Sunday, September 21, 2014

New York Fashion Week's Shoe Scene



Earlier this month, I stopped by Lincoln Center to check out the scene. It was New York Fashion Week nd photographers, bloggers and other fashion enthusiasts were gathered to snapped photos of fashion industry people as they flowed in and out of the runway shows. I gave Flattering50 readers a "taste" of what I saw in my post about plaza fashion. For this post, I'm zooming in on Fashion Week footwear. While many women wore unremarkable sheaths, shredded jeans or straight skirts, their footwear shouted style and personality. Some wore towering pumps, while others wore edgy booties or metal-adorned flats. Despite the enormous variety of shoe styles, however, one thing seemed clear: fab-looking footwear was what mattered.

HEIGH-HO HIGH HEELS
Since the vast majority of women attending the runway shows at Lincoln Center were under 30, it was hardly surprising to see lots of spiked high heels...




And some pretty high wedges...





And some Olympic-high-jump wedges...




Of course, on any day, there's a fair number of pumps on New York streets with the tell-tale red bottoms (and nosebleed spiked heels) of Christian Louboutin...











THE FLATLAND
On the other hand, there was a conspicuous absence of flat footwear, especially this summer's super trendy flip-flops. This was disappointing. I'm always on the lookout for stylish flats to wear while hiking around the city. The flats I saw during Fashion Week were almost all basic black leather styles--not very remarkable...






This woman jazzed up her long narrow black skirt and black sandals with a pair of patterned socks.







STYLISH FOOTPRINTS
I'm happy to report, though, that stylish shoes weren't all about 5-inch heels. In fact, I would say that the more important ingredients were color, texture and prints. Naturally, there were lots of shoes in that perennial favorite: animal prints...






Summery stripes were on parade...









And eye-catching colors, including trendy neon sneakers...








TEXTURED TOES
Textured footwear ran the gamut from subdued suede coverings to bold metallic accents. Sometimes, there was a combination of the two...



















BOOTIE BUSINESS
I've been on the hunt for a new pair of booties since mid-August. I'm looking for a fall bootie with a cut-out toe, slingback and a chunky 2" heel. Tall order? It seems so. I've seen several versions with 3" or higher heels, but I want something I can wear in the city. I can't find them anywhere--in stores or online. And I didn't see them at Lincoln Center, either. Once again, spiked heels were de rigueur.