Jessica Simpson "Dany" Sandals with Discount!

If you're dreading another day of extensive heat in NY (ugh) perhaps I can cheer you up a little by sharing some "back in stock" news as well as savings on my favourite things to buy... shoes!

For those of you who missed out when they first showed up this past winter, Jessica Simpson's "Dany" shoe is back in stock on her site here for $98.00. I did a little looking around, and so far no one else is showing them back in stock, although I know its been said anywhere from late June to early July many sites will have them again.

Jessica Simpson Collection Dany, $98.00

In tan they're only available in US 10, but the black seems to have every size except US 11. I know they were going for crazy amounts of money on eBay for awhile, although right now there are actually a bunch of pairs under regular price. The other 11 pairs creep up from $150 to this insane pair with a Buy It Now price of $280! Forget eBay, if you purchase directly through her site there's a coupon that will give you a discount and you don't have to play stalking/ bidding/ sniping wars.

I did some checking and found the following promotional code to be valid. If this is your first order on the site, use coupon code CAPT10 at checkout to get 10% off. The code is case sensitive, so be sure to use it as shown. You use the code on the checkout page, now don't forget to use it as it saves nearly ten bucks on these! Shipping wasn't too bad either as I'm assuming they are heavy because of the wood soles, it was only $7.

These are super duper high shoes with a heel that comes in at nearly 6 inches so you really need to be a "pro" at wearing heels for these! I'm glad they added a big enough platform -- nearly two inches -- to make them comfortable. At this height, anything less would be not only uncomfortable, but we'd be getting into some serious ankle twisting/ breaking territory! I was in London when I first saw them online, but by the time I went to purchase, they were completely sold out everywhere. (Nano-seconds, I swear. Crazy when that happens!) Normally I would stay away from inexpensive shoes but I have to admit that some of her shoes are really quite good styles, not to mention very affordable and from what I've been told (and seen) seem to be decent quality for the price. They also remind me so much of a fab pair I had in high school that I keep wishing I hadn't worn into the ground and still had! So of course I had to order. Well... someone as tiny as me needs all the help they can get, and with these I won't have to go on my tiptoes (while wearing heels no less) to kiss my dear Punk Glam King as he stands nearly a foot taller than me! Yep, that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Now that I've gotten shipping confirmation, I can't wait for them to arrive!

Cheers!

New Year's "Yves"

Sorry for the terrible pun, how could I resist?

My YSL shoes arrived on the 30th and wanted to be worn immediately, however the weather didn't comply. So I wore them on New Year's Eve instead. The dress was picked up on the 29th when my friend Barbara & her daughter, the PG Princess, PG Husband, and I ventured to Manic Panic HQ so the girls could have fun buying dye and makeup. There just happened to be a sample sale clear-out of another friend and well we all came away with some great goodies along with our Manic Panic stash which I'll do a post about later this week.

Yes, more leopard. I'll never get enough of it! The dress is great, has chains for straps that connect with wee handcuffs and teeny little studs around the hem, armholes and neckline! Still needs a bit of taking in, but it was good enough as is for a house party. You can almost make out my Wendy Brandes swear rings on my right hand. I wear them nearly every day!

Voila! They are a slightly darker, more brick colour. So comfy too!

Side view. The toe and platform are closer to the true colour.

From the back. (Don't mind my crooked seams... champagne was being imbibed!)

Slightly better photo showing my antique bat pin worn as a necklace. I also had piled my hair into a messy top knot which included a black hair strip. I pulled some strands out and had them hanging off to the side. (Oh dear, you can really notice the few glasses of champagne when looking at my eyes!)

They'll also be worn tomorrow night to a semi-formal function we are to attend. I'll try to get more shots... I just love them and my Clinics (thanks to Queen Michelle!) both so very comfy and have great style!

Cheers!

Shoes and Your Mom

I've carried on a love affair with eBay since I discovered it back in '96, and still have fun looking for interesting items. But over the years the fees for selling have gotten completely insane. If I want to offer something at a decent price, I wind up with so many fees it doesn't make it cost effective to list the item. Not to mention the times I've gotten burned by buyers with absolutely no support from eBay whatsoever. The consignment shops around here are fab, and I've gotten loads of good deals purchasing quality clothing, but often times they'll price items so low that again, not really worth me putting them on consignment (you typically get 40-50% of the selling price when you put things on consignment.) In addition, I have literally bins and bins of vintage I need to sell from my old flea market booth and shop, and no local outlet will accept vintage unless its designer. So this leads me to "Shoes and Your Mom". I have a bunch of items coming up for sale on there, all prices include priority shipping within the US, and you're getting a deal on some brand new or maybe worn once designer shoes and handbags. Here are a few photos to whet your appetite:

Brand new, sold out when introduced in Nov. Kate Spade Knightsbridge Scarlet bag in Caramel.

Never worn Turquoise satin and suede Marc Jacobs booties.

Like new vintage '80's black suede Robot Creepers.

Black leather Gucci Mules.

There's a few more items... but I'll let you do the looking. Make sure to act fast, one thing I've noticed is that things get sold very quickly on SAYM!

Some of my vintage may wind up on SAYM (as the pair of Robot Creepers did), but I think I may try out Market Publique which is a new venue specifically for vintage clothing manufactured pre-early '90's. They have low listing fees, and the bonus is that it is all vintage. So the audience is not sifting through four thousand items listed unethically as vintage but are in actuality newly made to ultimately be disappointed, or worse -- ripped off. The other thing I like is that not just anyone can set up shop there, you have to first pass muster by the site's administration. They are looking for vintage sellers that really know their stuff so that you know who you are dealing with. Everything about this appeals to me, as a seller and a buyer! My only gripe is that I'd have to treat this more like a business and get a "shop" together. Which is fine if I want to continue to sell vintage, but at this point I'm looking to sell what I have and not accumulate more! Be sure to check out both Shoes and Your Mom and Market Publique and maybe you'll find just the item you've been looking for at a fair price!

So wish me luck!
Cheers!
Suzanne

Top Shop Anticipation...

Ever since Top Shop announced they were opening their first US shop in Soho, I've been dying of anticipation! First the opening was supposed to be in November '08, then it got moved to this month, now we finally have a definite opening day of 2 April. I have been a long time lover of Top Shop, and its always at the top of my list when I visit London. Unfortunately last trip was such a whirlwind that I barely had a look around as we were so pressed for time and didn't get to purchase anything ): So you can bet I will be at the opening as I'm completely jonesing for a Top Shop fix! I've always got some shoes I'm drooling over and one of the things I've noticed is the typical incorrect sizing for shoes in European sizes. I wear a European 36, American 6, UK 4. But on their UK site, they have 36 listed as a UK 3 which would be a US 5. So I've missed out on so many pretty shoes when I've checked the US site because I'm confused on the sizing. Being able to try them on will be my only way of knowing for sure. I'm completely in love with three styles (click on the links to take you directly to purchase at Top Shop):

Safari VooDoo Inspired Sandal $145




Latice Caged Sandal $145




Pyramid High Sandal Boot $190

One of these babies will be mine.... I just can't decide! The Pyramid High Sandal and Voodoo Inspired Sandal are very similar, but those Latice Caged Sandals are oh so YSL (which I can't afford ): ) Which do you think I should get?

There are also a few handbags I really like:




Leather Tassel Shoulder Bag $160





Suede Stud Handle Bag $145
I just don't have any suede bags as I think they usually get worn looking really quickly, so I'm apprehensive.




Leather Trim Slouch Bag $100
The colour is really appealing to me, but its also a bit out of character for me. Plus, again its suede.





Stud Detail Holdall Bag $160
Grey might be different for a change, I'm just not sure I'll adore grey in a year or so.

They also had a cute bucket style, but it seems now its only in stock online in white, which would be completely ruined in a day around my kid. I don't recall if I've ever purchased handbags from Top Shop. Does anyone know what the quality is like?

I'm so excited that they'll be debuting the newest Kate Moss collection as well. She collaborated with Liberty on this one, and I have some gorgeous vintage Liberty prints, so I'm really looking forward to seeing what she did. I'm also happy that last month they started a blog, called Inside Out. According to the blog, they'll have a van driving around the city giving out goodie bags starting on the 23rd, so look out for them and maybe you'll get lucky! Racked has had a countdown with pictures of the progress if you are interested in having a sneak peek.

Anyone planning on going opening day?

Cheers!
Suzanne

New Shoe Lines

Yesterday I learned of a new "rock 'n roll" influenced shoe line starting up called Luxury Rebel by footwear designer Jean-Michel Cazabat. Read the story entitled "Vicious Footwear" here at WWD. I'm not quite sure how I feel about this... hasn't every designer had a "rock 'n roll" inspired line? The shoes featured in the article aren't that special: hot pink, sequined, platform mules. Honestly, you'd find something cuter at Forever21 for next to nothing price-wise, and its not exactly a classic style so why pay a high price for something you'll be sick of in one season? The article claims the line will contain fifty different styles inspired by musical icons such as Sid Vicious (um, what the Vivienne Westwood Seditionaries boots not enough of an iconic look?) and will sell at high-end department stores and specialty boutiques.

In other shoe news; I'm actually very excited for Project Runway Season 4 winner Christian Siriano's line for Payless! The styles are very sexy and edgy, my only worry is that the quality won't be very good. I'd much rather pay a bit more for shoes and handbags made out of quality materials than buy a style I adore made out of cheap materials that won't last a season. This is one of my biggest beefs with Target's designer accessories collections. Great styles, but I've seen those handbags after about a solid month of use and they look about to fall apart. But I digress, back to Christian's line. He says its inspired by the Egyptian landscape, and will include five styles. The names are so very Christian: Slither, Saunter, SheDevil, Sand Strap and Strut! Shown above is "The Strut". I'm in love, they remind me of those killer Rodarte shoes. There will be two handbags to coordinate with the shoes -- the Shanbag tote and Sassafras clutch. The line will be available exclusively in Payless stores and at payless.com in September. You can find out more information about the line as well as pictures of each style here. (Source: Yahoo Finance)

Cheers!

Punk Glam Queen