!

Beautiful, no? Ok, I admit it, I was afraid to look at the price tag. The floral booties were $218, these had to be around $500, right? Wrong! They were $96! That's just all sorts of right. And, my amazing mummy offered to purchase them as an early Christmas present!

So, the only possible outcome was:

Floral booties for mum, and purple tweed for me! How divine!

Of course, I picked up a few more pair through the rest of the trip, but I'm not going to give the whole game away just yet.

Although, to my previous point about tuxedo slippers and androgyny, I did pick of these pals:

Blue, tassels, tuxedo? How can you go wrong!

And, I tried on the closet thing I'll ever wear to tacky New York tourist souvenirs:

Which I think are actually rather adorable. Irregular Choice. But then, who else could pull off putting the New York skyline on a pump?

Sadly, Tuesday came all too soon (though I was glad to come home, as I was missing my man and my kitty!) and it was time to pack up and fly away!

I think that that last photo is evidence of just how successful a trip this was! Eight pieces of newly-filled luggage later...

Velvet, my dear chap!

Something that was hugely popularized by Coco Chanel and then by Yves St. Laurent, was the idea of menswear as womenswear. And it's still huge now.

Not going to lie, some of my favourite shoes are feminine takes on men's styles, including floral brogues and patent oxfords:

But, the big one that been coming out this season is the velvet tuxedo slipper! I picked up a pair in navy when I was in New York last, and the luxe look is to die for! They bring all the charm of a gentlemen of a bygone era in his smoking jacket, and still look divine and ladylike with a mini dress and pair of tights, or shorts and a blazer.

Plus, how can you go wrong with studs?

Or a royal purple! Decadent!

Velvet is such a rich fabric, always present for fall and winter, and beautiful in jewel tones. But, typically, it isn't reserved for footwear. No more! The snuggly velvet will keep your toes warm on those bitter November days, and you'll look like royalty (or at least silverscreen nobility) doing it.