Shoe Story : Little Black Book Part I

In documenting my shoe collection, which is rather extensive I thought I would present it in several parts, starting with not-so-basic black. Certainly one can never have too much black in their wardrobe, and the variety of black shoes on the market is testament to that. The first pair of dress shoes I ever had as an adult was black, and I've come along way since then.

1.) BCBGirls, an extremely old pair of black patent leather pumps with stitching and cutouts, oldies but goodies. Old enough that I don't recall where they came from

2.) Candies black and white lace up spats/saddle shoes. As ashamed as I was to purchase a pair of shoes with a picture of Brittany Spears on the cover of the box I saw these in Kohl's and was in love. They're over three years old now and still in good shape despite the tendency of the white faux leather to scuff.

3.) I bought these Capelli sandals/flip flops last year at T.J. Maxx after searching from store to store for a decent pair. They area really nice leather and have a padded instep, a very good value for the low price.

4.) These beauties are from the Karen Millen outlet on the day after Thanksgiving, black velvet with a steel heel inlaid with rhinestones, though it might be difficult to see them in the picture.

5.) Another T.J. Maxx find, I bought these last spring at a time when I was really broke and the $30 price tag beggared me. They are really trendy, more trendy than I usually like however they're made of beautiful soft leather and have a bold Hell's Angel's feel, which I think their brand name Kelsi Dagger suggests.

6.) I always resist my mother's trips to Building 19, the bargain basement store on the Pawtucket-East Providence line. Alongside castoffs from QVC and the collected odds and ends there is a decent shoe section, and I scored these Steven Maddens there and they stop traffic all the time, sparkle covered shoes before they were trendy.

7.) Over the summer when I was in England I discovered Monsoon, who aside from their philanthropic contributions (a portion of every purchase goes to support women and children in India) has a wonderful, fanciful, and eclectic collection of dresses and accessories. These were very expensive shoes that were heavily discounted, and I could have bought a dozen more pairs while I was there.