Hi everyone, sorry I've not been around much lately. I’ve been doing a bunch of fun things, including three long weekends in a row away from home. I’ll post some WIW's eventually, meantime I’m stalking a little but not posting. My closet edit part 2 is on hold until I’m home enough to do it. I completely missed the “style icon” game but would have no idea which one to choose. If anyone has any suggestions, I’d love to hear them.

As we move into fall my top priority is shoes. Ignoring ankle boots (I have a good selection), at-home-only shoes, winter-only, running shoes, and the pumps I used to wear to work, I have 5 pairs, all shown in finds except the clarks which are similar. It’s all very sporty/preppy/menswear, my "old" style and rather uninspiring.

1.Via Spiga black suede monk strap loafers – I like these a lot. The front is suede, the back is regular leather
2.Donald Pliner black pony hair moccasins – very little support so I don’t wear them much
3.Trotters Cognac flats – comfortable and good quality but fairly preppy and not too modern IMHO
4.Reiker blue slip on sneakers – I’ll try these with socks but I suspect the perforations will make them not warm enough at some point in the fall.
5.Clark black walking sneakers - very sporty and my default choice for travel if I'm flying somewhere and packing light.

I want to get some shoes that are more modern classic, feminine, polished, and refined. My wardrobe is mostly casual, classic but moving toward modern classic, with a little boho, and yearnings for touches of modern retro and urban pretty. Jeans, slacks, sweaters, toppers, a few dresses. I would wear these shoes with straight leg or slim jeans and pants. I would probably not wear them with skinny jeans, I would go with ankle boots instead.

What I want: flat or low heels, good support and some thickness to the sole (or I’ll add inserts). I’m thinking tassel loafers, loafers with a thicker/contrasting sole, pointy toe loafers with a fairly high vamp, oxfords in colors other than black (black oxfords seems very “menswear” to me.) I know loafers and oxfords inherently have some degree of a menswear, preppy, traditional vibe, but I’d like to move toward the monikers listed above as much as I can.

What I do not want (at least not for now): ballet flats, clogs, smoking slippers, maryjanes, open toe or perforated styles.

Colors: My neutrals for cooler months are black, navy/ink, grey, and burgundy which I use as a neutral. For shoes I’m thinking black or black print, grey/silver, snakeskin. I do plan to look for leopard print and/or dark red shoes/boots too, but I'm focusing first on the black/grey colors first because they will be the most versatile.

I’ve put a bunch of ideas into finds #6 and later. Would love you hear your inputs, suggestions, and ideas!

p.s. the kate spade patent kitty loafers are way outside my budget but they are so adorable that I might just have to order them and let the chips fall…