Shoesday Tuesday- Design Your Own Shoes

At work, I see a lot of brides trying to match shoes to their bridesmaids dresses. It's a fun look for the bride to have a pop of color at her feet, plus it brings the look of the wedding party together a little bit more. Obviously, there are plenty of dye-able shoe options out there. All you need is a swatch and you can have perfectly matched shoes. (Of course, I wouldn't recommend having the bridesmaids dye their shoes to match their dresses- that look is very dated.) But whether you are a bride searching for fun shoes, or whether you're just an average Jane looking for a unique pair of shoes, you might want to try creating your own custom look. There are of course custom shoes that are designed specifically to fit your feet and your feet only. I'm not really talking about that type of customization today. Mostly, I'm interested in the custom LOOK of a pair of shoes.

Nina is a shoe brand I have always highly recommended. I used to purchase them for the female performers when I worked at AMT. They were very well made not only in terms of durability (performers are notoriously hard on their shoes and costumes), but they were also well made in terms of comfort. I sometimes even purchased them for dance numbers- they were solid and secure, but also sleek and sexy. In other words, if these shoes could withstand the intense use and abuse of the performance world, they certainly can survive a night out with the girls. And more importantly, your feet will survive the night out, too.

Anyway, since by now my love affair with Nina shoes is clear, I'm sure you can understand my excitement when I stumbled upon their "Design Your Own Shoes" feature. In five minutes, I had designed a pair of shoes for each season. Yes, they're a little wacky, but I did that intentionally so that you could see the options of mixing colors.

Spring Nina

Summer Nina

Fall Nina

Winter Nina

There are about half a dozen shoe styles to choose from, and each style is available in at least three different heel height options. The shoes are satin and there are options to add rhinestones to some of the styles, too. I'm so tempted to create some one-of-a-kind shoes for myself! The prices are very reasonable, especially when you consider the fact that these are essentially custom-made shoes. Check it out when you have a minute and start creating your own shoe designs! 

Tweet your designs to share with me and other Style...the New Black readers. Don't forget the hashtag #ShoesdayTuesday or we won't be able to find your tweets! Happy Shoesday Tuesday, everyone! 

Shoesday Tuesday- Spring is Coming...

With mere minutes to left before the clock strikes 12 and it is no longer Shoesday Tuesday, I'm finally opening up my laptop and composing this post. I struggled with what to write about- not for a lack of fun shoes in my life, but the opposite- too many to choose from and I just couldn't focus. In the end I've decided to share just one pair- a pair I believe I have shown here on the blog before, but I'm too tired and it's too late for me to go back through the archives and figure out when and why and all of that. The reason these shoes are on my mind today is mostly due to their vibrant color. We've had so much snow and cloudy days lately. All I want is to start seeing green- grass and leaves have been out of my life too long and I'm dying for spring.

If ever a shoe personified springtime, it's this one- Nina's "Electra" in apple green. Available on Zappos for $89.95, I think these shoes might be the antidote to seasonal affective disorder. Don't you think?

Dressing for a Wedding

Wedding season is upon us, and chances are good you've got at least one to attend this year. I actually enjoy putting together an outfit for a wedding but I completely understand why the task can be a little daunting. In fact, if you remember, I enlisted your opinion when choosing an outfit for a wedding in October. There is one hard and fast fashion rule when you are a guest at a wedding: Do no wear white unless you are the bride. Some might say that you shouldn't wear black to a wedding, but it's for superstitious reasons- some say it's bad luck. Fashion-wise there is no faux pas associated with wearing black to a wedding.

Not having rules to follow can actually make dressing for a wedding even more difficult. But there are always guidelines to follow. Consider the following when selecting your attire:

- What time of day is the wedding?
- Where is the wedding/reception located?
- Has the couple specified attire in the invitation?

Obviously, an afternoon wedding that takes place in an outdoor setting will be more casual than an evening wedding at a posh hotel or restaurant. Black tie or white tie specified in the invitation is very clear for men, but can still be confusing for women. And what about the beach front wedding followed by a reception at a yacht club- is it casual or formal?

Hopefully if you have been invited to the wedding, you know the couple pretty well and if the question of casual vs. dressy exists, you should probably be able to figure out which direction the couple would go in. If however, it's a distant cousin you don't know too well, then the task is a little more difficult. For the sake of this blog post, let's assume you have a good idea of the type of wedding you are attending. No matter what the style of the wedding, the most important accessory you will choose is your shoes. Weddings are long events, often culminating in much dancing, so you want shoes that won't kill your feet from the start. For beautiful shoes that are also comfortable I must recommend Nina Shoes. I use these all the time for the performers at AMT because they are durable, elegant and comfortable. I often find them at heavily discounted prices at places like SYMS, Burlington Coat Factory, Marshall's and TJ Maxx.

So now that you know about the most important part, let's get on to the outfits!

Casual, outdoor wedding:

Dress: Anthropologie, $158

Flats: Nina, $79.95

Straw Clutch: Michael Kors, $106.99

A casual, outdoor wedding is the perfect opportunity to wear a fun print- just make sure the dress has dressy feel to it. Even though it's a casual wedding, it's still a wedding, so "casual" doesn't have the exact same meaning as it does in "casual cookout" or "casual date." You still need to bring it just a little bit.

In-between wedding:

Dress: Modcloth, $53.99

Clutch: G by Guess, $20

Shoes: Nina, $79.95

For the in-between wedding, it's best to err on the side of being little dressier, but have fun with your outfit. The bright green shoes add a fun punch of color and the grey clutch is a nice change from the traditional black evening bag.

Formal, evening wedding:

Dress: Sung Boutique, $108

Clutch: Emitations, $75

Shoes: Nina, $99.95

For a formal wedding (black or white tie), you really do need to wear full evening attire. It's up to you if you want to go long or short on the dress, but I find that short is always best for two reasons. First, with a long formal gown, you run the risk of looking like you're there to accept an Academy Award. And second, if you absolutely must kick of your shoes to shake your booty, the hem won't get shredded by the end of the night if you go short.

As with any outfit, use the accessories to add some personality to your look. It will help set you apart from the countless other guests at the reception. I once attended a wedding where I was literally the only 20-something who wasn't wearing an LBD and I was quite proud of myself for standing out in the crowd. If you must wear an LBD, be sure to spice it up with great accessories.

And please, refrain from doing the Chicken Dance. No one looks good doing the Chicken Dance.