saturday shoe review: lower east side oxfords

This pair of oxfords is the dark horse winner of my HH shoe search.  I picked them up at Payless two years ago, when I was looking for more standard oxfords to wear to work.  Something about them appealed to me, and I decided that less than twenty bucks was worth a risk.

Am I ever glad I did!  Here's the rundown:

Color - Being cheap plastic shoes, they don't change color when they get wet at all.  This is great considering that they're such a light color.  Normally I have to avoid light colored shoes like the plague, but these have no issues

Squish - They're high vamped enough to be worn with no show socks.  All of my no show socks are synthetics instead of cotton, so they feel a little uncomfortable by the end of the day, but with proper cotton socks the combination of wicking from the socks and airflow from the perforations makes these ideal for sweaty days.

Comfort - They're cheap shoes.  They have no insole whatsoever.  But I usually wear them with a pair of Dr. Scholls insoles, which more than does the job.

Style - I have gotten more compliments on these shoes than almost any other item of clothes that I own.  They hit that perfect quirky but understated and practical balance just right.  They work with casual rolled up jeans and t-shirts.  They're cute peeking out from under a flowing maxi skirt.  And as the funky punch to a otherwise tame office outfit, they're great.  

Sadly, as I said, I got these from Payless a while back, and I haven't been able to find another pair of them.  But here's some similar ones I'm going to look into when these wear out:

Anna Rosy Lace Oxfords

Anna Missy Perforated Oxfords

The teal!  So cute!

DbDk White Oxford

Bar III Oxfords

random: hh goes to the beach!

 I'm heading out to the beach this weekend to spend time with my family!  Huzzah!

Here's the rundown of what I'm packing for 4 days at the beach:

Bosley cat wants to be packed, but isn't going.

 I like packing clothes that mix and match well for trips, so that I can have lots of options without carrying a huge suitcase.  I've got 1 dress, 4 shirts, a pair of shorts, a pair of pants, and 2 pairs of sandals.  Of course, I'm packing my favorite hot weather dress!

 I've got 3 tees - black, white, and dark blue, and a grey tank top.  All of them do reasonably well at hiding sweat (though ironically the black is the worst at it, it's pretty faded).  I like carrying extra shirts to the beach because I know I'm going to change clothes more than once in a day as I get sunscreen on things or go in and out of the water.

For a pop of color, I've got a new pair of pink shorts!

And my trusty linen wide leg pants.  I'm not packing much in the way of jewelry, I probably won't even wear what I pack.  But it makes me feel a little more put together just to have the option.  Add a few bathing suits, pajamas, and undergarments, and I'm ready to go!

While I'm thinking of the beach, there are two awesome things I've figured out over the years that make the HH beach experience much better.

I *hate* the feeling of having sand stuck to my feet.  I can stand it when I'm actually walking in the sand, but the rest of the time it just makes me cranky, and of course with my sweaty feet I have sand caked to them the second I take my shoes off, or even before if I'm in flip flops.

1st trick:  spray on suntan lotion.  Spray lotion is great because you don't have to rub it in.  You can just spray it right over your sand covered toes and not take your skin off by rubbing in sandy lotion.

2nd trick:  bring an extra water bottle.  I take a full bottle of water with me to the beach, just for pouring on my feet!  I'll rinse my feet off to sit on a blanket or a beach chair, and the minute I get off the sand heading back in.  It's ironic that the answer to sand sticking to your feet is to get them wetter, but it makes the experience so much better!  I'll even refill my water bottle with seawater if I run out before I'm ready to go.  I'm just rinsing off with it after all.

Happy beachgoing!