Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Step One

Hello. My name is Cara and I'm an addict. I don't have a problem with drugs or alcohol, although I do enjoy a glass of wine from time to time. My problem is shoes. I love them. No, more than that, I LOOOVE THEM. High heels, flats, sandals, boots, brown ones, black ones, Jimmy, Christian, Steve. They all have a special place in my heart.

It is not an exaggeration to say that I have a hundred pairs of shoes. It's the truth. The sad fact is that of those, I only wear a half dozen or so with any regularity. The rest sit in my closet or on one of the shoe racks that don't fit in my wee closet, wearing tiny little sad faces, begging me to put them on. Periodically, I go through them and make the painful but necessary decision to clear them out. Because the plumber needed to get into my closet to access the pipes for the tub*, today was an opportune time to do a little thinning of the shoe herd. The purge consists of three types of shoes:

1. The Fashion Victim. Those shoes that were so darling and hip that I just couldn't resist them in the store, yet when I got them home discovered that wearing them was so painful that I never actually make it out of the house in them. They are all in pristine condition.















(I love these shoes, but they are so unbelievably tall that I can't actually walk in them. A friend of mine fell and broke her ankle while trying to walk in a pair just like them. True story.)

2. The Impulse Buy. Quirky shoes that were purchased either because they were on sale or for a particular outfit and now they just don't work with anything I currently wear. Typically in close to pristine condition. Slight wear and tear.















(These went with a formal gown I bought a few years back. They are a gorgeous deep red color and aren't terribly uncomfortable but I just don't know what to wear them with. They seem a little much for jeans.)

3. Tired Old Soles. Shoes that I have legitimately worn out. This is a small number, but it does happen. These are in embarrassing condition. For a middle class American chick. My standards of worn out are probably not the same as a kid in the slums of India.















(These old dogs saw me through many a day. I'm sad to see them go, but go they must. I should probably just throw them away, but I just. can't. do. it.)

All of these shoes, and quite a few of their friends, will get bagged up and trundled down to the neighborhood Good Will store in hopes that some financially challenged shoe fashionista will take them home and love them. While there are some that might think I only do this to make room for new additions, I prefer to think of myself as a philanthropist. That's right, folks, I'm a giver.

Do you suppose it is too early to apply for sainthood?

*Sophie threw a string of mardi gras beads into the tub as it emptied. Before I could snatch them, they had zipped down the drain, where they caused mayhem on our 60 year old pipes. $325 later, the tub drains and we have a sparkly new drain cover to prevent such accidents from happening again.

21 comments:

  1. That is is so nice of you! I should do the same with some of the shoes that just stare at me in my closet, just beggging to be worn! I'm a shoe lover, too...

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  2. so where is the photo of all these shoes? Did you really give them away? I held on to all my old "work' shoes for years and finally got rid of them 2 years ago - I never wore them once after I quit my job . . . I used to ONLY ever where heels. now I can be found in sneaks and flip flops! So sad!

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  3. ok what good will store did you bring them to and what is your shoe size?
    need to get down there to get the best picks... LOL

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  4. I think the world could use a good shoe saint! lol. I have just a few pairs of shoes. My bad habit is candles. I love them but don't want to burn them because then they'll melt. DUH. :)

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  5. Is there a Crossroads Trading Company, Plato's Closet or Buffalo Exchange where you are? They buy used, trendy-ish clothing, shoes and accessories. I try to clean out my closet once or twice a year and take it there and try to make some cash. Not as selfless as Goodwill but you gotta make a buck where you can.

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  6. STOP!

    What size are you? I can be your neighborhood Goodwill!!!! I want the Fashion Victim buys.

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  7. Hello! First-time commenter...I like your blog!

    I think you're hilarious. Shoes really are hard to get rid of, I find. And I also find that I buy shoes that I end up never wearing! It's a tough...how kind of you give them away! I think I should do the same...

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  8. I used to love shoes, but now I am the mom who goes with the same old pair of shoes so my kids will have cute things to wear! You be the saint, I'll be the martyr... =)

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  9. Wow, you are a strong woman. I have been trying to do with for years!

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  10. I must be missing the 'shoe gene' cause I just don't get the whole shoe thing. I have like 4 pairs.

    I am an embarrassment {sp?} to my gender.

    Good luck on the purge!

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  11. OMG! A woman after my own heart... I could go on and on about this topic, but I'll refrain. I am an addict, too. Sometimes I won't even go by the shoe department b/c I will NEED to stop just to see... by it always ends up in buying. Hey, I just found a designer that's new to me... Carlos Santana. The shoes are cute (to me) and so rare... If you haven't, you have to check them out.

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  12. I just went through my closet, too... I think there were 4 pair of flip-flops in the Goodwill pile (surprise, surprise)

    I can't believe you even attempted the first pair of shoes! Those things look like death-traps! Yeesh!

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  13. oooh! You wouldn't happen to be a size 7, would you??

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  14. I only wear flip flops with any regularity now that I am no longer employed outside of the home. But high heels can TOTALLY go with jeans, 'specially pointed toes with tall heels! They make your legs look amazing in jeans!

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  15. That stinks! I love to buy shoes too, and then wear the same 5 or 6 pairs in the closet.

    It feels good to purge though, right??

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  16. I don't consider myself a shoe person, but I have taken to collecting flip flops lately. Not sure why.

    The red ones are so cool. I would definitely, definitely injure myself if I tried to wear the fashion victim ones.

    Looking forward to seeing what shoes you wear to BlogHer. I'll be the lame one hanging out with you in her flip flops.

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  17. I think we were writing parallel posts tonight...allow me to be a lesson to everyone out there that "tired old soles" can be dangerous! I too have a hard time parting with old favorites (because I know it's a crap shoot trying to find something to take their place), but I do love to try. And those "Fashion Victim" wedges are a work of art!

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  18. You go girl!!
    And how does it feel to be purged???
    Sainthood must be just around the corner!

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  19. i cannot relate to this at all! i have flip flops and converse that i've been wearing since college. and i have tshirts i've been wearing since high school. just a couple years ago, i finally got rid of a shirt i'd been wearing since fourth grade! i'm just not into fashion!!

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  20. Wow you do love shoes! I have a few oldies around that I'm sure I'll never wear again, but can't quite bring myself to get rid of...

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Give me some sugar, baby!