Shoe Party History Part 4...

If you live in Bellingham, WA you know that there have been positive efforts toward encouraging a thriving downtown center that locals and tourists can enjoy. Everything from great restaurants and shopping to art walks and farmers markets contribute to a bustling downtown.  There is a group called the DownTown Renaissance Committee that raises funds and coordinates local events playing an active role in the growth and beautification of downtown Bellingham.  

A few years back, the DownTown Renaissance Committee put on a Murder Mystery Masquerade Ball and Auction and asked local businesses to donate items for the event...

When they came to Hilton's Shoes, where I worked at the time, I was inspired to offer an after-hours shoe party instead of the expected/typical gift certificate donation.  I worked this out with the Joe Hilton, the store owner, and prepared to show the highest bidder and their two best friends a shoe party like no other...complete with champagne and catered finger foods, a waiter at their beckon call, and a shoe store all to themselves.    

The Shoe Party fetched some great bids and the winner contacted me right away to arrange a date for the party.  I could hear the excitement in her voice when she confessed that she couldn't wait to try on tons of shoes with her gal pals at the private party.  I let her know that I planned to pamper, entertain, and inspire their soles.

The night had arrived and I had arranged our most comfortable chairs facing the wall of shoes, near the full length mirror, so my party gals could use it to admire the shoes as they pranced around with their champagne.  We just had a blast! I sprinkled shoe trivia into our conversations and never let them lace buckle, velcro, zip or slide on their own shoes.  This was a full service shoe party...all they had to do was put their feet on the fitting stool and I would adorn them with shoes both practical and fabulous.  We all reveled in being women who loved shoes and laughed heartily when one party gal rolled her eyes back in ecstacy over a pair of shoes that had never felt more comfortable..."pinch me I must be dreaming.."she exclaimed.  

At the end of the evening there were hugs all around and happy soles.

Of course I wanted to throw more shoe parties and it turned out that the next one involved taking the shoe show on the road to a friend/shoe-stomer in need...

cheers, abigail dagmar

FlashBack Friday! Blondo Valerie Review

I saw them, I hugged them, pressed my cheek against the supple suede, I tried them on...they owned me before I even made it to the cash register....See if these Blondo Boots cause you to swoon as well....

How Much Are Those Shoes?

Thoughtful Thursday

Once you have started spending over $100/pair for shoes, you may want to know what you can expect from your investment.

There are many variables that play into how much a pair of shoes will cost and how much happiness they will bring to your soles.

Cost:

Lets face it...Branding is a big deal in our culture and you can bet that a percentage of the cost of marketing is built right into the cost of your shoes. Surely you will have better luck with brands that are known for their comfort and not just for their logo or famous endorsements.

Here is another “Lets face it!”...Where the shoes are made will play a significant role in the total price tag and nothing is more frustrating than hearing...”I don't want to buy shoes made by child labor from China” and in the next breath hear...”I won't spend more than $40 bucks on a pair of shoes”....WHAT!?! That doesn't make any sense at all! (I will cover -the pro's and con's-of “made in China” at length in another post)

Technology and old school craftsmanship are crucial to any comfortable pair of shoes. It should come as no surprise that both innovation and time tested experience come at a premium.

Materials such as leather, vibram, stitching and adhesives come in varying levels of quality and contribute to the price of the shoe and its overall comfort/durability. 

Happiness:

Are your feet happy to begin with? Or have you been battling foot pain all your life? I know that shoes are not the “cure-all” for pain, but they can certainly help...particularly when they fit properly and are an appropriate style given the nature of your foot and planned activities.

Your happiness with your shoes will also depend on who you let decide “which pair to wear”...your EYEBALLS or your FEET? Shoes chosen by your feet will make your soles happy...feet rarely lie about how comfortable they are, whereas eyeballs are easily swayed by only the aesthetic aspects of a given pair of shoes.

The shape of your foot, your gait and planned activities all factor into how happy you will be with your shoes. I know I will wear out the following phrase “proper fit and appropriate style” to get across the idea that if you are aiming for comfort, you must consider what's most important.

Quite often I have heard shoe-stomers rationalize a shoe purchase by suggesting that a more expensive pair of shoes will last longer...or even forever. That statement scares me because it does not take into consideration any of the facts I have outlined above...nor does it consider how that shoe-stomer might treat those shoes on a daily basis.

Price is not the key factor in the lifespan of a shoe! How you treat your shoes, fit, gait and appropriate style is what will impact the life of your shoes. I know a gal that can kill a pair of shoes in six months flat no matter how much she spends on her shoes, while other folks have a cheap pair of Keds that they have worn for YEARS!

So why buy better quality shoes? You will have happier more comfortable feet for whatever amount of time shoes happen to last for you...and buying good quality well-fit shoes can help you avoid costly foot pain down the line. A wise investment indeed!

You can buy a Toyota or a Lexus...both will get you from point A to point B quite reliably, but obviously one of them offers far nicer comfort features...but...if you don't give your Lexus its regular oil changes, it isn't going to last longer than the Toyota just because you spent more on the car. I am also guessing you wouldn't take the sedan “off-roading” all the time and expect that not to affect the lifespan of the vehicle.

The same goes for your shoes. Take care of your investment and they will take care of you. Your behavior is a much stronger predictor of how long your shoes will last than the price you paid for them.

Buy nice shoes, be nice to them and your feet will be happy with you and that is priceless:)

 abigail dagmar

Best Shoe Lacing Technique

Are your laces tripping you up?

Take two minutes to watch this whiz-bang way to lace your shoes and chase away your tripping blues.

Do Your SuperFeet Squeak?

Tips on Tuesday

Do you have prescribed or over-the-counter insoles called orthoses/orthotics in your shoes?

I thought so….because I hear that tell-tale squeak with each step you take. Pretty hard to sneak up on anyone, huh?

We can fix that ya know! :)

Start by removing the insole.

Then you may either apply a little bit of Vaseline to the bottom of the insole OR you may opt for a simple sprinkle of baby powder inside your shoes.

Either method will send that quacking duck inside your shoes back to its flock, so that you might rejoin yours without embarrassment.

May all your ducks be in a row and not in your shoes,

abigail dagmar