Cat in Heels

Gwen Stefani spent the last decade going from rock star to style icon and rock star. Plus she married Gavin Rossdale and had a couple of cute kids, including the one she's currently pregnant with. I'm obsessed with the red boots.  I'm trying to figure out how we can become friends so we can have playdates with her new baby and my twins. Then we can talk fashion and diapers, and with the new line she has just launched with ShoeDazzle , Gwen sure has a lot going on. GX is the first collaboration between ShoeDazzle and Gwen Stefani, and features shoes and handbags in black, red, white and cobalt blue. This works out really well for me because those four colors make up 90% of my wardrobe. The shoes have some great diversity between sleek pumps with small island platforms and single soles, sky high wedge sandals, and some great bootie styles. When it comes to handbags, there are more square, structured styles, and the same basic but bold colors. They're all pret...

Ever since I was young I've had a thing for fast cars and high heels. I always dreamed of driving a stick shift car in a pair of stiletto heels simply because there's something hot about it Barbie drives in heels and a bikini without bending her arms.  As it turns out I don't drive a sports car or a stick shift car (I never learned how), and while I drive in heels all the time, every so often I am reminded how hard it is to drive in platforms.  Cher Horowitz summed it up in Clueless while driving on the wrong side of the road, "You try driving in platforms." Yeah Josh, stop being a jackass and give her some credit for driving in platforms. All women should get more credit when it comes to this.  Because they make you taller you have to move the seat back, making you hold your arms straight out and drive like 1980s Barbie.  You can't see how high these are, but trust me, they're like stilts.  Then there's the fact that you c...

Manhattan called again, and here I am. Too bad I never get any time to do anything fun while I'm here. Like shop. I'm in a city known for its boutiques, and I see the inside of a hotel and the airport. This trip I did manage to steal one hour, which was spent power walking down Lexington Ave. looking for places to shop. My ultimate conclusion: this part of New York has most of the same stores Chicago does. I did find one little shoe store with a couple gems in it, but none in my size. There were also a bunch of jewelry stores (speaking of gems), but I'm not here for purchases of that kind.  Aldo and a lovely color block. Unfortunately, I'm not here to shop at all.  What I did realize as I swept through the stores at warp speed, was that some trends that were around last season are here to stay for a little while. So breathe easy, because those color block heels and cap toe shoes are going to slide right through summer and sea...

People always ask how I can walk in the heels I wear, and that was never more prevalent than when I wore my new Fergie Footwear  island platform pump. Island platforms have been popping up intermittently over the past few seasons, and I have to say I was weary. Having a platform smaller than the shoe on a five inch heels seemed like a disaster waiting to happen. At least for me. But then I'm a little bit of a disaster. I finally bit the bullet and got Olivia, a pair of black snakeskin pumps with a gold platform from Fergie Footwear . They were beautiful and would match that gold and black skirt I have and never wear. They may match other things too, but the skirt is really what I wanted them to go with. Once they arrived I took them on a stroll through the apartment, and managed not to break my neck. Good news. One day at the office, and the same thing. All good. These are my new black pumps A week later I wore them again (and not with the gold skirt) and the unexpect...

I have a new rule. All shoes with heels over three inches must have a platform.  Why? Because I have walking around like a freaking ballerina on my toes. You know how slow you walk when you're in a pair of five inch heels, no platform, uneven sidewalks, and are really only 5'4"?  Really blasted slow.  They look so great. Too bad they suck. Such is the problem with my new red Colin Stuart boots. The ones I love. I was so excited to get them. Red suede scrunch boots. They were going to go with everything. Become a wardrobe staple over jeans and sweaters. Pull them on and go on adventures throughout the city. Maybe even travel to new cities together. I had such plans for these boots! Then they showed up with their five inch heel and no platform and force me to stand in releve and walk en pointe. Suddenly my red boot adventures went straight to hell (which is where some people think you go if you wear red boots anyway).  Now I can't traipse around...

I have a potty mouth. Shocking right? Yeah. And if you've ever read anything I wrote then you know that I use "colorful" language. And if you actually know me personally, well then, you know I swear like a trucker. And if you read this, then you're probably not offended. A few months ago a friend sent me a picture of some peep toe boots that literally said, "Fuck you" on them. I of course had to find them. As it happens I randomly came upon them one day when a designer I follow (and love) by the name of Massimo Dogana posted them. And they were his design, which I somehow missed. Never mind all the colorful boots and beautiful textures of his other shoes. The amazing hardware embellishments and wacky print combinations, one Google search of his name and the first page of shoes that comes up are images of the various designs the "Fuck You" shoe comes in. (The second picture is an amazing pair of metallic sandals with jewel encrusted platfo...

I've never been one for dress codes. The thought of wearing a uniform in high school terrified me. As soon as I was given a dress code I pushed it. Through school, my first job, my second job, and my transition into corporate life...you name it. I generally play by the rules and keep it professional, I just add a little something. Faux fur collars on sweaters or suits (yes, suits), bright colors, no nylons in summer. (Nude pantyhose don't do anything a clean shave and some moisturizer can't do). Class it up with colored heels and tweed The one place I've always had free reign is shoes. Sure, policies usually state things like no gym shoes or flip flops, but that really doesn't impact me anyway (as if I'd wear those out). Now offices are looking at heels and asking how high is too high? Even the classic, thin stiletto is being scrutinized, and it's professionalism is being questioned. Heels keep getting higher, and platforms are now the norm. Banning...

Saturday I donned pinstripe Gaultier hotpants with a sequin top and matching vest for my younger sister's birthday party. The unofficial theme for the party was Glitter and Doom, so naturally I had to dress like a maniac, which means the only acceptable shoe for this was obviously the pinstripe, two strap, platform with patent leather accents from Bordello that I bought on an impulse about a month ago. Aside from the amazing box they come in (pink and black with a bow) these shoes are awe inspiring. As I teetered around the kitchen, trying to get used to being almost six feet tall, I wondered if I could really handle a whole night in the shoes. The trip down three flights of stairs was precarious at best, and as I stood with my fiance and friend, I wondered if I would make the whole night in these shoes. Sure, they looked amazing, but the toes on my right foot were going numb and I had a cramp in the arch of my left foot. I felt like I was in pointe shoes again, and forgot ...

I have to admit, that ever since Madonna rocked a pair of black Chanel peep toes with handgun heels to the premier of " Filth and Wisdom ", I've been smitten with the idea of having my own pair. Activists railed against her for the shoes, saying they promote the use of handguns and blah, blah, blah...It's fashion people. Sometimes fashion is not making political statements. And I'm pretty sure that Karl Lagerfeld was focusing on the fact that they look good and are art in the form of a shoe, as opposed to having Chanel make a political statement on handguns or gun violence. After spending months obsessing over these shoes, this weekend I found my own pair of handgun shoes. They're silver sandals with bullet belt style straps across the toe and ankle by Pleaser Shoes . The bullets made buckling them a problem, but the largest issue was by far the towering 7 1/2 inch heel (and accompanying platform). I spend my life in heels and this is a challenge even f...