For the love of shoes

Kimchi Blue Lovely Leaves Sandal $20

Lets talk about comfort.  Shoes love them or hate them are an essential for everyday wear, unless of course you are Cody Lundin from Dual Survival.  Even Pilates and Yoga teachers need shoes to get to class, so why not love what your wearing and feel comfortable in them?  I used to compromise on fit to accommodate my love for the style.  The outcome as you can imagine was not always beneficial to my tootsies.  Your feet should be happy so they will serve you well over your life.  This means choosing shoes that you can walk in for miles and not cringe when you take them off at the end of the day.  

A few pointers for shoe shopping:

• Quality is key.  I cannot tell you how many times I have seen friends buy a poorly made shoe because it was cute and cheap, but it hurt their feet.  You can still buy more expensive brands of shoes at a discounted price if you have the patience to (gasp!) wait for them to go on sale or frequent the discounted mainline stores like Nordstrom Rack, Saks 5th Ave Off 5th or Neiman Marcus Last Call.

Christian Dior via Neiman Marcus Last Call $540 on sale,  originally $1200.

• Comfort.  Trying shoes on in the store or at home after secretly ordering them online and hoping no one sees the package arrive and calls you a shoe addict, is the first test of a shoe.  The second is how the shoe feels the moment you put it on.  Do you notice any uncomfortable spots that rub when you walk in the shoes?  If so put them back!  If you love the shoe, but you have a high arch or need more support in areas you can always add some Dr. Scholl's inserts which make world of difference.

Nude comes in all shades

• Functionality.  Unless you are buying shoes for a specific event & outfit look for shoes that will be versatile in your wardrobe.  Three main colors to have which will match most items in your closet are black, brown and a nude made for your skin tone.  Nude means matching the skin tone you have to the shoe.  Eveyone is a different shade of nude so it may take a little legwork to find your match, but it's worth it.