Feeding my Shoe Addiction -- The Most Fabulous Shoes of 2013
For all you shoe lovers out there, here is some news that should make you proud to strut your stuff in any pair from your fabulous shoe collection. According to Connie Wang, Senior Fashion Editor of Refinerey29.com, 2013 was a BIG year for shoe trends and we are lucky to be able to experience part of such eventful fashion evolution that this decade continues to exhibit. Even though it may have not seemed like one of the biggest years for shoes in recent history, you cannot ignore the continuous "ideological changes" occurring along with "aspirational aesthetics" in all aspects in fashion, specifically footwear. From lug soles to Jesus sandals to running shoes, these trendy shoe styles were selling out at the same rates as pointed Mary Janes, gilded heels, and thigh-high boots. No doubt this year was definitely a battle of "yin and yang, dark and light, goofy and gorgeous." As Wang puts it, the black sheep of the shoe world had their moment to shine this year (just look at how major of a comeback Birkenstocks had this year...I mean anything really is possible after seeing that!).
1. The Phillip Lim Boot — Over-the-knee boots swept the runway, but the only one to buy seemed to be the kickass pair from Phillip Lim's spring '14 show. Hefty, heavy-duty, but with sleek, sexy lines, this shoe made everyone who wore them 10 times cooler.
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2. The Birkenstock Sandal — Whodathunk, right? Céline and Giambattista Valli made upscale versions of the clunky, crunchy sandal, but ladies found that the original really worked best. Coming in at under $100, the Birkenstock Arizona model was this season's runaway hit, inspiring tons of controversy among the fashion set (and the granola set, too, we bet).
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3. The Alexander Wang Pump — This is the shoe that spawned a million copies. You'd be hard pressed to walk into any mass-market shoe shop that didn't carry an ankle-strap pump with a pointed toe cut straight across. Alexander Wang did it first (and best), and it's the perfect minimalist shoe that goes with just about anything.
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**** Fashionably.Blazed Certified Badass Boot of 2013
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| Balenciaga Buckle Boot, $1,275, available at Barneys. |
4. The Balenciaga Cutout Boot — Some joked that this was the first "sandal boot," but there wasn't anything cutesy about the Balenciaga shoe. With hardware aplenty, this became the flat of choice for the front-rowers during Fashion Week and spawned copycat versions such as Jeffrey Campbell's "Coltrane" boot.
5. The Fendi Fur Bootie — Unnecessary, over-the-top, why's-it-there fur was a big runway trend for fall '13, and while the real-world manifestations were toned down, they were still a little out-there. The biggest offender was Fendi, whose zebra booties featured a mohawk of white and orange fur.
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| Fendi Zebra-Print Shoe, $1,700, available at Saks. |
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| Tibi Perla Boot, $575, available at Tibi. |
7. The Isabel Marant Sandal — Was there a fashion blogger who didn't own this shoe? Minimalist but still boho blinged out, this sandal was on the foot of every "Marant-phile" this side of the Internet.
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8. The White-Soled Miu Miu Boot — It was hard to find a designer who didn't include a white lug sole in their collection, but the fashion set truly fell in love with this sleek Miu Miu bootie. The hiking-boot-like tread gave this stiletto boot a quirky wink that was irresistible.
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| Miu Miu Ankle Boots, $890, available at Net-A-Porter. |
9. The Zara Criss-Cross Sandal — It was hard to go through a slideshow of street style during the spring '14 Fashion Week shows and not see at least at half-dozen women in this sandal. Way more expensive-looking than they were, this sandal really delivered the most bang for your buck. Expect to see this style revamped for next spring!
10.The Nike Flyknit — Barring the fact that it's probably the most comfortable shoe around, the Nike Flyknit is also beautiful, which quickly earned it its place as the fashion set's trainer of choice. Coming in a slew of colors, we were always partial to the variations on black.
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11. The Roller-Skate Sandal — Remember this amazeballs creation of our favorite shoe God, Jeffrey Campbell? Still on sale on Nasty Gal, this shoe spawned a hundred blog entries and thousands of Tumblr. reposts. We never saw one of these on the street, but that might just be because their owners were all still nursing broken ankles at home.
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| Valentino Rockstud Pump, $945, available at My Theresa. |
13. The Checkered Vans — A Madewell styling staple, this Vans stepper was also a frequently used shoe in indie designer lookbooks and street style. The best part? We already had them in our own closets!
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| Vans Checkerboard Slip Ons, $47, available at Vans. |
14. The Gilded Dolce & Gabbana Shoes — Totally over-the-top in a "Best Italian Restaurant In Town" sort of way, these Dolce & Gabbana sandals featured faux flowers, curlicue gold baskets, and red velvet.
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| Dolce & Gabbana High-Heeled Sandals, $2,895, available at Dolce & Gabbana. |
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