The truth about booties.

Booties make most legs look fat. There, I said it. Contrary to almost every fashion magazine out there, I speak the truth. Unless you have a supermodel stick leg, booties will cut an unflattering block across your ankle, chopping up the leg line and making feet look oddly tiny sticking out of weird calves. That said, I still kind of lust after them, trying on pair after pair, cursing Nicholas Ghesquiere for helping to kickstart this trend a few seasons ago. The disappointing truth that the booties pretty much never work for me, along with the disturbing reintroduction of the shorty cowboy boot of Melrose past (you know, like this?), has made me obsessed with finding the glorious perfect all-flattering bootie. Help, anyone?

I like the idea of either the top of the bootie scooping down to lengthen the legline, or ending tightly up higher above the ankle.

This one from Urban Outfitters is super cheap ($39.99 what?), but I dunno about that tongue...


We Who See Peeptoe Foldover Bootie - $39.99 (on sale)

And another from Urban I quite like, but think it may be a little too trendy to live beyond this season...



Sam Edelman Lombard Bootie - $124.99 (on sale)

Then there are these insane feathery pouf LD Tuttles - so hot, but again, flattering?


ld tuttle the pygmalion - down to $231 (from $578) at Oak

Or these insane Loeffler Randalls...


Loeffler Randall Cut Out Bootie - $576 at Otte (ouch)

Likes, dislikes?

Spending Money You Don't Have on Boots

Fall is upon us here in Northern California, which means it's time to wear socks again and boot on up. Every year when the weather turns, I find myself uttering the inevitable, "I have nothing to wear," despite the recently paid-off credit card bill stemming from last Fall's ungodly expensive clothing and shoe purchases. But of course, I've trashed last year's now so-last-year half-paycheck boots and now spend my between meeting and work email time combing the web for new ones. Secretly hating myself for feeding the fashion industry machine fueled by planned obsolescence, I am once again, despite this year's self-examination of ridiculous buying habits, succumbing to this annual over-expenditure.

So, equestrian boots are where it's at. Here is a selection from Urban Outfitters, my favorite of course being the most expensive (this is always my curse).



From top down: Frye Dorado Riding Boot, $458; Frye Bonnie Riding Boot, $358; Dolce Vita Fugi Riding Boot, $150; Equestrienne Boot, $150

I've filled and abandoned like 8 shoe site shopping carts in the last week. Can't quite make up my mind, but, against all reason and intelligent money management, I'm leaning toward the Frye Dorados...

Marc. Again.

I love, love, love these little toe-turned-up boots.

Net a porter; $837.00

Loeffler Randall

Husband and wife team Jessie Randall and Brian Murphy have a seriously stylish accessories line that has now expanded into killer ready-to-wear. Winner of the 2007 CFDA Award, the brand is poised to become a serious contender in the world of almost-affordable accessories. Lucky for us in San Francisco, several shops in hipper corners of the 7x7 sell their wares. On my 26th birthday, I even scored an insane pair of wood and platinum leather platform heels for like 70% off at Gimme Shoes. Anyway, take a look at their fall offerings: SHOES, BAGS, CLOTHES

Here are a couple of gems from around the web:


Satin Ruffle Slingback via Bergdorf Goodman, $340


Calliope Taupe Combo Satin Colorblocked Flat via Singer22, $345

Tashkent

There is a woman in Brooklyn named Cheyenne Morris. She has a line of shoes called Tashkent. I love them.

Brand Wars

VS.

If you work in retail, you talk a lot about "brands".


So, for you laypeople, let me explain:

"A brand is a name, logo, slogan, and/or design scheme associated with a product or service. A brand is a symbolic embodiment of all the information connected to the product and serves to create associations and expectations around it. A brand often includes a logo, fonts, color schemes, symbols, and sound, which may be developed to represent implicit values, ideas, and even personality." - Wikipedia

Many celebrities brand themselves (they become the prodcut that you are buying): Mary Kate and Ashley, Kate Moss, Sarah Jessica, Madge, Britney, Justin, etc.

I'm going somewhere with this, I swear.

As I was browsing for shoes online today, I started thinking about celebrity branding in the fashion world. My conclusion? You can basically judge the value of the celebrity based on their branded product.

For example. I think we can all agree that Jessica Simpson is basically lacking in talent, class, creativity and sophistication. I can prove it! Look at the shoes from the Fall 2007 collection:











What surprises me the most about these shoes is how BORING they are. Don't they look like something you would pick up in the Nine West Outlet? Or the clearance corner at Loehman's? Not even, actually, because they look so cheaply made and tacky. Much like Jessica herself. I rest my case on example 1.

Moving on to example 2. It's safe to say that, despite a few wacky outfits, obnoxious videos and overplayed singles, Gwen Stefani is a generally awesome lady with fantastic and innovative style, right? We all wish we were friends with her and she marches to the beat of her own noise machine. Check out her shoes, under the L.A.M.B label:

I love these. The top two are the same shoe! It comes with a removable spat. And all of the gold hardware on all of the shoes is 14K gold-plated. I find these to be fresh, youthful and professional all at the same time. And I would cut my hair off to own several pairs of these.

What do you think?

Back on Concrete

Badberg and I have spent the past two weeks trudging through the Middle Eastern desert in some of the fugliest fugged up shoes one could possible imagine. We're talking contoured footbeds and amphibious sneakers. Not. Cute.

Back on concrete, I'm itching for a pair of obscenely irresponsible pumps like these Moschino Cheap and Chic t-straps to wipe away my comfort sandal nightmares.



$440 via Shopbop