I’ve been looking for pale pink cold-weather boots and hi-top sneakers for years. Along with white, blush footwear is a wardrobe essential for my style. I haven’t found the right hi-top sneakers yet, but I have found the boots. They are Frye’s Billy Inside Zip Bootie that I got on Amazon for half the price.
After a little doctoring with some additional insoles, they are very comfortable, the perfect-for-me heel height, and fit well. They are adequately crisp and refined for my sartorial preferences, and awfully pretty in the pink. They are a trendy classic, so I won’t get bored with the way they look. They are an exact colour match with two old blush handbags. They are perfect, apart from the impractical pink suede and my urban walking lifestyle in rather wet Seattle. I wear white footwear year round and manage to keep them looking pristine, but pink suede is much harder to keep clean. I thought long and hard about it, and decided to keep the impractical purchase for the following reasons. First, it’s very hard for me to find comfortable shoes that look pretty, fit well, and that aren’t sneakers. Second, I’m spraying them with Suede & Nubuck Protector to help them stay clean and repel water. Third, I’ll wear them less frequently, and definitely not in the rain. Plus, I’ll keep looking for a pair of workhorse blush hi-top sneakers to do the dirty work.
As much as I advocate a practical-for-you wardrobe that you wear with joy, meets your needs, don’t save for good, and goes the distance — we’re allowed a few impractical purchases too. The occasional impractical purchase can be therapeutic and make fashion and style more fun. Wardrobe items do not need to achieve workhorse status to be winners. It can be special to save some items for good.
