Who Has Bought Some New SANDALS?

[mlroseplant]

It is definitely the wrong season for these, but I just bought these vintage Bakers calfhair mules. I had been eyeing them for a while simply because they fit in with my favorite category of shoes to collect and wear, wooden heeled sandals. It was really the calfhair thing that kept me from buying them before, I was not sure how this was going to look in person. Would it be too garish to actually wear? Would it be somewhat trashed? That, and the fact that they are clearly marked not only size 9, but also size 40, which is usually too big for me in a sandal. Then, I got an offer from the seller for 16 USD, so I thought "why not?"

As it turns out, I don't think either of my fears was warranted, although it will be some time before we can put that to a real world test, but they are in nice shape and are not terribly large for a 40. They will need to be reheeled soon, and I'll probably have to put in one of those ball of foot pads to take up some room at some point. But you never know that for sure until you've walked a mile in them, and, with well over a foot of snow on the ground at the moment.  .  .

Obviously, they are a Bakers product, but exactly how vintage they are is unknown to me. They do say "Made in Italy" on them, which may or may not date them to be at least two decades old, but in any case, it's obvious that they've been worn, and it looks to be quite a bit. In my brief try-on, they definitely have the potential to be comfortable, all-day shoes.

With an effective heel height of 4" (4 1/2" heel, 1/2" platform), they are no doubt challenging for most people nowadays, but not really for me, and obviously not for somebody in that past, due to the amount of wear on the rubber soles. They are definitely not made of actual wood. On close examination, both visually and aurally, the bottom appears to be a single molded plastic unit of some sort, but it's a good fake--they sure look like wood, even at only a short distance away. Another feature, chronicled elsewhere, is the fact that they are extremely narrow for wedges. It is impossible to tell until I've walked across my first Walmart parking lot, but it appears that the narrowness of the heel does not make it unstable in the least.

My only worry is that, being molded plastic, and vintage molded plastic to boot, when exposed to the real world and real walking, the unit bottom will split in half transversely across the foot as so many of these doggoned things do. Why I should even be thinking about that at this time is beyond me. I need to be more positive.

[Shyheels]

Well clearly somebody got a lot of mileage out of them and if they haven't fractured yet, and show now visible indications of doing so, I can see no reason why you shouldn't get plenty of use out of them.

[HappyinHeels]

hey all, 

here’s four pics I retook to reduce file size which also reduced clarity.Top is the Devalyn sling back sandal with jeans and a tee shirt. Next is the Dany sandal with jeans and a colorful top. Third is mlroseplant inspired shorts look with  Soda wedge sandals. Last is an outfit I wore last summer to the Twin Cities jeans with some high wedge sandals. HinH

[HappyinHeels]

Looks like the pics posted in reverse order from my description so start at bottom and the descriptions will match. These are all casual or fairly casual looks with different heel styles. Another way to get out there and enjoy what you have. HinH

[SF]

Nice sandals.....   They look classy, have fun....  sf

[mlroseplant]

It has been a long while since anybody has posted here. I have a few pair to catch up on, so I will try to get those posted soon. Up for inspection today are my Steve Madden Britt single strap sandals in electric blue. Not something that I would normally buy, but I've always wanted to try this style, and I saw these on Poshmark for $25. I actually received them about two months ago, but haven't pressed them into service until this week.

They feature 4 1/2" heels which are pretty slim at 5/16" in diameter. You don't get a whole lot more "stiletto" than that. Of course there is no platform, so you get the full steepness afforded by that heel height. In many ways, they are the same to walk in as several other styles of Steve Madden that use the same basic design, but I think if I were actually paying good money for these, I would have gone down half a size. These are 9, and I really could use an 8 1/2. After a time, I get a slight gap behind my heel, causing the ankle strap to work harder than it ought to, which causes my skin underneath the ankle strap to suffer.

They are not super uncomfortable, I wore them for a couple of hours with no real issues, but they certainly did not wow me in the comfort department. I'll see how they do next time I wear them. To be fair, I did not vet them at all before I wore them outside, and that can often end badly. I got by with it this time.

[Shyheels]

I like the elegant lines

[Puffer]

Very nice 'footwear'!   I don't wish to (re)open a debate but I would regard them as 'shoes' rather than 'sandals'; having an open toe is not in itself the criterion.   But who cares, they look great.

[mlroseplant]

25 minutes ago, Puffer said:

Very nice 'footwear'!   I don't wish to (re)open a debate but I would regard them as 'shoes' rather than 'sandals'; having an open toe is not in itself the criterion.   But who cares, they look great.

I suppose as long as we keep it out of the boots section, it'll be all right then, init?

[Mr. X]

Those blue ones are really nice!  And my favorite color too!

[mlroseplant]

Today's feature has a bit of a strange story. I bought these BCBGirls mules (model name unknown) to replace some Jessica Simpson mules which had catastrophically failed. I wore the JS mules just about everywhere that summer of 2017, including on a road trip throughout the Midwest and into the Deep South. I was very sad when they broke, and I could not find a suitable replacement pair. What I did find is this BCBG pair, and I was very high on that brand at the time. I still like it, and the shoes tend to fit me well, but as it turns out the shoes are not as bulletproof as I made them out to be at the time.

As this point, you're probably asking yourself, "Where is this rather long-winded setup going?" It is going nowhere. That's it. That's the end of the story. I got my BCBG mules in the mail, looked at them, tried them on, and put them away. For nearly seven years. I'm not sure why. I decided to pull them out last Saturday and wear them to go grocery shopping, just to see if there was some reason why I'd never worn them. There wasn't. I then wore them to church the next day.

The question is, why did I never wear these even one time in seven years? I'm not 100% sure. It may be that they are slightly dressier than the shoes they were intended to replace, and they are mainly ivory instead of tan, which may have made a difference to me back then. It may be because they are snakeskin print, which I still don't like as well as smooth leather. I will never really know, but I am now presenting these as New Sandals.

The numbers: 4 5/8" heel, 7/16" wide, putting it toward the bigger end of the stiletto range, and a 3/4" platform, for an effective heel height of 3 7/8", which is well within my heel wearing capabilities. The heel and platform are molded as one unit, and I fully expect that to break one of these days. I noticed a little bit of a hot spot forming behind my right big toenail, but that spot has been somewhat of a problem for me since I was in my early 20s. I think it's me, and not the shoe. Typically I can put a Bandaid around that toe so that it doesn't really show, and I'm good to go. In fact, I now have a list that reminds me what comfort or fitting aids I need to wear with which shoes. It's come to that, I guess.

[Bubba136]

Slightly feminine looking.  Neutral color.  Nicely proportioned.  A light red toenail polish would add an interesting accent.  As they say in the South:  “Good on ya!” Wear them with confidence.

[bluejay]

I agree with Bubba, the red polish to your toes would add a great touch. That's my favorite color for my toes.

Happy Heeling,

bluejay

[Mr. X]

Here are my latest. I got these on a local buy and sell for $15. The owner said they were only worn once, and their appearance would indicate so. The brand is Le Chateau, and the heel is 4 inches. 4 inch heels are very easy for me to navigate. The heel is definitely wider and chunkier than they looked like in the photo. Not as crazy about that, but not a deal breaker either. But that, combined with the heel height, makes them that much more comfortable and easier to walk in. And they are perfect for spring and summer. I can see these being the base of many an outfit for me upcoming.

[mlroseplant]

I've always liked that single strap with the closed heel style. I've thought about getting a similar pair many times.

[Bubba136]

My wife loved that style although she preferred higher, thinner heels.  Both of my daughters still do, as do my granddaughters.   Chunky two inch heels appropriate for almost any “more dressy” occasion.  I always thought they were more feminine looking for me to wear.