I had ordered some metallic plate sandals before my N.O. trip last month. They came. They looked cheap, but moreover they were too big. Jumped through some hoops to get a free exchange label, yadda yadda yadda. Fast forward a few weeks.
The exchange came a few days ago and I put one on quickly before heading to work. Today, my first day off, I pulled them both out to put on. Still looking cheap. And the ankle strap was still a good inch or two big around my ankles. Started thinking about cutting and reattaching the strap. Then came to my senses and realized I don't even like the shoe beyond the metal looking plates.
Instead of thinking of how I could tweak the sub par pair into being just 'acceptable' I headed online to find the Chinese Laundry pair that looked a bit more upscale.
I may have to pay $10 to return the cheapies, and then $50 for the new pair. This would be double the cost of the cheapies. But I want things I WILL WEAR in my closet, not substitutes that are a deal. Man, this is a long hard lesson I'm learning . . .