Category: Clothing and Style

I always struggle with the issues of comfort versus style in terms of shoes. I love summer sandals, both flat and with heels but I do also occasionally need to walk and then comfort comes into play.  Luckily I live a mostly suburban life revolving around a car so my choice of footwear is not critical.  But, as I continue to battle episodes of hives and accompanying angiodema of the feet, I find myself relying on a trusty old pair of Mephisto sandals that I bought three years ago for casual summer comfort and have loved ever since.

As you can see they are beginning to show their age, and although they may last through the summer I don't think they will see another.  Unfortunately I haven't found a current style that fits my admittedly picky standards and is also available in my all to common (39) size.  It seems that, athough summer weather is just beginning, the summer shoe season is nearing its close, at least in the stores.

I like the shiny patent but I haven't found a patent Mephisto that I like; in fact I have found few Mephistos with the latex/foam sole and I am loathe to try the cork, fearing it is too hard.  I have had bad experiences trying Birkies; they always cause great pain at the metacarpal heads, which when combined with my already high arches, my natural turn-out, and my tendency (although usually only when my back is sore) to roll to the outside of my foot, makes them not only uncomfortable but dangerous, as I roll over and trip on the thick sole.

  Sigh.

Still, I have found two new pairs of sandals that I think I may love, although they don't quite replace the old favorites.

These shiny red patent sandals are quite comfortable (I am wearing them today) and G likes the color.  They are a little more red than they appear in this photo, actually the exact same shade as my favorite "Bogota Blackberry" OPI nail polish.  Unfortunately my toes currently sport a clashing shade of red.  I see a pedicure in my future.

These are quite comfy and they fit snugly, but comfortably, so they don't flop around on my feet.  I am not sure if they would be good for a day walking around a city, say NYC; the high t-strap of the Mephisto's was good at keeping them in place, but they might work quite well.

I also got these elegant metalic thongs from J. Donald Pliner.  I had been coveting them since I saw them in a Neiman Marcus Catalog which I subsequently lost.  When I found them on Zappos I was quite happy.  I really like the lines of the sandal and they seem to be comfortable as well.  The sole is firmer than either the Mephisto or the Taryn Rose, but the shape and support are good for me and I think they will be good to wear.

Now these shoes also come in a black leather, although not patent, and I am contemplating ordering them.  But I really like the patent on my old faithful pair.  Taryn Rose makes the same sandal as the red one in patent, but I think I like the lines of these Donald Pliner sandals better, it just seems more elegant and more "dressed" to me.

I think I will have to think about this a little bit.  Should I order black, or should I just wait and figure that the perfect shoe will appear either in the summer sales or next spring?

The past two summers I wore a lot of black.  In fact I probably wore mostly black.

I have nothing against black, I even like black.  But hot sunny summer days call for something a little lighter and brighter.  I do like color and I like to wear color.

I would say that I wore black because that is what I had, and it is true at least in part.  I had black, black fit, and I didn't have time to shop.  I also didn't want to have to think about what I was wearing.

Perhaps I was not at a point where I was really ready to let color  back into my life.  But that is not really what I want to talk about today.

I don't want to wear black this summer.  At least not mostly black. So I am slowly edging my way into color.

Edging, because the world is mostly gray, wet, and cold and I am adapting by wearing mostly navy and gray with touches of a few other colors.

Edging because I still have found limited shopping time and I only want to buy (or make) things that are perfectly what I want and make me happy.  Most of the things I have ordered have been sent back as they were not right.

These things are old and beloved.  They make me happy and if they are not quite redolent of spring, they are not quite suited to winter either.  I love the color, the texture, the combination of prints:  a simple silk tee, long sleeve, with ruching  on the sleeves.  A tunic I picked up at Urban Outfitters a few years ago, and exception to most of what I find at Urban Outfitters: Japanese cotton crepe in two patterns.  The top is tunic length on me but I think it was sold as a dress.  I find it perfect over jeans with a turtle or a tee.  I am trying to wean myself from the turtlenecks, but it a slow process, that baring of the neck, much like weaning myself away from black.

There was a period when I was a young girl when I would love to look through catalogs and fashion magazines and imagine the lives of the people who would wear the clothes I saw.  Since there was little possibility of my affording or having the opportunity to wear most of these things it was also fun to imagine the life I might have if I could have or wear anything I liked in these catalogs, it was a kind of a way of dreaming of the possibilities, and perhaps the beginnings of my love of clothes.

There were several pages of pictures I pulled, but actually very little that I would buy as is.  Some things, yes, I love for themselves, but the length was wrong, or the color was wrong, or something.  That is why I sew, not because I have ever wanted to sew all my own clothes, but because sometimes I want things I just can't find, and I want them just the way I want them.

The other garments on the sheet above are more of inspiration pieces for ideas that float around in my head, the shape is nice.  I look at the tee and remember that I want to put chiffon trim on some tees.  The dress is the kind of thing I love every summer and it reminds me to play with pretty fabrics and have fun.  The brown tunic is fabulous, but once again too short.

But what about the designer clothes from the fancier catalogs?  There was a big book from Bergdorf Goodman, but there were only two things I really liked.  The suit by Armani with the pleated front is gorgeous but not my color and definitely not needed.  The very sleek, modern, color blocked dress could probably is fabulous and might be something I would actually try to make someday.

Don't you think a little cardigan with the big scalloped edges would be fabulous over chinos or jeans?  The closures are fabulous but they look heavy compared to the garment, or at least my vision of the garment.  And the wonderful coat in the bottom corner would be fabulous without the appliqued flowers and frills.    I suppose I like my flowers in simpler garments like the lovely little chiffon blouse.