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  1. Shoeperwoman

    Shoe Save 17/102: Janessa

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    1
    | Shoe Challenge, Shoeperwoman's Shoes
    April 10, 2012

    french connection janessa Shoe Save 17/102: Janessa

    SHOES: French Connection ‘Janessa’ platforms, c/o Spartoo (last saved here)
    SAVED: Monday, April 2nd, 2012

    I’m still a little bit behind with my Shoe Save posts, so this save is from last Monday, when I headed into the city to see some friends, wearing my French Connection ‘Janessa’ pumps. These are definitely one for the “boring but useful” files, but while I do wear them fairly often, every time I do, I curse the fact that I didn’t go a half-size down while I had the chance, because they’re just a little larger than I’d like them to be. I’ve made them wearable with some insoles in the toes (I always find I prefer to try to build up the toe, rather than the heel, if a shoe is too large), but a smaller size would’ve been even better. Ah, well, I still get a lot of use out of them, mostly because the colour is one that works with so much of my wardrobe, so at least they’re still being used!

  2. Shoeperwoman

    March 2012 in Shoes

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    5
    | Shoe Challenge, Shoeperwoman's Shoes
    April 5, 2012

    yellow shoes and daffodils March 2012 in Shoes

    SHOES SAVED: 16
    SHOES ACQUIRED: 5 (Whoops!)
    PROGRESS: 16/102

    My personal Shoe Challenge officially started on March 8th, which means that it’ll have been running for a month this Sunday – doesn’t time fly when you’re saving shoes? I thought it might be fun to take a look back at each month of shoe saving as it ends, and see how I’ve been getting on, so here’s the first round-up, and if I can manage to get through as many pairs of shoes every month, well, let’s just say I’ll have time for lots more shoes before the challenge ends…

    shoeperwomans shoe challenge March 2012 in Shoes

    Of course, much of my success this month can be attributed to the gorgeous weather we found ourselves having in the final week. This March really did live up to its reputation of going “out like a lamb”, and the warm sunshine made it feel more like midsummer than early Spring – in fact, who am I kidding? It was better than summer usually is, and, knowing how much I usually struggle to get through all of my open-toed shoes in the course of our usual, dreary summers, I made the most of it, getting in a shoe save – or even two – every day for a week.

    I started the month in boots and coats…

    sam edelman boots March 2012 in Shoes

    (I know there’s no coat in this photo, but trust me, I did have one with me!)

    … and ended it with open-toed shoes and a series of 50s sundresses and capri pants:

    shoeperwomans shoe challenge1 March 2012 in Shoes

    And then, in the first week of April, it was back to boots and coats again, but we don’t talk about that. Much.

    I terms of Shoe Acquisitions, I was pretty bad this month, and will need to try to cut back if I’m going to get through them all by the end. At the moment, though, the end of the challenge is still a long way off, and my new method of counting each pair of shoes as “saved” when I wear them, as opposed to when I photograph myself wearing them, is definitely helping. Now I just need a return of the sunny weather, so I get through some more pairs of those peep toes!

    green zara dress March 2012 in Shoes

    I am so happy to have said goodbye to tights this month. Did I mention how much I hate wearing tights? No?

    Want to join my Shoe Challenge? You can read more about how to do it here.

  3. Shoeperwoman

    Shoe Save 16/102: The First of Many

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    1
    | Shoe Challenge, Shoeperwoman's Shoes
    April 5, 2012

    high heel shoes Shoe Save 16/102: The First of Many

    SHOES: Carvela ‘Australia’ pink peep toes (c/o Sarenza)
    SAVED: Sunday, April 1st, 2012

    As predicted, I lost no time saving my pink Carvela peep toes, which I predict will become the most-worn shoes in my collection this summer – they just go with absolutely everything I own, so I’m going to have to fight the urge to just wear them with everything, I think!

    You’ll have to excuse the image above – it wasn’t actually supposed to be a photo of my shoes, you see: we were out with friends, Terry snapped a photo of them, and my feet just happened to be in the way. I’m sticking to my resolution to consider the shoes “safe” once they’ve been worn, regardless of whether or not there are  decent photographs to document the occasion, though, and as I just showed you these shoes a couple of weeks ago, I’m sure you can remember what they look like. And I’m also sure there will be many, many more outfits to photograph these, should I feel the need…

  4. Shoeperwoman

    Shoe Save 15/102: The Basics

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    4
    | Shoe Challenge, Shoeperwoman's Shoes
    April 4, 2012

    stripe blazer blue jeans Shoe Save 15/102: The Basics

    SHOES: Tan peep toes, c/o Barratts (last saved here and here)
    OUTFIT: Dorothy Perkins jeans (worn on many occasions!); New Look blazer and tank
    SAVED: Friday, March 30th, 2012

    When I’m not prancing around in fields or jumping like an idiot, this is the kind of thing you’ll normally find me wearing: basic jeans, something with stripes on it, and these Barratts peep toes, which really should have gone to the great shoe closet in the sky quite some time ago, but which I just can’t seem to let go off, or stop wearing. I’m sure we all have shoes like that, right? Um, right?

    I didn’t take a close-up of these because they’re so beaten up now that they don’t really stand-up to close inspection. In fact, I almost didn’t include them in the challenge count at all, for that very reason, but I had a feeling I’d probably end up wearing them anyway, and I was right, because here they are, safe already, and it wasn’t even April yet when this photo was taken!

    This was our last day of sunshine before the cold and wet set in again: boo!

  5. Shoeperwoman

    Shoe Save 14/102: Hearts and Dots

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    16
    | Shoe Challenge, Shoeperwoman's Shoes
    April 3, 2012

    polka dot dress2 Shoe Save 14/102: Hearts and Dots
    SHOES: Vivienne Westwood/Melissa Lady Dragon heart shoes in black and bronze (last saved here)
    OUTFIT: Miss Selfridge (via eBay) polka dot dress (also seen here and here); ancient black cardigan; ebay sunglasses
    SAVED: Thursday, March 29th, 2012

    Yes, I’m STILL catching up with shoe saves from last week, and I know I’ve said this about a million times already, but this whole “shoe saving” business is just SO much easier in the sunshine. If I had weather like this all year, I think I could be done in about a quarter of the time it usually takes me. Then I could buy more shoes.

    No, wait! What am I saying? Of course I wouldn’t buy more shoes. I mean, it’s not like I won a pair on eBay this very week, or anything, because I would never do that. Ahem. Instead, I’ve been busy wearing the ones I have, and last Thursday, it was the turn of my black Lady Dragon shoes. These are the first of my Vivienne Westwood/Melissa collection to make it through the challenge, and they’re actually surprisingly practical for the kind of summer strolls I like to take, because the heel is fairly low, and the wipe-clean upper means I don’t have to worry about ruining them in random patches of mud.

    vivienne westwood lady dragon heart shoes black Shoe Save 14/102: Hearts and Dots

    As it happened, there was no mud to be found on this outing, and instead we found this little “runway” in the middle of town. Well, it would’ve been rude not to have a quick strut, wouldn’t it?

    runway Shoe Save 14/102: Hearts and Dots

    I also had to do a spot of twirling. I can’t seem to NOT twirl in this dress…

    polka dots and lady dragons Shoe Save 14/102: Hearts and Dots

    Speaking of the dress, you’ve seen it twice now, which makes me very happy, because it was one of those dresses I couldn’t resist buying, but didn’t think I’d get much of an opportunity to wear, on account of the strapless bodice. Luckily, I found it on eBay, and won it for a price low enough  for it not to really matter if it only got the occasional outing, but once my mum had turned the fabric belt into a halter tie, and I’d worked out that almost ANY dress can be made suitably “casual” by the simple act of throwing a cardigan over the top, it went into regular rotation, and has more than earned its place in the Shoeper closet.

    lady dragon heart shoes Shoe Save 14/102: Hearts and Dots

    WANT TO JOIN SHOEPERWOMAN’S SHOE CHALLENGE? 

    Click here to find out how to do it!

  6. Shoeperwoman

    Shoe Save 13/102: Gingham and Red

    by
    9
    | Shoe Challenge, Shoeperwoman's Shoes
    April 2, 2012

    D70 0999 Shoe Save 13/102: Gingham and Red

    SHOES: New Look red flats (last saved here)
    OUTFIT: Tara Starlet carpri pants (last seen here); New Look tank and cardigan; thrifted scarf; eBay sunglasses
    SAVED: Wednesday, March 28th, 2012

    By Wednesday of last week, the weather had turned a little cooler, but was still much more like Summer than early Spring, so I grabbed the opportunity for a quick spot of shoe saving. The challenge has been running for a little over three weeks now (although it feels like much longer, somehow!) and I’ve already worn almost all of my flats, so I decided to continue the good work with these red patent ones from New Look:

    red flats Shoe Save 13/102: Gingham and Red

    These shoes were an emergency purchase a couple of years ago: I’d somehow – and don’t ask how – managed to go out wearing two different boots (Ok, they were both black, and they were both mid-calf length, with the same height of heel. But… they were different boots. Whoops.) and even although you’d have had to look closely to notice, I felt so stupid I ran into the closest shoe-selling store I could find, which happened to be New Look, and bought the cheapest shoes in the place. And I call myself a Shoeperhero!

    tall grass1 Shoe Save 13/102: Gingham and Red

    As it turned out, the shoes more than paid for themselves, because they’re the flats I wear most often. I had to snip the elastic at the heel because it rubbed horribly, as this style of shoe always seems to, but once I’d done that, they quickly became my go-to “practical” shoes. Because stilettos just don’t fare too well in fields, ya know?

    red hair Shoe Save 13/102: Gingham and Red

    capri Shoe Save 13/102: Gingham and Red

    Yes, I took far too many photos. I do that when it’s sunny.

    D70 0986 Shoe Save 13/102: Gingham and Red

    D70 0982 Shoe Save 13/102: Gingham and Red

    Only two more pairs of flats to go! And here were you, thinking I only ever wore heels…

  7. Shoeperwoman

    Shoe Save 12/102: Still Sunny

    by
    15
    | Shoe Challenge, Shoeperwoman's Shoes
    March 30, 2012

    jumping Shoe Save 12/102: Still Sunny

    SHOES: Gold ‘Atticus’ wedges (last seen here)
    OUTFIT: River Island bird print dress (last seen here); yellow belt (my mum’s), Gucci sunglasses
    SAVED: Tuesday, March 27th, 2012

    Earlier this week I explored the fashion blogger cliché of “prancing round in field of flowers”, so today I thought I’d go for the “Look! I’m hovering!” one. Yes.

    As you can see, Tuesday was another day of glorious, sunny weather, so I made the most of it in another River Island sundress from last year, and these ancient gold wedges which I bought in TK Maxx years ago. These shoes really need to be retired soon, but I’ve keep hold of them purely because they’re comfortable enough to walk long distances in, so they come in handy on sunny days when I’m planning to do a lot of walking, but don’t want to wear flats, or something similarly “sensible”. And, you know, I NEVER want to wear flats.

    This dress is exactly the same as the one I wore on Sunday, but with birds rather than fruit on it:

    bird print dress Shoe Save 12/102: Still Sunny

    Of course, the problem with being a dress-wearer, especially in warm weather, is that there aren’t too many ways to “remix” them. In the winter I guess I could add tights and sweaters or jackets, but with the weather so warm, the most I could realistically do was add a belt, and wear different shoes and sunglasses. Even so, the look is basically the same as the last time I wore this, but ah well, such is life.

    walking the dog Shoe Save 12/102: Still Sunny
    With these shoes on their last, er, soles, and hopefully a lot more summery walks on the horizon, I’m starting to think I might need to pick up another pair of cheap wedges which I don’t mind ruining by walking for miles in down dusty trails. Primark, here I come!

    D70 0961 Shoe Save 12/102: Still Sunny

    D70 0962 Shoe Save 12/102: Still Sunny

    D70 0953 Shoe Save 12/102: Still Sunny

    According to the weather forecast, we’ll be back to cold weather again next week, so I’m glad I managed to make the most of this unseasonable sunny spell and wear some of my open toed shoes: my biggest issue with the last two shoe challenges was the fact that I have a disproportionate amount of peep toes and sandals for the type of weather we get here, so when I do get the chance to wear them, I have to grab it. I think I managed a shoe save every day this week, so I have more sunny photos to show you next week, when the weather’s back to normal again.

    Have a great weekend, everyone!

    Shoeperwoman x

  8. Shoeperwoman

    Shoe Save 11/102: Cheater, Repeater

    by
    2
    | Shoe Challenge, Shoeperwoman's Shoes
    March 29, 2012

    silver peep toes Shoe Save 11/102: Cheater, Repeater

    SHOES: Silver thrift store sandals (last saved here)
    OUTFIT: Dorothy Perkins blue cropped trousers, black Oasis top
    SAVED: Monday, March 27th, 2012

    On Monday, our glorious Spring weather continued, so I grabbed the opportunity to save another pair of open-toed shoes, in the shape of these silver pumps, which I found in a thift store a few years ago, and have worn regularly ever since.

    Want to see what I wore with these? Well, all you have to do is click here. And look at my post from LAST time I saved these, in my 2011 challenge. Yes, folks, I repeated the entire outfit, head to toe, not one thing different. I do that. Quite a lot, actually. Hey, you know what would make this year’s challenge REALLY easy? If I just wore exactly the same outfits as last year, and pointed you to last year’s photos, too, instead of taking new ones! Now why didn’t I think of that sooner?

    Don’t worry: I’m not quite that lazy, but as you can see, I really wasn’t joking about saving the shoes as I wear them, rather than waiting until I can photograph them: these shoes were worn on Monday – and for quite a few hours, too – so these shoes are officially safe. Even if I did do it in the laziest way possible…