These are, hands down, the most comfortable stilettos I have ever owned. Now comfortable for stilettos isn’t the same as comfortable for bunny slippers, but still. These are major.
Dolce & Gabbana fuchsia suede peep toes, perched delicately atop my Hermes Fleurs de l’Opera foulard.
I know, as a photographer I make an excellent fashion writer. What I don’t know is HOW Dolce and Gabbana make these darn things so comfortable.
My feet are just over 4.2″ wide ( the so-called average foot is about 3.6″) and while most shoes I bring home require stretching and a breaking-in period wherein I suffer for my art, I plucked these off the floor at Neiman’s, adjusted the buckle –actually I added another hole in the right one since that foot is wider– popped them on my feet and happily wore them for 6 hours the next day.
Now I know there’s a recession on, and we’re all pinching our pennies, but if you CAN swing it, I really really REALLY suggest picking these up.
These are shoes you’re going to have for the rest of your life.
They’re amazing now, they’ll be amazing when you’re 60. Sexy but not TOO sexy, and classic without being dull. This is investment shopping, and they are on sale. Go get ’em.
Plummy, I wonder if someday you might consider writing something up on how you keep your shoes in such nice condition… I wear the &%#! out of mine. I don’t know if it’s because I’m a fast walker or bear down on them too hard, but the heel tips get smooshed and worn out so quickly, and they’re always getting scuffed. One of the reasons (other than $) that I’m afraid to buy really high-end shoes is that I don’t think they’ll last me very long.
Comment by Stella — August 7, 2009 @ 9:58 am
I feel like I was present at the birth of your favorite child…
Stella, her shoes are lovely because her feet don’t actually touch the ground. But I will say this — a better-quality shoe will be easier to keep up. You may scuff them & whatnot, but the higher-quality leather will be easier to polish & re-finish, and they’ll be better-constructed & less likely to fall apart in the first place. Not suggesting that everyone has to wear $800 shoes all the time, but I swear, contrary to many opinions, even if you are “hard on shoes” you will get more wear out of the ones that cost a little more. Once the $30 vinyl cheapies all to pieces not much can be done for them, but a nice pair of Cole Haans or Weitzmans can go to the shoe spa and come back looking like new.
Comment by Style Spy — August 7, 2009 @ 10:42 am
Stella, your wish is my command! Look for something on Tuesday. Style Spy, as much as I love my fuchsia darlings, I’d trade them for those Alaias in a heartbeat.
Comment by Plumcake — August 7, 2009 @ 11:07 am
I have these! In pink! I think we should yell “jinx” or something. Purchased before I decided to give up buying heels higher than 3 inches. I have very wide feet (and high arches–it cracked me up when Twistie referred to her feet as “cubes” because that’s how mine feel–, and I agree they are comfortable for their heel height. They aren’t my most comfortable pair, but I can wear them all day without agony, which is pretty amazing. D & G made two of my all-time favorite shoes in terms of comfort. My most comfortable stilletto came from Isaac Mizrahi–I bought three pairs of his basic pump and they are my go-to shoe. I also have a pair of Calvin Klein pumps that made my jaw drop when I put them on they were so comfortable (they are only a 2.5 inch heel though.)
As long as we are discussing what influences the comfort of a heel, here’s my take: the width of the toe box and the pitch/height of the heel in concert. If designers give me enough room at the base of the toe box, they can go as pointy as they want after that. If they give me a platform so they can get heel height without pitching me onto my tip toes, then we’re in business. To me, the hidden platform is the best invention ever, just after penicillin.
The only caution I would make on the sale if you aren’t somebody who typically buys expensive shoes are the suede and the satin. I’m not sure how Austin’s weather is, but I live in LA after growing up in Chicago, and my shoes last so much longer here and so much better than they did there. I swear Chicago’s weather ate shoes, and their train platforms–don’t get me started. I also can afford pricier shoes now, but I’m pretty sure that the LA weather–always predictably sunny, and if it is going to rain, it decides early enough in the day that you don’t get caught with your pretties in the downpour. The satin shoes are special occasion shoes, obviously, and they will last you until you are 60 (what an image–a tall, silver-haired, handsome big woman in her black satin Dolcies), suede shoes are tempting to take out more often and they do react to weather.
Comment by Lisa — August 7, 2009 @ 12:19 pm