Since I adopted the hound, I’m walking back and forth to church much more frequently. And when I do, I’m carrying not only a bag full of files, papers and books but I’ve got a wiggly beagle on a leash in the other hand. It takes coordination, people. And it takes a comfortable pair of shoes!
Oh sure, I still love my heels and pointy, dressy boots and such. And when these babies went on 40% off sale at Macy’s awhile back and I had a $20 coupon to boot (pun intended), you know I bought them! Shoebooties! Love them! I’ve looked for two years for a pair that had a sturdy but nice heel, were comfortable, and affordable. Franco Sarto always comes through for me that way. Shoe-booties as a trend started a few years ago but they seem to be sticking around. These look great with a suit: I haven’t worn them with a skirt (and opaque stockings) yet, and not sure how that will look. I won’t try it when I’m in a rush, that’s for sure.
But given that I didn’t really have a comfortable pair of boots that could make it to church through snow and rain without getting ruined (I love my round-toed cowboy boots like mad, but they’re stiff leather and I don’t want to soak them), I broke down and bought a pair of fake UGGS at Famous Footwear tonight. They’re made by Bear Paws:
They make my feet look like little pods, and I will only wear them with slacks, of course (not even long skirts – non, non!) but they’re lined with faux shearling and they’re real leather and I’ll wear them with warm,textured outfits featuring knits and scarves and hats and things that make me feel like my teeth won’t chatter out of my head. Which is what they’ve been doing lately. I certainly won’t tuck jeans INTO these little Bear Paws, because a) I’m not 16 years old and b) I’m 5’3″ and shaped like a meatball. I don’t recommend that any of us wear our jeans tucked into boots, actually — it’s a very sophisticated look for a tall, leggy model or a professional skier, but too sexy for ministers, or potentially just disastrously sloppy. Sorry. And no leggings, either! Ever! No matter how hard Lindsay Lohan tries to make you buy from her new line.
Because Famous Footwear was having a buy one, get one half-off sale, I also got these little shoes by Skecher, which I’ll wear with dressy jeans and blazers, or tops with a little “edge” to them and cardigans and skinny scarves, but never, ever with just a plain pair of jeans and top. If I did that, I’d be projecting just “sloppy” rather than “fun.”
I mean, these will be so cute with a pair of long, slightly flared brown trousers, a belted grey jacket and a bold striped blouse in browns and purples, I can’t even tell you. I tried them on tonight with what I was wearing in the mall: long, dark denim jeans, a fitted raspberry-red empire waist sweater and a paisley cardigan (layers are key for me during the cold weather) and they were the wrong color but super, super cute. I would not have believed it had I not tried them on. Best of all, I can fling the dog all over town in these and not worry about twisting an ankle.
My point being that sometimes you need to change it up because your life changes. I refuse to go to work in sneakers. And I refuse to leave the dog alone for hours at a time when he could just as well be with me at church. So Doggie Mommy gets flats and Max gets a walk. Good for both of us!
(I wouldn’t wear either of these shoes to church on Sunday, of course, although I might walk over in the Bear Paws and change into pumps there.)
Speaking of the dog, he thinks I’m a bear because I’ve taken to wearing this hat in the house rather than turn up the heat:
Max is so enamored of this hat. If he ever gets it alone it’s all over.
Love the brown shoes! And good luck with your hat. I have lost two or three lovely furry looking scarves because the pupstress must have thought they were her chew toys. I saw her eyeing my new soft scarf the other day with that hungry look in her eye, too…
Wouldn’t the suede of the Uggs be ruined in the first onslaught of real New England slop? I have uggs too and would never wear them out in anything remotely wet.
Of course, I could be over-coddling shoes that are just dying to show me how TOUGH they really are inside their warm fuzzy-ness. But I really don’t think they are water-tough.
I have plain leather books for that, with plenty of space for wool socks. Of course, for the worst of times, I still can’t find anything better than my police duty boots from the Police Chaplain days… 🙂
As a former Minnesotan, I’d recommend for the truly
arctic weather the Sorel arctic expedition boot.
They make your feel look like BIG pods, so you might
want to be packing a change of shoes, but they have
a rubber waterproof bottom, have water-resistant
treatment on the leather part, and the felt pack
inside for the ladies edition has a cute white
faux fur trim around it. If you have the narrow
feet like me, then you can add the felt insole
under the pack to make the boot smaller inside.
What a great blog for Chic Church women! We’re impressed.
As Image consutlants we find that too many ministers are frumpy and old looking, and so their message comes across weak and dated.
When you look as bright, fresh and as powerful as your message, people listen!
Cheers,
Deborah Boland and JoJami Tyler
The Glam Gals
http://www.fabulousafter40.com