Before we end this month with the Elina Wedges, let's take a look at the alternatives. It was a bit difficult for me to find something similar. I felt like the wedges stood out because of it's beautiful burnt sienna color. However, you can find something pretty close to it and here are my top picks.

I went ahead and bought a pair of the Forever21 booties. They were on sale and looked like they would be pretty similar in coloring. Turns out the picture was quite false. The boots ended up being more of a taupe color. The fit is a bit too opened around the ankles, of course I have a very small ankle so it might just be my fault.

The comfort on these are incredible. They walk nicely and feel extremely light in comparison to the Elina Wedges. There is a couple of reasons why these are a tad bit more comfortable. These wedges are not made out of a heavy cork/wood like the Torys. Also, it's made out of faux leather vs. genuine leather.  But comfort is comfort.

If you compare the two side by side, the Elina wedges are a bit higher in the heel. This is another reason why the forever21 wedges are a bit more comfortable. Also, the leather on the Tory wedges is a bit thicker and stiffer. This gives forever21 the edge on comfort. It also make the fit on the the Torys a bit smaller.

Aside from the logo and a couple of seams, the shoes are quite similar in shape, fit, and style. There is no way, a couple of seams and even a logo can be the difference between a $13.00 shoe and almost a $300.00 shoe. Yes, quality and maybe materials might factor in a difference of $100 bucks or so, but still, the Torys are drastically much more expensive. I have this theory that a good pair of shoe, with comfort, great materials, and style should cost around $80-$100. If you are paying more than $100 on a pair of shoes, you are JUST paying for the logo/brand. For example, Steve Madden, Nine West, Rock Ports makes GREAT quality shoes hitting the $80-$100 price range. Why not buy those shoes? Simple, the brand is what make a mark on us. The notion that the more something costs does not always mean the better the quality. Quality plateau's at a certain price point. After that price mark, you are just paying for a brand. A little bit of food for thought!

Anyways! I'm hosting a give away for the Forever21 wedges. This is in celebration of  the first month of shoe blogging and not giving up on it yet. The shoes are a size 6, each month I'll try to host a giveaway for the alternative pair. I'll keep in mind with buying them in different sizes.

Rules:
1) You must follow me either on instagram/twitter and a subscriber on my YouTube channel.
2) You must leave a comment down below answering the question "What would you wear with these boots?"
3) In the comment you must leave me your twitter/instagram user name so I can later contact you if you win the shoes.
4) Must me older than 18 yo or have guardian permission.
5) Opened internationally.


Best of Luck! I will announce the winner on this blog two weeks from now.

~°K.L°~

This isn't a fashion blog, but I had to somehow share my excitement and joy.

I wish it was something big like winning a million dollars, or finding out that the Nordstrom near me is handing out free shoes.

Nothing as wonderful.

I am excited over an idea.

Simply just an idea.

Have you ever figured something out or got an idea that was so great you can't contain yourself?

How about getting a little bit of insight that made you realize that this might possibly change your life.

I've had only a few of those during my life time. The first one was starting a YT focused on DIY. That has changed over the years, but it was an idea and I went with my gut.

Another great idea that came to me was this blog. Maybe it wasn't great, but it hit me so hard that I needed to do this.

Alright..here is the idea.

For the longest time I have always wanted to start my own fashion line. I was/am too scared to even think about starting something so new. Not to mention competing with the market that I am in.

I don't have a ANY resources. NONE! No financial backing, little to no network, and the man power has totaled up to one.

All I have are the designs and Ideas in my head. Even so, they are just mediocre designs. I can't possibly think that I can market mediocre designs at a planned price range to make any profit. Breaking even alone will be a blessing.

My idea comes at the most random moments. Brushing my teeth, showering, driving, or trying to pay the cashier at the store.

This ah-ha! moment, is probably one of the most prolific ideas I have ever had in my life.

Not only did I come up with the name for my line -which I really struggled with.  I came up with a design that will work. Something that is functional, sustainable, and always reliable.

I can go on and on about it, but I gotta get to sketching and making samples.

2013 is going to be a really good beginning!

°K.L° ἔρημος σόλα


Ideas can be life-changing. Sometimes all you need to open the door is just one more good idea. --Jim Rohn

Is frightful....

It is finally cold in Houston. Hopefully for awhile longer so I can bust out some serious knitwear. Every year, I buy sweaters hoping that it would get cold enough to wear them all. It only get's cold enough for me to wear the occasional one, or two. Silly how I went on about sweaters and I am not even wearing one in this post.

I love the look of winter clothing, but I hate the actual cold. The only plus side about cold weather is that my face takes longer to get oily.

As you guys may know, the Elina Wedge Booties by Tory Burch won for the month of January (read it here). This means I will be posting a couple of outfit blogs with them on for 2-3 weeks. I'll then do a review about them and lastly talk about the alternatives. I'll try to do a giveaway for the alternative pair every month just to keep you guys coming back ^_~. Mid-way through January, I'll host another poll for the shoe of February. I don't know what it is about this blog, but I am so in love with it! Everything about it...from excitement, to passion, to love, to design. It's so extremely invigorating and refreshing. Also, it's nice to have another entity outside of YouTube. Not that I'm hating on YouTube...that will always be my #1 baby.

*TopShop (New York)-It was an expensive and only buy from TopShop. Bought it last year and now it's my go to faux leather jacket.
* H&M (Chicago)-High waist checkered trousers. I always shop at H&M when I am in a different city. It's a goal to hit up every H&M I can.
*Tory Burch Elina Wedge Booties-ShopBop
*Charolotte Russe Belt-It use to be gold, and now it has a tarnished look to it. I love the tarnished look!

It finally came in the mail! My first pair of Tory Burch shoes to get this blog really started.

After looking over the poll, I noticed that I have quite a mix of edgy and conservative shoe lovers. This is totally cool because I need a mix.

I cringed a little when I finally checked out of shopbop. The shoes were $276.50, and with tax they came out to be $299.31. To be honest, if I had to pay for shipping I would have probably passed up on the shoes and this blog. I am second guessing if this blog was a really good idea. You guys might need to talk me back into it.

At the end of the day, my frugal and stingy cheap ways kind of dictates my fashion choices.

Anyways, the selection of shoes I picked out for the poll were heavily based on price and what I would possibly like to wear.

If I had to pick every shoe each month, they would probably be all black with some  heavy duty hardware. My thought process is always about bang for your buck. If I am going to spend 3 c-notes on my shoes, they better be damn cool. the Tragedy of that is, they might be too cool for me to wear on a daily basis.

The booties would probably be the last choice out of all the of my options. Like someone stated in my comments:  "I love the Tory Burch wedges, but that's because they look the most NORMAL out of the options. However, I feel that if you are going to spend a good amount of money on designer shoes, they should be unique and worth the price. You can find shoes like the Tory Burch ones every season, but if you're going to EXPERIMENT, why play the safe card?! I'm going for the one YOU said you liked. "--L.

Creeps me out sometimes how well you guys know me. ^_~"

I'm glad the Torys won by Out of Stock Default. I would have never gotten them myself.  Since they are pretty "normal" and very every day wear, I would get my bang for the buck with wear and tear.

Now, let's stare at them on my grass-like carpet.

°K.L° ἔρημος σόλα

"Let's be realistic, how many people are buying a $2,000 skirt? I love to design things that people can actually buy. I'm staggered by what a boot costs today."--Vera Wang

*DIY Head Band
*DIY Dress with Petticoat
*Pearl necklace and dropped earrings, $12.99/set Black Friday 2010 Sale (Score!)
*Faux Leather Satchel From DailyLook.com January 2012 (Video)
*Vintage Leather Gloves. My professor gave them to me during a semester sale because they were small enough to fit my hands.
*Aldo Wedges, bought last winter during a Sale.
*Forever 21 Bow Belt
*Matte Revlon Lipstick in Really Red

Don't mind the creepy smile. I was looking through the Mad Men photos, and most of the women barely showed teeth when they smiled. I wish I could go back to the 60's..but maybe as a Caucasian. The Vietnamese people weren't really having a party around that time frame.

People use to put in so much effort with their appearance. Don't get me wrong, I love that we don't have to give a $hit about our looks every waking minute. I also love that we no longer have the ostentatious mind set. Sometimes it's just nice to dress up.

D.I.Y for this outfit will be up very soon. I just need to get over the mundane pain of editing. The worst part about this process. Wish I can twitch my nose and have it all done in a heart beat.

Who was your favorite fashion icon during the 60's?

Jackie Onassis, Audrey Hepburn, Brigitte Bardot, Jane Birkin, Janis Joplin..omfg freaking CHER!---Shoot! There are so many incredible women from that time frame. I wonder what the people in 2062 will think of our women? I mean Michelle Obama is quite fetching right?

I have to thank so many of you guys for voting (1,210 votes!). Because of this, I feel a little bit guilty about what happened. On Monday (12/10/2012) I was getting ready to buy the winning shoe and something absolutely tragic happened (it was truly  tragic).

Now, let's hope it's still cold when they arrive.
°K.L°

Hiyo!
Welcome to my addiction. For 2013 I have decided to indulge my shoe loving habits by starting this blog. As with most blogs, the life span of it is pretty obscure. Do I plan to accomplish my ambitions? My heart crosses it's little veins and silently hopes that I do. Of course, my excuse for not maintaining most of my inter-web goals are due to a little something called "life".

One thing on my bucket list is to own a beautiful collection of shoes. Not just designers, but also affordable quality shoes.

With this blog, I hope to explore the world of that is the "designer" shoe. In doing so, I have set out a budget each month where I will buy one designer for less than $300. I will compare it to "lower" brands and share my opinions with my readers. If in the future I can handle a more hefty budget, I'll consider buying shoes that are in season. For now, let set it at $300 or less. After all, a girl has to eat ^_~. And Pay Mortgage. And Car Insurance. And take care of an obese bunny.

A few things that I definitely don't want to happen to this blog (and probably will happen anyways). Warning: Mean K.L below.
1) I don't want anyone to think that I am bragging about my current/future collection of shoes. This is simply for me to explore my love and the architecture of shoes.
2) I know speculations of how I can afford these things will arise. I am comfortable with people guessing and assuming. The truth is, I came across a shoe goddess.
3) I don't want anyone to think that I have changed from the girl who would rather thrift her things to a "snobby" brand lover. That girl is still there, she's just exploring another side of her. If you don't like this girl...just simply enjoy the girl on YouTube.

I can understand when starting something new (change), people will react differently towards it. I can't change any negative reactions, but that is inevitable. All I can say is "Hey! I love shoes!"

If you share my vice, how about you join me on this journey. Hopefully we all can learn to appreciate shoes for more than "Ohhh look how cute they are!"

•K.L•