Friday, March 23, 2012

Mad for Flats (shoes, not hair)

Mad for Flats (shoes, not hair) by sparklelovesf

So, I'm a sucker for a pretty shoe.  I've been suckered by shoes into buying them and have too many shoes for my small apartment to contain.  But for some reason, I love bringing home new shoes.  I keep promising myself that if I bring home a new pair, I will get rid of an old pair.  But how can you get rid of a pretty pair of shoes?  Even if they are the most uncomfortable, blister-inducing, pain-producing, blood-sucking things.  Maybe the next time they won't feel so horrible.  Or the next time.  Or the next.  But they are.  And I still have a hard time getting rid of old shoes.

Case in point.  I got this perfect pair of metallic (not quite gold, not entirely silver, but sort of pewter-ish) flats many years ago.  I've worn them a lot. They really should go.  I found a replacement pair that I wear quite often.  Yet, the old pair still are occupying space in my "flats bin."

I have another pair of trusty-rusty flats that are getting to be on their last-leg (literally and figuratively).  I love my black flats (from Ecco many years ago). It took some time for us to become friends.  A few blisters, and a several uncomfortable foot chafing occurrences seem to have ceased thanks to wearing the flats a few times with a thin pair of trouser socks.  I think the socks stretched out the flats just enough to stop the blisters and rubbing.  We're simpatico.  We're friends.  But, the flats are getting slightly tired.  They have many more miles in them, but because of the sensitive nature of my feet (literally EVERYTHING gives me blisters, or induces blood or pain), when I need new shoes, I start looking early.

So, in my perusals for flats, I found several pairs that I'm loving right now. They can't all possibly come home with me.  Space and funding prohibit that.  

But, I can share some of the pretty little flats here.


Clockwise from left:

Until next time, look cute and make your feet shiny happy people and wear flats!

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Black & White & Pink All Over


Black & White & Pink all over
Black & White & Pink all over by sparklelovesf

So, what is black & white & pink all over? No idea, but I'm obsessed.

For some reason I have an affinity for black, white, and pink, and stripes, and sparkles. I don't know what it is about these combinations, but I love them and can't get enough of them. I used to shy away from stripes, but not now. I'm immediately drawn to them in stores and magazines. I think they stripes are a timeless classic, and love the color-blocked options that go along with stripes. I love pairing a black & white striped top/sweater of some sort with a colored bottom - red jeans, kelly green pants, and of course pink.

I "discovered" the world of Polyvore recently, and am now obsessed with that. Think of it as Pinterest (which I'm obsessed with too) with the added ability to create your own collages of things you've pinned. Remember when you would cut out pictures from magazines and glue them onto big poster boards? Well, Polyvore is your virtual poster board.
That's where I created this collage (above) of some black & white & pink items that I'm loving right now.
  • Top row:  pink & white striped sweater - J.Crew $70; pink & black & white striped top - J.Crew $45; black & white sequin tank - J.Crew $98; pink & white striped strapless dress - J.Crew $215.
  • Middle row:  black & white striped dress - Modcloth $75; hot pink blouse - J.Crew $110; black & white striped small clutch with sequin heart - Deux Luxe at Nordstrom $36
  • Bottom row: pink ombre peep toe heels - Prada at Nordstrom $780; pink studded platform suede heels - BCBGeneration at Nordstrom $110; black & white patterned heels with pink heel detail - Anthropologie $470; black & white striped flats - Lulu's $19; pink studded flats - Valentino at Nordstrom $595
You can follow me on Polyvore (just like Pinterest) at: sparklelovesf

Until next time, find some way to shine every day!