Monday, February 23, 2015

Update: Killer Heels Coming to a Museum Near You

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Yesterday, I wrote about Killer Heels, an exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum on the art and history of high-heels. However, I realize many of my readers are not in the New York City area.

Good news! The exhibit is hitting the road.

Here are the tour dates and locations (according to the Brooklyn Museum):

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Killer Heels: Art and Shoes Collide at the Brooklyn Museum


The perfect shoes are a pair of art and today and I got to see Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe at the Brooklyn Museum,

Here is the museum's take on the exhibit:



When you first get into the area of the exhibit, the first thing you notice is a large sign saying Killer Heels. Perhaps it is because the exhibit ends March 1, but I also noticed a large crowd today.


When entering, you are greeted by a short film. Unfortunately, given the large crowd it was hard to watch as the security guard kept telling people not to block the entrance.

The next hallway of the exhibit traces trends and inspiration from the being of heels hundreds of years ago to today. It is amazing how Rococo style and Louis the IV heels have gone in and out of fashion many times.

From there, the exhibit goes into many architectural shoes, which may be hard to walk in, but are gorgeous to view. Some shoes even challenge traditional thinking of what a shoe is.  Here are a few of my favorites:


From afar, these look like classic t-straps, but the front of the t is actually a woman in an evening gown.

Cinderella's Glass Slipper Re-imagined

Prince Charming with Cinderella's glass slipper in Walt Disney World's Main Street Electrical Parade

Next month, Disney's live action Cinderella movie his theaters. As you probably know, I can't think of that story without thinking of the glass slippers.

Now, Disney has asked designers to re-imagine those famous shoes for modern princesses (or adults who still harbor princess dreams). Sketches from the 9 designers have been released and the real shoes will be available in stores in early March. For those of us in the U.S., the shoes will be available from Saks Fifth Avenue in New York and Beverly Hills, according to the press release.

First, check out the movie trailer to see how the live action movie presents the glass slippers:



The glass slippers from the movie seem pretty traditional with butterfly decals on the toes. They were produced by crystal company, Swarovski.

However, the 9 designers selected for the re-imagination went much more modern, with booties and cage heels.

And like the sign that decorates my desk says, these shoes could change your life.


Here are the designs:

Alexandre Birman

Charlotte Olympia

Monday, February 9, 2015

Pharrell was Happy in Custom Glitzy Sneakers at the Grammy Awards



Singer Pharrell Williams gave a memorable rendition of his hit, Happy, at the Grammy Awards last night. Even with the message and so much going on, I couldn't help but notice his bright yellow shoes.


FootBasket had a close up of the shoes and the details.


According to FootBasket, Pharrell's shoes were Adidas Stan Smiths. It makes sense, Pharrell does a collaboration with the sneaker brand.

Sunday, February 8, 2015

Happy 5th Birthday Through the Sole!


Through the Sole was founded 5 years ago today. Thank you to all my readers for your support!

At the beginning Through the Sole was all serious, started for a college class. Now, I have expanded to more lighthearted news, shoe reviews, and tips while still striving to give you the news through the lens of shoes.

I am so proud that 5 years later Through the Sole is still going strong both on this blog and on social media. This blog has gotten over 74,000 hits!

Here have been the most viewed posts this year:

1. Shoe clothing: when wearing one shoe isn't enough

2. Driving in high heels: fashion over safety?

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3. Shoes for the other gender, Picking men's shoes


Saturday, February 7, 2015

Pretty Toes and Feet: Pedicure Statistics


I've noticed my post on the history of pedicures getting some buzz the last week, so I decided to research pedicure statistics today. After all, sandals, the perfect way to show off a pedicure, are starting to hit stores.

According to Nails Magazine, nail salons brought in $7.47 billion in 2012, with 29 percent or $2.17 billion coming from pedicures. That's a lot of manicures and pedicures!

The average price of a pedicure was $31.69 in 2012. That's up 47 percent from 1992, when the average price was $22.02. During the same period, manicures were up 80 percent, making pedicures almost seem like a bargain.

Monday, February 2, 2015

Katy Perry wore shoes with 12,600 Swarovski crystals for the Super Bowl Halftime show



If you were performing in front of thousands of people and on millions of TV sets, what shoes would you wear?

According to People Style Watch, Katy Perry wore Custom LaDuca booties adorned with 12,600 Swarovski crystals when she performed for the Super Bowl's Half Time.



As you see in the above screen shots, the pop star wore the same shoes from start to end of the performance. Also check out the photos Moschino designer, Jeremy Scott shared on Instagram, embedded below. 

If you're looking to draw attention to you feet, what better way than with blinged-out shoes?

Sunday, February 1, 2015

New, free shoes with rewards points

You've heard of using miles to get free plane tickets or using credit card points to get money back, but how about earning free shoes?


I recently headed to Famous Footwear to return shoes that unfortunately did not fit right. While there I couldn't resist peeking at the shoes they had in stock, especially since clearance was buy on get one 50 percent off.

In my size, I saw black flats with buckles by Dr. Scholls. I had owned the same shoes in metallic silver and after some time wore them out. They were the perfect fit and comfortable.


Now I needed another pair. I found red pointy-toed heels by Life Stride that were a lower heel and padded, making them comfortable. The style was classic, if also a bit safe. They were marked $10, so I figured for $5, how could I go wrong?