Satin bow platform runway pumps by Chanel
$1,050 in Chanel stores only
Showing posts with label high heels. Show all posts
Showing posts with label high heels. Show all posts
20 February 2008
10 February 2008
06 February 2008
A quick post from your desperate Editrix in between lap dances
"I think it is stupid to wear stiletos to work, unless you are working as a *umm* professional dancer. For those in government, private industry, law, sales, and so on, I think it looks out of place and a little desperate. JMHO"
Normally, reader comments don't get to me.
Even the really spiteful, personal attacks that might've brought me to tears or anger months ago don't really pack a punch anymore.
But this one, excerpted above, in response to yesterday's very tongue in cheek analysis of the 'heels and sex' research has me about as riled up as I've been in months. So much so that I abandoned my half-written A-line skirt follow-up to address not so much the author -because frankly, I bet her beliefs have quite the following in DC- but more the meat of what she's actually asserting.
Now, it's unclear to me whether Ms. Anonymous used hyperbole in her comment for comedic effect or because she actually believes stilettos in "serious" offices smack of lap-dancing and desperation. Either way, what is clear is her gross generalization that all stilettos are five inches high and propped up by a translucent plastic platform and her assumption that all women who wear these shoes do so only for the effect they'll have on the men in the workplace -- at least that's how I interpreted the "desperate" bit.
I'll have Ms. Anonymous know that today, on this beautiful 70+ degree day, I'm rocking a stem-skinny four-inch grey suede stiletto peep-toe, and not once have I had the inclination to wrap myself around a chubby, depressed businessman nursing an overpriced gin and tonic or felt a desire to flaunt my lengthened legs in front of my male colleagues.
For most of us who step into stilettos day in and day out during the work week, not only do we have the common sense to select something elegant -not to mention temper our clothing, as appropriate- but the motivation behind our choice of footwear is a whole lot less complicated than you think: we just like looking thinner and feeling taller.
Unlike these women, who I think we can all agree stand before us as head-shakingly embarrassing examples of how not to dress if you want to be respected:
Sophia "Will Strip for Singles" Bush outside the Ports 1961 show
Ali "Built for the Pole" Larter
Angie "Handjobs for Smack" Harmon at Carolina Herrera
Mandy "Whore" Moore outside the tents at Peter Som
Some skank model at the Vera Wang Lavender Label show
05 February 2008
Italians and Brits claim DC women's abs weak, sex lives wanting
Well, sort of.
According to an international medical expert (i.e., some urologist at the University of Verona), women who regularly wear heels at least two inches tall register significantly stronger pelvic muscles than women with the same level of daily exercise whose feet don't enjoy eight or more hours at a 15-degree (the equivalent of a two inch heel) or higher incline.
And anyone who's read a Cosmopolitan in the past decade knows good and well that a set of strong pelvic muscles is the Kegel key to unlocking that perfect, magical, lasts-all-night 'O' face.
Okay, maybe that's for the most part adolescent legend, but how about this...Harper's Bazaar UK recently polled a group of men of varying ages, races, education levels and socioeconomic backgrounds the question, "Which type of footwear makes you most want to have sex with a woman?"
Their "overwhelming" choice, according to the fashion mag, was none other than the stiletto.
Or more commonly known in these here parts as the shoe no woman wears on a weekday. For serious, on my five-block walk home yesterday evening, a walk during which I took my sweet, it's-60-degrees-outside time, I spotted nary a pair of stilettos, nor even a stacked, kitten, wedged or block heel exceeding the necessary two inches to earn a woman her wings for down there flexosity.
(shaking head)
My take on this "exciting new research" -the emphatic provided by designer Manolo Blahnik- is that even if the Italian urologist's new physiological findings turn out to be less than scientifically sound and high heels aren't in fact a reliable catalyst for better sex, why not prop ourselves up anyway to at least increase our chances of having more sex?
Of course, I'm bypassing the step that has the stiletto-wearing woman giving into the man who propositions her -and her lengthened legs- for sex, but hey, I'm single and spend my entire Tuesday counting down the hours until I can simultaneously write and watch "The Biggest Loser: Couples" with my dog -- just let me assume that's how it works.
In sum:
Stilettos --> hot legs --> aroused men --> empowered women --> sex --> good moods --> productive at work --> salary increase --> really nice stilettos --> even hotter legs --> more aroused men (and so on and so forth...)
Buy her shoes for Valentine's day, gentlemen, and you both win.
*kudos to Adam (and six other readers!) for alerting me to this article
**photo taken from The Sartorialist
04 February 2008
23 January 2008
17 January 2008
Where has all the good taste gone?
Bad shoes.
They're not just in DC and not just on the feet of middle-aged secretaries and stay at home Moms who consider their wide-strapped nubuck Mephisto sandals the perfect "goin' out" complement to their J. Jill 'Wearever' separates.
No, even the youngest, most well-paid, and in some cases, truly stylish stars are prone to an off day when it comes to footwear.
Below are what I consider the 10 worst offenses (so far) of 2008.
Enjoy as best you can...
If you'd picked the silver fox instead of the young waiter, you'd probably have made off with a nicer parting gift than these clompers...
As amazing as your pins are, m'dear, the French tips and cork heeled prom shoes have me leaning toward team LC...
Thankfully, the rest of you doesn't fit at all with the Mary-Poppins-gone-bondage theme you've created from the ankle down...
Not only are you inept at counting, but you also can't seem to tell the difference between Broadway kicks and red carpet heels...
11 January 2008
To end your work week on a strong, sexy note (or three)
A perfect three-song start to your next strut-to-work-in-heels iMix:
"Boys wanna be her" by Peaches
"Kiss you off" by Scissor Sisters
"Paralyzer" by Finger Eleven
Happy weekend,
J
06 January 2008
02 January 2008
The NYE breakdown: neck-eating ruffles 'n' all
For reasons related to a New Year's resolution, I hadn't planned on giving a piece-by-piece rundown of my NYE ensemble -and thus, no, I don't have a full-length photo- but since several of you have asked for one and since I did feel pretty darn stylish that night, I felt I owed it to both my readership and to the lovely five-person team on Third Ave. that championed this look even when the gray tights and the black platforms were still very much pie-in-the-sky hypotheticals, to postpone my less-me-more-fashion resolution by one more day.
At last count, I'd unconsciously and consciously broken two of the three life changes to which I'd committed myself yesterday morning; here's hoping I can go the distance with my intent to drink more water and less sugar-free Red Bull.
Enjoy, and please feel free to share what pretty lil' thing(s) you wore to ring in the new year!
My Dress
Ruffled organza dress by Robert Rodriguez
($363 in-store at Bloomingdale's or online at saks.com)*
For those of you who have actually seen this dress -especially the other reader who also wore my baby RobRod Monday night- please join me in convincing the others that its color is much more a muted Dijon gold than the French's squeeze-bottle yellow you see here.
My Tights
High-waisted Tight-End opaque tights in 'Smoke' by Spanx
($38 at spanx.com)
Chartreuse/gunmetal is fast-becoming one of my new favorite color combinations. It looks like I learned to appreciate yet another aesthetic dreamed up by 'Project Runway's' most talented shoulda-won contestant...
My Shoes
Black patent almond-toed pumps with exposed platform by Marni
(unavailable online, a souvenir from 10022-SHOE)
With the added lift, their overall height falls somewhere around five and a half inches -- a full 3/4 of an inch higher than the pump in my collection that previously held the "tallest" title. By the end of the second day of navigating busy city streets in my new lady-stilts, I managed to reduce falls, near falls and general tippiness by more than 50%, statistics that prove beyond a shadow of a doubt what I've always said about daunting heels: "never quit, for practice will eventually make perfect."
My Makeup:
Cover Girl Marathon mascara in 'Noir'
Maybelline Unstoppable eyeliner in 'Onyx'
Maybelline Expertwear shadow in 'Night Sky'
Estee Lauder 'Sun Goddess' bronzer
Revlon ColorStay matte lip color in 'Divine Port Wine'
M.A.C. Lip Glass by Alexander McQueen in 'Nothingless'
Ruffled organza dress by Robert Rodriguez
($363 in-store at Bloomingdale's or online at saks.com)*
For those of you who have actually seen this dress -especially the other reader who also wore my baby RobRod Monday night- please join me in convincing the others that its color is much more a muted Dijon gold than the French's squeeze-bottle yellow you see here.
My Tights
High-waisted Tight-End opaque tights in 'Smoke' by Spanx
($38 at spanx.com)
Chartreuse/gunmetal is fast-becoming one of my new favorite color combinations. It looks like I learned to appreciate yet another aesthetic dreamed up by 'Project Runway's' most talented shoulda-won contestant...
My Shoes
Black patent almond-toed pumps with exposed platform by Marni
(unavailable online, a souvenir from 10022-SHOE)
With the added lift, their overall height falls somewhere around five and a half inches -- a full 3/4 of an inch higher than the pump in my collection that previously held the "tallest" title. By the end of the second day of navigating busy city streets in my new lady-stilts, I managed to reduce falls, near falls and general tippiness by more than 50%, statistics that prove beyond a shadow of a doubt what I've always said about daunting heels: "never quit, for practice will eventually make perfect."
My Makeup:
Cover Girl Marathon mascara in 'Noir'
Maybelline Unstoppable eyeliner in 'Onyx'
Maybelline Expertwear shadow in 'Night Sky'
Estee Lauder 'Sun Goddess' bronzer
Revlon ColorStay matte lip color in 'Divine Port Wine'
M.A.C. Lip Glass by Alexander McQueen in 'Nothingless'
*OR $363 less 25% (a friend with an aunt who works in-store is a blessing), less another 15% for officially becoming a Bloomie's cardholder
27 December 2007
21 December 2007
06 December 2007
I win, you win and the chess players win, too.
"You are setting a very high and in my opinion, UNHEALTHY standard for women not just in DC but everywhere to always wear the highest, skinniest, most expensive heels. A woman can be beautiful in all kinds of shoes, not just the ones YOU approve of. I don't know you, but I don't believe that on a day like today you're wearing the shoes you're always claiming to wear. I'm sure you'll tell everyone you are, but I demand proof, and if you are in fact wearing heels, I hope you slip on your bony butt."
Um, okay.
First, please to explain how my encouraging women to respect their lovely clothes by wearing heels instead of traditional commuter shoes is "unhealthy."
Second, you got your wish (times two) last night when I bit it hard in front of both the NEA at 16th/M and the U.S. Chess Federation at 15th/M. It will probably improve your mood to know that I had a throng of socially-challenged - come on, when you know you just know - boys and girls laughing behind their hands at my misfortune. Justified payback, I suppose, for all the Mean Girls sh*t in which I engaged at the expense of their Kinawa Middle School equivalents back in the early-'90s.
And third, here's your "proof" -- damn you for catching me in jeans* on a Thursday!
*our office dress-code is such that we could wear jeans five days a week if we so desired, so today, because my sole pair of trousers is undergoing surgery after a vicious cuff-rip and all my tights are awaiting tonight's wash, I had no choice but to reach for the denim.
The perfect pair of goes-with-everything party shoes
As I said in the introductory post, I'm a shoe girl but not a shoe shoe girl. If I were to somehow come across $1,000 in a dark corner of my bank account, you better believe it would go toward this and this, not the delicious Zanottis or Louboutins I've posted below and at right, respectively.
While I love and can appreciate others' evening shoes, for me, the strategy has always been to invest in one simple, unique and versatile pair that can take me from black dress number one all the way through black dress number seven.
You've seen my go-to shoes - they're lovely, yes, but they're also lonely, sitting on the top shelf of my shoe rack with nary another cocktail-party-apropos pair in sight.
But don't feel too much pity for them...in fact, they're coming off the bench for an event this evening, and all of us - my dress, my shoes, my new Shu Uemura's, my black coral and yellow gold Indonesian serpent bangle - are doing everything we can not to look at the clock every five minutes.
For shoe likers and lovers alike, please to enjoy.
($240 at barneys.com)
'Whit' pump by Betsey Johnson($170 at betseyjohnson.com)
'Ettora' pump by Nina($49.99 at lordandtaylor.com)
*your Editrix's top picks
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