HELP!!! I''ve been bitten by the CL bug!!!

[Irishgrrrl]

OK, all you shoe experts out there (and YES, Freke, this means you)! I am falling HARD for those gorgeous Christian Louboutin red soles! They are so pricey, though . . . so I''m thinking of saving up for them or maybe asking DH for a pair for Christmas!

So, I''m trying to find a pair that I will love and get a lot of wear out of, but I don''t yet own any luxury brand shoes, so I''m not real sure what to look for. I''ve heard that the sizing is sometimes different in Christians than in other shoes. Normally, I wear about a 7.5 to 8 (usually an 8 in heels). Do I need to go with a larger size in Christians? If so, how much larger? I wish I could try some on, but there really aren''t any stores near me that carry them, so I was planning on ordering them online. (Barneys.com is looking like a winner, unless anyone has a better website for me. Also, I''m OK with eBay if the seller has really good feedback.) I would be SO bummed if I ordered a pair in the wrong size and then had to send them back!!!

Like I said, this will be my first really NICE pair of heels, and I would want a pair that I can get a good bit of wear out of. (I''m sure I will own and love them for the rest of my life!!!) They would need to be pretty versatile (I''m leaning toward a simple black pump, suede or plain leather would be nice but patent might be a stretch), and they would need to be "wearable" for me. I do wear heels on a semi-regular basis, usually about 3 inchers. Oh, and I''m SHORT! I''m only 5''4" (on a good day), so I can get away with pretty high heels, and platforms are my friend!!! Having said that, I would need the heels to be a somewhat reasonable height . . . not so high that I feel like I''m walking on stilts (3 to 3.5 inches would probably be perfectly fine). Just so you know, I work in a small law office, so I do dress up for work pretty often. (Some days I wear a nice skirt or dress pants with a pretty top, other days wear khakis and a more casual top . . . but NEVER jeans/T-shirts unless I''m working on the weekend which happens very rarely.)

So, those of you who own some Christians, can you tell me how they fit? What style would be a good choice for my first pair? How often do you wear yours, and what do you normally wear them with? Thank you so much for any help you can give me!

 

[bee*]

I find that the Louboutins run a bit small so I normally go half a size to a size up depending on the shoe. Also, even though I wear heels constantly, I do find that I can''t wear Louboutins for long when I''m out-they really hurt compared to some of my other shoes. For a first pair, I would go for either of these babies-I think that they are classic louboutins and so beautiful!

 

[bee*]

or I''d go with the classic platform pumps

 

[Irishgrrrl]

Bee*, THANK YOU!!! They are both GORGEOUS!!!

I really like the first pair, but I'm not sure if I want an open toe. I really like the look of the open toe sling-back, but it gets *really* cold here in the winter, and I would want to be able to wear them year-round. The second pair looks *awesome* though! I think I've seen those in suede too, which would be niiiiiiice!

Thanks for the tip on the sizing, BTW. I thought bigger was probably better in the Christians, but I just wasn't sure how much bigger. I think I'd try an 8.5 and see how that fits me. Do you find that the height of the heel is hard to deal with? I have seen a few of his shoes with a slightly lower (but still high) heel . . . maybe that would be the way to go for my first pair?

ETA: Bee*, can you tell me where you found that second pair? A link would be great!

 

[SuLi]

I have these CL pumps: http://www.neimanmarcus.com/store/catalog/prod.jhtml?itemId=prod60190041&cmCat=search&searchType=

I normally wear a szie 6 or 36, but I purchased them in size 36.5.

 

[bee*]

It was on Neiman Marcus that I found them. I find the heel fine but then I''m usually the higher the better type of girl

If you plan on wearing them a lot during the day than maybe go with a lower heel but otherwise I think you''d be fine.

 

[fleur-de-lis]

Hey, Irishgrrrl, congratulations! I totally agree, there just *IS* something special about the red sole.

I''ve developed a nice little collection of CLs myself, but there are a few caveats that you''d want to know. As another poster said, they do tend to run small. Part of that comes from a misconception of oversimplification between European and American sizing; part is that even compared to other European shoes, CLs run small. If you typically wear a US 8 in heels, you would very likely find yourself fitting a 38.5 in Manolos and a 39 in each of Jimmy Choo and Christian Louboutin. Even then, the variations between styles often throw things off; if you can''t try things in person, have you considered ordering from a store with a decent return/exchange policy? The other thing worth knowing about CL''s is that although they are extraordinarily pretty shoes, they are constructed as what we used to refer to as "limo shoes" when I lived in NYC (i.e., killer shoes that are meant for walking no further than from curbside to restaurant). The platform styles have no give in the soles (obviously), which lends itself to beauty but not so much for the actual hour-on-hour mechanics of the foot. They often are not balanced very well, so though you wear ''em, you are aware of walking slightly gingerly. It helps to think of them as wearable art. I can wear each and every one of my Manolos to the office (well, except for the sparkly ones

, but VERY few of my Louboutins.

I guess that''s my long way of saying that they are NOT shoes you "will love and get a lot of wear out of", but rather that you''ll "love and wear on special occasions or just on those days that you need a splash of fabulousness".





So, those of you who own some Christians, can you tell me how they fit? What style would be a good choice for my first pair? How often do you wear yours, and what do you normally wear them with?

For a first pair, and minding that they are NOT really shoes that are to be worn everyday to the office but rather an occasional "I want to wear hot shoes today and I don''t care if I have to walk gingerly all freakin'' day long" shoes, I''d go one of two ways:

1. basic black stiletto, non-platform, as high a heel as you can manage to show that great flash of red from behind, in black patent leather, --OR--

2. just find the most freakin'' fantastic, work-of-art CLs you can find that don''t seem as if they''d be sensible ANYWHERE, and just enjoy how wonderful life can be in that you get to have a bit of extravagant frivolity like this wearable art in your life.

I''ll try to find some photos of what I''m trying to describe. And to answer your last Q (and taking my CL summer espadrilles out of consideration, I wear those babies all summer long), I''d say most of my CLs come out only once or twice a year, but the black patent stilettos get worn a couple of times a week. I wear those with jeans, skirts, and LBDs.

f-d-l

 

[Irishgrrrl]

SuLi, Bee* and FDL, thank you all so much! You ladies are giving me some GREAT tips!!!

SuLi, I love the pair you posted! They look like they wouldn''t be quite as "killer" on the feet as some of the higher-heeled styles. However, I totally agree with FDL about wearing the highest heel I can manage to show off that red sole from the back, baby!!!

I think I''ll probably wind up with a heel somewhere around the four inch mark. That''s a manageable height for me, and would probably show plenty of the red sole. And FDL, I totally understand about not being able to wear them to work every day. I would probably actually only wear them to work about twice a week at most. I guess it''s nice that I''m sitting on my butt for a good part of the day! LOL!

And Bee* thanks for the tip about Neiman Marcus! I''ve been looking around at various online retailers to see where I might be able to order a pair and return them easily for another size if need be. NM is a pretty reputable store, so I''m sure their site would be a good one. Thanks again, ladies!!!

 

[fleur-de-lis]

Okay, first a couple in that second category. The entire passam. line is gorgeous and quite identifiable to those in-the-know. They are made in more colors than you can find online. I believe the entire line is made in both closed-toe and open-toe options; whenever I see them I'm reminded of the intricate designs of the outfits that top-flight bullfighters wear in Spain. Anyhow, the colors I've seen locally are:
--red on black (below)
--black on red
--black on cornflower blue (my personal fave)
--black on grey
--black on coffee

 

[Irishgrrrl]

Date: 9/15/2008 3:13:42 PM
Author: fleur-de-lis
Okay, first a couple in that second category. The entire passam. line is gorgeous and quite identifiable to those in-the-know. They are made in more colors than you can find online. I believe the entire line is made in both closed-toe and open-toe options. The colors I''ve seen are:
--red on black
--black on red
--black on cornflower blue (my personal fave)
--black on grey
--black on coffee

FDL, I''ve seen these and I LOVELOVELOVE them!!!

The black on grey must be gorgeous! I think I''d have trouble finding things to wear them with, but I would just use that as an excuse to go shopping!!!

 

[fleur-de-lis]

I haven''t seen the following in person, but these CL''s are in this month''s Elle magazine. As you might have seen in the Fall Must-Haves thread, I''ve been craving the handbag; I had no idea there were matching shoes, though. Obviously, you couldn''t wear these to the law office, but you have to admit-- these shoes would NEVER get lost in the line-up. To me, this is close to the pinnacle of "Louboutins-as-Art" as you can get!:

 

[Irishgrrrl]

Date: 9/15/2008 3:26:18 PM
Author: fleur-de-lis
I haven''t seen the following in person, but these CL''s are in this month''s Elle magazine. As you might have seen in the Fall Must-Haves thread, I''ve been craving the handbag; I had no idea there were matching shoes, though. Obviously, you couldn''t wear these to the law office, but you have to admit-- these shoes would NEVER get lost in the line-up. To me, this is close to the pinnacle of ''Louboutins-as-Art'' as you can get!:

OMG, Fleur they are GORGEOUS!!!! I had seen the bag too, but like you, I had no clue that there were matching shoes!!! WOW!!!

Yanno, if I was going to go the completely impractical route, I think I''d get the blue Armadillos!

Here they are: http://www.thisnext.com/item/D1BB47E6/Christian-Louboutin-Armadillo

 

[fleur-de-lis]

Date: 9/15/2008 4:30:12 PM
Author: Irishgrrrl

Date: 9/15/2008 3:26:18 PM

Author: fleur-de-lis

I haven''t seen the following in person, but these CL''s are in this month''s Elle magazine. As you might have seen in the Fall Must-Haves thread, I''ve been craving the handbag; I had no idea there were matching shoes, though. Obviously, you couldn''t wear these to the law office, but you have to admit-- these shoes would NEVER get lost in the line-up. To me, this is close to the pinnacle of ''Louboutins-as-Art'' as you can get!:

OMG, Fleur they are GORGEOUS!!!! I had seen the bag too, but like you, I had no clue that there were matching shoes!!! WOW!!!

Yanno, if I was going to go the completely impractical route, I think I''d get the blue Armadillos!

Here they are: http://www.thisnext.com/item/D1BB47E6/Christian-Louboutin-Armadillo

Oooooooooooo... what''s so impractical about those beauties?

 

[Irishgrrrl]

Date: 9/15/2008 6:34:06 PM
Author: fleur-de-lis

Date: 9/15/2008 4:30:12 PM
Author: Irishgrrrl

Date: 9/15/2008 3:26:18 PM

Author: fleur-de-lis

I haven''t seen the following in person, but these CL''s are in this month''s Elle magazine. As you might have seen in the Fall Must-Haves thread, I''ve been craving the handbag; I had no idea there were matching shoes, though. Obviously, you couldn''t wear these to the law office, but you have to admit-- these shoes would NEVER get lost in the line-up. To me, this is close to the pinnacle of ''Louboutins-as-Art'' as you can get!:

OMG, Fleur they are GORGEOUS!!!! I had seen the bag too, but like you, I had no clue that there were matching shoes!!! WOW!!!

Yanno, if I was going to go the completely impractical route, I think I''d get the blue Armadillos!

Here they are: http://www.thisnext.com/item/D1BB47E6/Christian-Louboutin-Armadillo

Oooooooooooo... what''s so impractical about those beauties?

Oh, you enabler you!!!

I do wear a lot of blue . . . hmmmmmmmm . . .

 

[diamondfan]

I definitely size up for the CL''s. They run small and can be very tight.

 

[Irishgrrrl]

Date: 9/15/2008 10:58:25 PM
Author: diamondfan
I definitely size up for the CL''s. They run small and can be very tight.

Thanks, DFan! How much bigger do you usually go? Do you think 1/2 size to a full size would be enough? I''m thinking of maybe getting some of those foot petals or some other kind of padding type things to make them a little more comfy. Have you tried any of those things and, if so, do they seem to work? Thanks again!

 

[diamondfan]

I go one half to a full size depending on the shoe itself. Honestly, those foot things can be great since one of my feet is smaller and the shoes that fit my larger foot are always loose on my smaller, so the pads help anchor me. Just be aware they might squeeze your foot a bit, so place them carefully, they are the dickens to remove!

 

[jewelerman]

Date: 9/15/2008 12:38:26 PM
Author: bee*
I find that the Louboutins run a bit small so I normally go half a size to a size up depending on the shoe. Also, even though I wear heels constantly, I do find that I can''t wear Louboutins for long when I''m out-they really hurt compared to some of my other shoes. For a first pair, I would go for either of these babies-I think that they are classic louboutins and so beautiful!

the open toe pumps are the way to go...you could wear these for years...investment dressing.

 

[jewelerman]

the black pumps are the best color so they dont date them selves.

 

[Irishgrrrl]

DFan and JewelerMan, thank you! You guys are all so helpful!