Stein Mart, Styling and Shoes

Last week, I invited myself along on my mother’s shopping trip. She said she was shopping at Stein Mart (where I don’t really buy anything), but I heard shopping, and, of course, had to tag along. I was in the store acting as her personal stylist for the day. (Normally, I have to do this via text message, so it was nice to be able to do this in person. Seriously. You have no idea how difficult it is to style over text.)

There’s something about putting an outfit together. It’s creativity, personality, branding, self-expression all in one. So basically it’s everything I love. And Stein Mart has home goods, clothes, jewelry and shoes — everything a fashion-obsessed person could want.

Especially the shoes.

In case you didn’t know, I absolutely love shoes: glittery shoes, five-inch heels, sandals, wedges. Anything.

So, I’m wandering through the shoes because I’m drawn to them like a magnet, and I spy these PERFECT RED shoes. I’ve been looking for a pair of red heels since I realized I didn’t have a pair. I’ve got the red hair, the red lipstick, the red dress, the red, faux leather jacket, the red pants, the red shirts, but no red shoes. So I tried them on, praying they wouldn’t fit. (They did. And they looked AMAZING.) I thought to myself, I haven’t bought a pair of shoes since I bought my graduation shoes in November. This is $50. They are business professional.

And then, I saw the perfect pair of strappy, black wedges. They were perfect in the most chic, edgy kind of way. And they fit my personality and matched pretty much my entire closet. They were $70. They were made by Nine West. So I tried them on. Just to see how they looked. I’ve wanted shoes like that for forever, but was never sure if I could wear them without walking out of them, or if they would make my short legs even shorter. I tried on a 7 and walked out of them completely (narrow feet problems). And then I tried on a 6.5 for giggles. Perfect fit.

How can I walk away from these? The answer: there was no way in hell I could. Even my mom said so. She even gave me a coupon. (She’s a bad influence.)

Now, I am the owner of two new pairs of shoes and couldn’t be happier. Why? Because when I find the right pair (or pairs) of shoes, my day really is made. And this, my friend, is why I love shoes. They have the power to boost your outfit, your confidence, and your mood. And I also haven’t bought any shoes since November. I really don’t buy shoes all that often even if my mouth waters when I see the cutest pair. But sometimes, it is okay to splurge.

I’ve loved shoes since I was a little girl. I’d walk around in my mom’s shoes all the time. That and newspapers. You could’ve phoned in how I was going to turn out. Each has a unique form of self-expression. Each requires some form of creativity.

So, now I’m excited to use these two new pairs to style with the rest of my clothes. New shoes mean a new take on an old outfit. They mean new casual wear and new professional attire. It’s a new attitude.

New shoes are wonderful.