I really enjoy trying to forge coherence out of the bits and pieces of ideas and preferences floating around in my head, so to speak. I think that the opposite strong tendencies towards cohesion and novelty is probably what drives most of us to post here.

Anyway, it’s good to be simultaneously supported and challenged by all of those who contribute here.

In particular, I think that this helped me to formulate how I see specific trends for myself. I’m realizing that I like a particular kind of look but not the retailers that sell it! I guess the best way to describe it is boho lite sometimes leaning tomboy and sometimes more girly. My trouble is that brands like Lucky, American Eagle, Abercrombie and Fitch, etc. don’t usually have clothes which physically fit me. Or if they do, I think that they are often too expensive relative to the quality. So I’m kind of DIYing those kinds of looks with a more durable quality workmanship focus.

Right, so these particular huaraches can go flower child lite or be paired with something a bit grunge kind of like the white sneaker examples Suz suggested. And yet they can switch to pair with more lady like classic too. I think that is why I’m drawn to these particular sandals, (besides good fit potential) and why I’m still not entirely clear if any other white sandals might currently fit this same or other niches for me.

The way to counteract an association is lots of exposure to a different association, but, as pointed out above, no need to convince yourself to wear white shoes if they don't appeal to you.
I do like white shoes and especially like black and white shoes, which may be a bookending thing. But it was not love at first sight, but a process.

On my Vest Quest post someone suggested Kuhl. Their more casual (and less gear) pieces are the kind of thing I need (ethically/ sustainabley manufactured wise) to overcome my sticker shock and try out a bit.

We do have a popular writer in NZ called Peta Mathias who writes on food and also style who claims white shoes are only for nurses. However I rather like my 2 summery pairs. Fresh looking?

Jenni, how about a picture of your feet in the second pair. I’m having a hard time picturing where the straps connect with your feet. Mules? Mary Jane’s? Hybrid?

I like the floral sneakers too. Looks like they they also have nice similar crossover potential to Angie’s huaraches.

Mules. Coming right up. Bonus pic of sneakers worn.

Realizing that I was also a bit imprinted during my upbringing with the terrible lie that only suntanned legs look good (and not dowdy) in white shoes. Must reprogram this one.

Edited to say, my peers not my family imprinted me.

Well if non-suntanned legs are dowdy then I'm always dowdy and proud of it! ( Don't want to die of melanoma, you see).

Jenni, I really like the lace tops on you and the lace pattern shoes. I take it you really like lace?

I do, but not too "girly" a lace. The white top worn with the dark cropped jeans and the white floral sneakers is what I call my "peasant top" and is more reminiscent of broderie anglaise which I have loved since a teenager( so over 40 years!)
And the lace top worn with the pants and mules is a bit secretly edgy because it is actually skulls lying on their sides, as in Mexican day of the dead type skulls

3style, I always had ladies (actually in my family) saying how a tan hides a multitude of sins, here I am with super pale legs & ample visible veins but I do still hear them echoing in my head, so I relate on that imprinting!

Jenni,
I like to wear little secret inside jokes with myself too. And I learned a new term: “broderie anglaise.” I don’t know how I missed the term for this. I think that in the US they mostly say: “eyelet.” Other popular terms are “eyelet overlay,” or “eyelet border,” or sometimes just: “cotton lace” or “eyelet lace.”

This is off subject, but I wanted to share that a good friend of mine uses a Jergen's product to physically color her entire body (face to toes). She is exceptionally good at it (no streaks) and it looks completely natural (like a dark tan). She just looks exceptionally healthy.

I tried it in a lighter color than she uses. I think it works on me too. The problem is I am lazy and only think about it every few weeks.

Jenni, I just have to pop in and say how great you look in outfit #1! I think that is one of my favourites on you, ever!

Sterling, Thanks for the reminder on the Jergens.

My mom is a wizard with that stuff too. She is naturally much darker than me to begin with: to the extent most people think we are different ethnicities. Anyway, she has great skin and uses this stuff and it looks natural on her.

I think it’s a bit trickier on lighter skin but I’ve had good success with it too, in the lighter shade.

I forgot, because my mom is kind of a beauty products maven and is always trying to get me to try her latest and greatest, so this one got lost in the shuffle of ongoing recommendations from her.

What I like about your example shoes is that they have tan soles and aren’t too bulky. They’re not totally white. I, personally, keep trying white trainers with white soles, and I keep rejecting them. On my big flippers, well... I always feel I could guide ships to dock in a fog by waving my feet around. I think it’s the white soles and the bulk. It’s just so much white.

But I do have white shoes. My other thought is here that all whites are not created equal. My current favorite white shoes are actually a greyish white...

Personally, I’m intrigued by white shoes but terrified of wearing them around NYC. I don’t think I’d keep them clean enough (don’t share that super power with Angie). I think they’d need to have a substantial sole in another color, a la Lisa’s Birkenstocks.

I’m also a pasty person and I never care about showing my skin before it’s tan, and don’t bother with self tanning either. I used to tan a lot as a kid, and it does look good, but it’s not a look I seek out. (Before the 1920’s, people tried their best not to look tan.

I also have a fashion hangup that relates to retired/older people. It also started when I was young, maybe a preteen. I will not wear purple or lilac anything because I associate it with the elderly. My dearly loved grandmother wore this color constantly and maybe her love of it and being older worked together to make me draw the conclusion that this is an older person's color. It seems irrational but there it is - no lilac or purple for me.

How do I become a "beauty products maven?" Is it just the bravery of trying new products.

Chiming back in to say I ordered some white sandals from Naturalizer with a substantial sole. They don’t bookend on me, but generally I’m pleased when I try something new that’s encouraged by folks on here, and I always did like the aesthetic value of them. Of course, this is after I’ve concluded I can’t carry white leather bags because my overdyed jeans always stain them.... ( I don’t really want to bag that I can’t wear with my jeans.)

I personally can only wear white shoes with white jeans. I don't currently own white jeans at this time so my white shoes are essentially on hiatus.

Rachylou, yes you are absolutely right. I prefer to have the white to be grounded in a neutral for myself. So if I wear white on the bottom I usually wear shoes which are taupe, dusty metallic, tan, etc. I just ordered the Wendy huaraches to try. I think that on account of the darker sole, I would likely be comfortable wearing them with white bottoms.

Christina, I rather enjoy shoe care. I pretty much like making anything look prettier. I’m happy to pretreat, brush, condition, or re-dye shoes.

On the other hand, by the time I’ve covered my basic grooming, I never seem to make time to polish my toenails. That takes a lot more fine motor control and therefore attention.

Bonnie, I know exactly what you mean about purple, lilac etc., having strong connotations. I prefer shades of that skew very red like raspberry or very blue like periwinkle. Straight up purple reminds me too much of my childhood in what I find is not a good way. Hard to explain exactly.

Sterling, I guess I think of my mom as a maven in the sense that she really enjoys the textures, smells, packaging etc. of lots of different products. Stuff like L’Occitane. Me, all I care about is the end result, meaning “do I look better with this product than without it?”

This thread has made me want to start a whole new post. I think that there is a difference between a style preference and a style prejudice, and I think it’s what I’m having difficulty expressing. It’s worth exploring the distinction.

So, taking Sterling’s example of preferring white jeans with white shoes, it’s a preference if that’s simply what she likes best for herself. But, for example, a prejudice would be if she thinks people who wear red shoes with white jeans always look clownish, and she holds to this belief despite what most people would consider reasonable evidence to the contrary. What I was trying to describe was a shoe prejudice and not a preference.

Ah, white shoes. They were Easter shoes when I was a kid, often dressy and stiff patent. My “gateway” shoe ( and bag) to white as an adult was white with black shoes and bag. Later it was white with tan trim. A white bag with dark handles and bottom is easier to keep clean, as the areas that show grime first are dark.

Joy, I’m amused at “gateway” shoe. I know exactly what you mean by that. I think a lot of people will try a mild version of something to test it out.... I tried testing “baby” peplums around the waist. Tried a very mild version. Decided “no can do.” If they are snug, I cannot breathe properly, and if they are loose I just feel sloppy. That’s an example of a preference not a prejudice. I love seeing a good crisp peplum on others.

Anyway, your comment about handles and bottoms for bags reminded me that I did receive a natural unbleached cotton canvas le pliage bag with lovely leather trim handles. It has gotten a bit grungy and I haven’t been able to figure out if there is a solution for cleaning it. So I do have a white bag, I just thought of it by material rather than by color. I need yet another thread on tips for that, because web searching hasn’t been fruitful.