Shoe Review: Casadei ‘Blade’ pumps in Raso Nero

SHOES: Casadei ‘Blade’ pumps
BUY: Spartoo

As some of you know, I’ve been declaring Casadei’s ‘Blade’ pumps to be Shoe Kryptonite for quite some time now, so when the opportunity came up to try a pair, courtesy of my sponsors at Spartoo, I jumped at it.

This particular pair are from the Autumn/Winter 2011 collection, and have a black satin upper with that trademark ‘blade’ heel which gives these shoes their name:

It’s kinda lethal looking, but is, of course, what makes these shoes so distinctive: and why I’ve loved them for such a long time!

The toe, meanwhile, is super-pointy:

Such a pointed shape wouldn’t have appealed to me at all even a year ago, but I’ve been wearing more of this kind of style (albeit not quite as pointed) lately, and I don’t think this particular shoe would really work with any other kind of shape: it, combined with the heel, is what gives the shoe that “dangerous” kind of look to it.

I ordered these in my usual size UK4/Euro 37 and I’d say they’re true to size: they felt a little tight at first, as most new shoes do, but after just a few minutes of walking around, they were perfect. Of course, shoes like these are never going to be what you’d call “comfortable” exactly – they’re just not built for a huge amount of walking! That said, they’re not exactly uncomfortable either, and although the angle of the foot is fairly steep, I find them easier to walk in than something like my Dune Olsen pumps, for instance, which are the standard by which I judge all shoes, being the most uncomfortable ones I own. These don’t quite fall into that category, happily, although the real proof will come when I actually wear them out of the house, so look out for them in a Shoe Challenge soon!