Steve63130

Bluejay and I had great time shopping in Payless and trying on heels Saturday evening. I found a nice mary jane that I liked, but the round toe didn't fit my toes well, so I didn't get them. Bluejay introduced me to the two gals who were on duty, and they were both very nice and welcoming. One of them is getting married in two weeks and is wearing a pair of platform stilettos from Payless which have some sparkle and look very attractive. She's short and said her fiance is 6'3", so the heels will definitely help! I told her to practice wearing them a lot before the wedding so she's comfortable in them. Bluejay wore his Portia wedge sandals with royal blue straps which matched his blue Izod polo shirt and blue shoulder bag. He had on a red pedi and his little fingernails were both done in matching red. He wore white skinny pants which went to his ankles. I wore off-white bootcut jeans, green polo, and my black Born "Belinda" sandals, with beige ultrasheer knee high hose. After that we went to Kay's Jewelers, where Bluejay introduced me to the two gals who were working there. The store was busy, so we didn't have too much time with the women, but we did get to chat and it was fun getting to meet them. The next morning we got together for breakfast. He wore a purple dress shirt, purple Aerosoles "Tapestry" suede pumps, white dress pants and a white shoulder bag. His pinkies were purple, too. I wore khaki capris, bright yellow-gold polo, and the same black Born "Belinda" sandals, but with no hose. We ate at a Bob Evans restaurant, and nobody noticed Bluejay's heels that I observed. After breakfast, we said goodbye and drove home to Ohio. It was a quick visit but I'm glad we had a chance to get together again. It's been exactly a year since we were together for the first time. Bluejay is a charming host, so if you're ever in his area, look him up! Happy Heeling, Bluejay! Steve

The selection of size 12 in that particular store was at least twice the size in our stores here in the Columbus area. Very impressive. And I enjoyed meeting Bluejay's "girl friends" who worked there. Nice gals. Steve

Exactly right! It's not like people watch TV for real journalism! HA HA Steve

Best looking crocs I've seen in a long time, SleekHeels! Show us some pics of you in the rest of the outfit. Steve

SandalFan, You're not an asshole. You just spoke without thinking things through. We've all done that. Ok, you made a bad decision. We all agree your post had no great merit, but it did provide a learning experience. I'm proud of you for apologizing. That took guts and you did the right thing. And both HappyFeat's and Shafted's responses were cool and not inflammatory. Now let's all shake hands (so to speak) and move on. HappyFeat, this thread is yours, so back to you. Keep posting, and we'll critique constructively. Steve

I like the look with the black sheer hose, Bluejay, and that bag is perfect. Steve

Although I take care of my nails, painted nails really aren't my thing.

Yeah, be careful. That's what I thought a couple of years ago, too. Then I tried it, and wow - my wife loved it and so do I. I'm still not doing anything bold. I stay with the subtle colors that go well with my complexion. I favor dusky rose, satin copper, and those shades. I did get a metallic khaki color last time, and the nail tech did my ring fingernails with a white background and red and blue fireworks for the Fourth of July. As much as I thought it stood out, few people noticed, and one friend who did thought I had smashed my finger and the nail was black and blue!

I'm hopelessly hooked on nail polish now and don't like NOT wearing it! Both fingers and toes.

Steve

Jeff, you're absolutely right. I was having this discussion with Bluejay this morning in an email exchange. We're taught by parents and teachers at an early age that there are two distinct genders, boys and girls. Boys wear X and girls generally wear Y but they can also wear X, too. So people grow up with that social conditioning and when they encounter a male wearing Y, if there is no experience with it, it's shocking. I remember the first time I saw a guy with an earring on. I was shocked. I'd never seen that before. The second time I stared also. By the third time and after, it was no big deal; I'd seen it before and there was a memory experience for it. So people are going to gawk and stare at guys who wear Y because it's different and they've not seen it before. As fashion pioneers, we just need to accept that and move on. The public will get used to it eventually and won't pay attention. Then we'll know we've made progress! Steve

Happyfeat! Glad to see you back again. Hope you'll stick around and continue to share your adventures. You were always a fine inspiration for others, including myself. Love those sandals and the orange skirt! Looks good. Steve

Good reviews, Joe. There are several from guys on the Darrt shoes. Great! Yes, wish they catered to larger feet. Thanks for mentioning that! Steve

Luv, Thanks for the update. I'm glad to hear that things are going well. If you keep in mind that your primary goal is to make your boss look good, you'll do very well. If he's a good guy, he'll remember your loyalty and reward you. If he's a jerk, maybe you'll get him promoted out of your way! You can't lose, either way! Thanks for the update on the new flats. We'll be looking for them. Keep posting whenever there's something to relate, or just to say hello and let us know how it's going in your dream job. Can you disclose which Payless it is? I get to Virginia often but it's a big place. What town and what address? If I or others can do so, we'd like to arrange to stop in when you're working and "give you the business!" lol Steve

I not only could sell some of my collection, I SHOULD! I've got way too many shoes and not enough storage space. A lot of them are styles I wore in my more timid days - loafers and clogs with very modest heels mainly - and I no longer wear, aren't really that comfortable, or just don't like them any more. I plan to put them on Ebay, but other activities in life are more interesting than listing stuff on Ebay and somehow procrastination wins. My wife would LOVE it if I sold off not only the excess shoes I don't want, but many other items of ours that I said, "Oh, don't throw those out, Dear, I could sell them on Ebay." She's still waiting <sigh>. Steve

ILK, good response, as usual. I could kick myself for the number of times I've passed up a purchase (shoes, and many other things) and later decided to buy it but it was no longer available. I've learned that if you want something, avoid the later disappointment and buy it because in the future you might not be able to get it. Steve

Most of your fears are unfounded. As Shafted said, the likelihood of publically encountering someone you bought shoes from is very small. The best strategy is to out yourself to everyone you know and then you can wear whatever you want in public without worrying about it. If you act secretive and look like you're doing something wrong or bad, then when you're caught it will be most embarrassing. If you act confident and as if you don't care if anyone knows, then so what? It's just clothing. And as a lot of guys are finding out here, some chicks dig that confidence factor and find it sexy and attractive that a guy would flaunt society's gender "rules." Steve

LuvyourShoes, Well? It was a great first day and we thought we'd see more exciting posts and hear about your fun adventures living your dream job, but no further word from you. Did the job end prematurely? Did you leave or did they ask you to leave? Are you still there and enjoying it so much you don't have time to post here? What's the deal? Curious minds want to know. (And if you left under a cloud, don't be embarrassed. We're still your friends and we'll understand.). It would be nice to hear from you. Steve

I recently bought a pair of Aerosoles "Scotland" heeled sandals in black leather, and I really love them. I reported it on here a week or so ago. Well, I wrote up a review last night and they posted it this morning. They printed it just as I wrote it. http://www.aerosoles.com/eng/product/scotland/scotland?utm_campaign=bazaarvoice&utm_medium=Default&utm_source=RatingsAndReviews&utm_content=Default Steve

I think you are right! We do hide. It wasn't always so. Men were the peacocks 225 years ago, wearing colorful statins, lace, high heels, silk stockings, wigs, and more. After 1800 it all went away and men have disappeared into the shadows except for a brief time in the early 1970s. We do need to wear more colorful clothing, leg wear, and heels! Bravo on the compliments you received! Steve

I go just one size smaller, usually. I normally wear a US women's 12M in closed toe and heel shoes, like courts/pumps, boots, and loafers, but in a backless shoe like a clog and most sandals, I can almost always fit into an 11W and usually into an 11M. But I couldn't go 2 or 3 sizes less. Steve

Bluejay, The review is there. Since I didn't give the shoe the very best possible rating, it doesn't come up first. The default sorting routine appears to be by rating - high to low. You can see that in the drop down menu box under the rectangle that says "165 out of 171(96%) reviewers would recommend this product to a friend." If you click on that drop down menu box and select Date - Newest First instead of rating - high to low, you'll see my review dated July 10. It's too bad the reviews are sorted by rating by default. That means all the bad reviews are at the end, which weighs the ratings very high at first. And it means my review isn't visible up front unless you know to re-sort and look for it. Rather sneaky and self-serving on Payless's part, isn't it? Steve

One more update: I posted a review of the Karmen pumps on the Payless site, with a photo, and they printed it just as I wrote it. See it at:

http://www.payless.c...playName=Womens

If that link doesn't work, find the Karmen pump, and select Date: Newest First for choosing a sort order (under the rectangle that says "165 out of 171(96%) reviewers would recommend this product to a friend."). My review is dated July 10.

Steve

Excellent advice, Dr. Shoe, as usual. That shoe we're discussing belongs in a museum. Steve

Thanks, Jim. There is more to report. Last week we had house guests, our friends from Scotland visited us to experience our Independence Day celebration. These are the same friends we were with touring Ireland in April. He is passionate about hose, heels, and skirts, and she goes along with it all. When I emailed him the week before their arrival that Aerosoles had a style of heeled sandals, appropriately named "Scotland" that looked attractive, was on sale, and I was ordering a pair, I asked him if he wanted a pair also. He replied no thanks, but he liked their style called "Kaleidoscope" and wanted them instead, so I placed an online order for him. It arrived the day that our friends did, and the fit was perfect, so I was glad we didn't have to return them. Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of him wearing them. On the second day they were here we had scheduled a manicure and pedicure for him and me. We had a great time at the salon, and he selected clear polish for his fingers and "merlot" for his toes, while I had both fingers and toes done in "palladium," a color that was like a metallic khaki color. The nail tech wanted to have some fun with my ring fingers, so she put on two coats of white polish and then with a fine brush applied "fireworks" in red and blue polish. It was very patriotic! My friend loved the way his toes looked but was too shy to show them off in public. He did, however, purchase a pair of leather sandals from DSW (Liz Claiborne, I think) and wore them with nylons around the house quite proudly. He was thrilled with the look and let me take a photo. He also bought a pair of Vienna slide wedges from Payless in black, while his wife bought the same shoe in bone. We had a fun time with our friends and we're glad they had a fun visit to the US. Steve

Hi, SF, Thanks for the compliment. I figured you'd like them. I sure do! Steve

Crushing it was my thought. But, c'mon, Shafted, I was just kidding about my weight. I'm not so heavy that I could crush a wedge, but I really need to lose about 20 lbs to fit into clothes better, especially jeans. -------------------------------- Ok, back on topic. I've got some new shoes to report. I had purchased only two new pairs since January, both Naturalizer sandals - Tribute in black and Tanner in brown, which I reported on here some time ago. I hadn't seen much I liked since. Then two weeks ago I encountered 7 pairs of shoes, 6 of them online, that looked interesting, so I bought them, expecting to return a few of them. But who knew? It turns out they all fit and I love them all! So I'm keeping them all. Ok, here we go. Aerosoles Scotland heeled sandals in black leather with 3 1/2 inch heels. They fit like a glove and the arch support is perfect. I wore them to breakfast at a nearby cafe (2 blocks walk from home) a few days after I got them. They still need more breaking in, but they're really cool, and they were marked down from $80 to $40 on Aerosoles.com. Payless Karmen black pumps with 3 inch stiletto heels. I already reported on these. They're really nice and I look forward to wearing them more. These are the only ones of the seven pair that I bought in a store after trying them on. Ralph Lauren Roseanne wedge thong sandals in black patent. I was looking for something to wear for my monthly pedicures, and these caught my eye. I went for my pedicure last Tuesday and wore them with khaki capris. All the gals at the salon loved them, and they were comfortable to wear the rest of the evening. I bought them and the following four pairs from Zappos.com. I ordered them on a Thursday and they were were all delivered the very next day. Amazing service! Born Belinda sandals in black and brown (rust). I first saw these on a woman in a restaurant a couple of weeks ago, and fell in love with them. I decided to take a chance and they fit wonderfully well. The heel is 2 3/4 inches high and I've worn them out with shorts and pantyhose to a number of places. They're really comfortable and fun to wear. I really only ordered the black ones, but Zappos made a mistake and sent the brown ones also, instead of the Born Timia in brown that I actually ordered. They immediately sent me the Timia and told me I had two weeks to return the Belinda. I decided to keep them. Born Timia sandals are also a lot of fun to wear with shorts and pantyhose. In fact, I can't wear any of the Born sandals without hose, because they have an embossed leather design in the insole that irritates my tender soles and hurts after wearing them for a while. Pantyhose solves that problem nicely and I can wear them for hours and miles. The Timia sandals have 3 inch heels and the two wide straps and heel strap are fully adjustable. The last pair was a pair of Naturalizer Tanner, but in black. I had them in brown already and I love them, but I couldn't find them in 11W on Naturalizer's site any more. Zappos had them (at full price unfortunately), so I got them and they're really very comfortable for wearing anywhere with shorts, capris, jeans, or slacks. Zappos did very well by me, so I went online last night and posted reviews of the four styles in five colors that I bought from them. They were posted overnight and are online this morning, just as I wrote them, with my first name listed, so it's obvious I'm a male, but I mentioned that fact in some of the reviews anyway. Just look on the Zappos.com web site, search for those shoes, scroll down to the reviews, click on Newest, and find my reviews of July 9, if you want to see them. I haven't written a review of the Aerosoles Scotland pair yet, as I want to wear them a couple more times. And I have written a review of the Karmen pumps that got posted but I don't see it any more. There was nothing inappropriate about it, but it's gone, so I'll contribute another one. Here are photos of the seven pairs. I think I'm done shopping for a while! Steve

Great combination, HIH! Thanks for posting. I'd heard of Torrid before, but never shopped there. Good to know they're welcoming to us alternative guys. Bluejay, is there one in your neighborhood? We can go there next time I visit. It will be good incentive for me to shed some weight. I hate it when I break heels, especially wedges! LOL Steve