Who says you can't wear closed-toes in the summer?

Ok, so it's summer. That we all know.

I've been pretty much living in my flippy-floppies all summer (you know the ones... they're bluueee) but today I opted to go a little classier.

I'm going camping tomorrow with my partner in crime Miss Dominique, and we all know that you can't wear classy heels at the lake. At the VERY most, you can get away with wearing wedges... but even then... it's CAMPING, you crazy shoe-anistas!

Anyways, these are Payless Shoes. They were cheap, I won't lie. I bought them when I was just starting doing officework and I still believed in work-appropriate clothing (very much a thing of the past, I'm in shorts and a t-shirt right now, but believe me, I'm still smashing).

I used to hate Payless Shoes with a fiery burning passion because I thought they were cheaply made, and therefore:
a) uncomfortable; and
b) going to fall apart at any moment.

Payless was my store of choice when I was in high school and it was incredibly important to purchase 18 pairs of shoes for less than 100$ cause I was working in a grocery store for minimum wage and a shopaholic.

Anyways, I love these. they're pseudo-spectators with the suede and patent patches, and they're actually comfy and durable as all hell. Enjoy!

PS Like I said, I'm going camping, so I won't be posting for a few days for sure... Have a grand weekend!

The return of the flat!

Gooooooddddd mooorrrrnnnniiinnnggggg!!!

Ok. So, today, I want to tell you about my obsession with crazy sandals. I've shown you my gold ankle wrap flip-flops, but these lil babies were a very excellent purchase made in the FABULOUS city of New York!

We (Mum and I) found them at this store Laila Rowe (if you REALLY like these, and want a pair, they're on sale for 15.00$US) that was a few different places in the ol' NYC, and we kept stumbling upon them in our travels around the city (which was opportune because we couldn't figure out where the first one was that we found, and we really wanted to go back).

I think that they're quite clever because they have ankle straps, but also zippers down the back of the ankle, so you can just unzip and jump out. I always find it frustrating having to contort my body into odd pretzel shapes so that I can see the buckles placed strategically just out of my normal range of sight.

Anyways! I am absolutely LOVING the crazy flat sandals that have been coming out this season. There are studs and anklestraps and pseudo-sandal-boot-hybrids (like the ones my mum bought on our San Fran trip) all over the place and I think they're fantastic. It's nice to see something other than your typical strappy heel (not that I don't love a good strappy heel, they just get tired after awhile) or mangy flip-flop. Plus, there's a shift with these towards a less delicate look. The studs and beadwork are all very strong looks, sometimes hinting at tribal or military, and this allows them to pull together and step up a casual look.

For example, I've worn these sandals with a pair of short-shorts and my (men's) I <3 NY shirt, and really felt as though the shoes pulled the outfit together and made it an outfit, rather than looking like I just pulled the first two clean items of clothing off my floor and threw them on (which is very possibly what actually happened).

I would almost equate this trend to all the gorgeous flat boots we've been seeing for Fall/Winter the last few years. Flats are coming back, baby, and the boardwalk is the perfect place for them.

Stepping it up a notch...

So, I thought, since the sun was a-shining, I would step things up a notch (actually, writing this is really giving me a reason to wear more interesting shoes everyday... Now, if only I could bring myself to believe that getting up 15 minutes early so I can do my makeup in the morning is a worthy endeavour...)
Anyways, back to the task at hand. These lil babies are Steve Madden, they're leathah, and they have this cool faux wrap thing going on the toe. I've also had them since high school. In fact, I'm pretty sure I walked out of a Value Village in Victoria wearing them. Oops...

They're actually one of my favourite pairs of shoes, but I always end up wearing them on days when I have to do things you don't really want to be doing in heels. For example, these shoes have climbed a ladder today. They also went to the bank, but I like running errands in a pair of nice heels!

I'd said previously that I decided to wear these guys today cause the sun is shining. I don't know about YOU, but I LOVE to wear crazy bright coloured shoes with a dress of a contrasting (but still complimentary) colour, shake my hair out and run out the door. I think that being coated in bright colours (but please don't wear more than 2 or 3 bright hues, we're not trying to look like a skittles storm here) is one of the best ways to do summer. Extra points for a white sunhat.