Shoe Philosophy

I've been thinking about my philosophy on shoes lately...there are a lot of different philosophies out there, but I think there are two main categories that really influence your individual philosophy: cost versus quality and comfort versus fashion. I've used my incredible artistic and computer graphic skills to create the charts below to demonstrate my point (click on each one to see it larger).

On the cost/quality scale, I would probably say I'm about a 2 or 3. I mean, hey--I wouldn't be able to have 90+ pairs of shoes otherwise. It's hard for me to spend over $100 on one pair of shoes (not that I haven't done it before) when I know I could get 3 or 4 pairs for the same amount somewhere else.


On the comfort/fashion scale I'm probably about an 8 or 9. Which if you think about it, you kind of have to be if you're a 2 or 3 on the comfort/quality scale. Cheap shoes aren't always made to be super comfortable--I guess it costs too much to make them cute AND comfortable.

What's interesting is that one of my sisters is practically the opposite--she wants/needs her shoes to be comfortable and she is generally willing to pay for that.

I know it's possible to be close to a 10 on both scale cuz, hey, if you care about shoes enough to spent that kind of money on them then it's very possible that you care enough about how you look to endure a lot of pain for that look.

What I'm curious about is if there are people out there that are close to 1 on both scales. Can you care that much about comfort and still find cheap shoes that will work for you? I guess there are people out there that are crazy good at finding incredible deals. You'd probably have to be one of those people to be on the lower end of both these scales...

Anybody care to opine? Where do you fit on the two shoe philosophy scales? Do you think there are other significant factors that I've forgotten?

Buying shoes online

So in the last several months I have discovered several great websites for buying shoes online and thought I would share:

1 - Zappos.com: Can be pricey, but they are generally pretty quality shoes and they have free shipping both ways. They have some of the prettiest/most fun shoes I have seen.

2 - Shoebuy.com: Similar to Zappos--huge selection, free shipping both ways. In my experience (which is still limited) I have found some better deals at shoebuy.com, but not quite as many fun styles or colors in the price range I'm looking for. (I also posted a link for $$ off at shoebuy.com a few posts ago.)

3 - Shoedazzle.com: An interesting concept. It is similar to those CD or DVD clubs where they send you a selection each month except it does work a little differently. At the beginning of each month, they send you an e-mail letting you know your "showroom" for the month is ready. They give you a selection of 5-10 shoes in your showroom for you to choose from. Every pair costs $39.95. You can opt out each month so you're never required to buy anything (but if you don't opt out by a certain date, they charge you the $39.95 and you get a credit on your account).

4 - Justfab.com: Same idea as shoedazzle.com but I like having both so I get more selection options! :)

Also, I have finally updated my Current Shoes slide show below with several new pairs from the last 6 months. Look for the "New!" tag.

Thoughts

I got some new shoes recently but haven't had a chance to take pictures yet...those should be coming to the slide show soon so keep an eye out.

So I've been thinking lately that sometimes finding the perfect pair of shoes for an outfit is very complicated. You would think with 80+ pairs of shoes, you would always have the perfect pair, but let me tell you--that is not the case.

For starters, there are so many different shades of each color...you can't just get a pair of red shoes and be good. There's dark red, candy apple red, bright red, and so many more. And red is one of the easier ones!

And don't even get me started on heel height. With some pants you need flats, for some pants you need 2 inch heels, for some pants you need 4 inch heels. So not only do you need at least 3 shades in each color, you also need at least 3 different heel heights in each shade. Oy!

Of course the reality is that you can't even find the shade you want half the time. If you are just looking for some fun colors of shoes, there are TONS of options out there, but if you are looking for a specific color...good luck! Especially if it's not a neutral color or red. Green seems to be a particularly difficult one to find if you want cute shoes in a particular shade. There aren't a ton of green options out there in general, so when you add in style preference and specific color wants/needs it gets very tricky.

And if color and heel height isn't enough, sometimes you just need a particular style to really complement the outfit. So even if you have 10 (or possibly more) different pairs of black shoes, sometimes you just do not have the right style and heel height combination. Or even the right style at all.

Ok, I don't want to seem ridiculous...I recognize that this is really not the worst problem in the world to have, but hey, we all have our trials. ;) Has anybody else experienced these issues, or is it just me??

(Oh by the way, check out the previous post for $10 off at www.shoebuy.com.)

Here's $10 off at Shoebuy.com

"Shoes are so great! Check out this website...I just bought two pairs from it today. Awesome!"

Save on shoes, accessories, handbags and apparel at Shoebuy.com. We've got something for everyone and for a limited time, you can save $10 on that special something. Valid on purchase of $50 or more.

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