Shoes are the new Bag

So this morning, I am going through The Sartorialist's fashion week coverage on Style.com and I have to tell you I am enamored with some of the shoes worn by the fashion crowd. I often cruise the pictures looking for shoes and the ways they are being paired on the street.

The great Carine Roitfeld, in what appears to be over the knee boots (though they could be a boot/legging pairing too but let's go with the full boot idea for now). I have two pairs of these - one in a leather like these and one in a suede. They eliminate the need for tights and give a bit edgier look to simple outfits

I like to look for the the cut and color and how they are being mixed in with the shape and cut of the clothes. I also look for the "weight" of the shoe and how it is being paired with clothes.
Shoes can instantly transform your look and change the entire viewpoint of your outfit.

Flats make this casual but this same outfit paired with a super high heel would instantly become uber glam

Baby blue suede shoes make a strong statement here. Whether this is your look or not, look at the shape & cut in this photo. Could an ankle boot and tights work with your favorite 1950s full skirted dress?

Fact: I wear a lot of vintage and hope as a reader of this blog you do too

This could easily be a vintage cape.
It gets an updated, rock chic look by pairing it with tights and a heavy, laced boot

Fact: If not styled properly vintage can look, well vintage.

This is interesting because it is almost as if this girl decided the bag and shoe she was going to wear and paired those, then got dressed with no regard to the color palette. It works, but who would pair tan with grey & black? Its an interesting concept. Put together your outfit. Pair your show and bag and then just put the two together no matter what.

Fact: One of the easiest ways to pull a dress that is 60 years old and yank it firmly into the present is to add the most cutting edge shoes you can find.

A strong 80s shape gets an instant update with equally strong shoes that add a pop of color too. I LOVE these shoes and must have them

Here is another shot illustrating the use of color at the base of an outfit over a black tight.
The coat inthis shot could easily be a 1960s piece that you own now.

As in great interior design, it is sometimes the juxtaposition of the old and the startling new that create the greatest aesthetic for the eye.
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Last, but certainly not least, it was nice to see a girl working the same fabulous boots twice in one week. And it also give you a great demonstration of how a boot can work with both a pant and skirt. I often travel for a week or so at a stretch and you have to pack smart. You have to use some items more then once or you are towing mounds of luggage around - which if you fly these days on a regular basis is a royal pain in the ass. And it is a silly habit we have gotten into as a culture to never want to be seen in the same thing twice. It's a habit that says that once you find the most beautiful dress/shoe/bag/coat EVER and you wear it out to a fabulous event that you cannot wear it again for fear of being mocked for wearing the same thing twice. Instead, your perfect dress/shoe/bag/coat gets to sit in the closet and bask in it's one evening of glory and you peep in on it once a year and wish you could wear it again.

Yes, it is as stupid as it sounds once you actually write it out.

I think this economic blip we all have to suffer through will correct that idea quick - and apparently Giovanni and her fabulous boots are of the same frame of mind.