We all know the whole shoe conundrum—the smartness of an entire outfit can hinge on the shape of a toe (round or pointy?) or heel (kitten or wedge?) being “in” or “out”.  Go too trendy and you look silly, wear something too outdated and you risk looking like an LSF. (As in Low Status Female, which refers to the unspoken hierarchy of female dominance within the species, a large part of which is based on how Cute one’s shoes are. LSF’s are also often referred to as “clueless”).

  We’ve told you how the designers are all rolling out this newer shape that has less to do with toe or heel shape and more to do with putting more visual interest on the top-middle of the foot.  While this whole idea is no doubt more physically practical than last year’s platforms, we just can’t help but wonder how many of us will actually want to wear the thick t-strap and bootie type styles that can seem to turn even the longest limbs into stumps.  (After all, we may be dressing for other women, but we still have to please the men—how else are we going to get our good jewelry?)

On the other hand, if enough of the fashionista elite (HSFs) start wearing them, we might decide that they’re not all that unflattering after all.  Let’s face it, if there’s thing you can always count on in the fashion world, it’s that yesterday’s Ugly is today’s Cool, and visa versa.

So, assuming that we all want to be Tomorrow’s Cool and maintain our female dominance, what should be buying now?
Here are the hottest trends and our recommendations:

The Aforementioned High Vamp
This Le Silla Peep-Toe Bootie  is probably as good as an example as any of the new look we’re talking about. While we think that the heel on this one is skinnier than you’ll be seeing in general (and gives this particular shoe a silly, fashion-victim-y look), people are starting to wear this kind of thing with a short skirt or straight, lean pants.  We’re not ready to Go There yet, but we do think the vamp (the upper part that holds the shoe onto the foot) coming up higher on the foot could be where shoes are headed.

High Cross Straps, T-Straps, and MaryJanes
Again, it’s all about the mid-to-high foot interest, which is tricky.  At least the Stella McCartney sandal and Chi Mihara t-strap are light colored enough to be worn with bare legs.

Lace up/Oxford style
Lace-ups are the big news for next fall.
This style was all over the runways for Fall 07, but we have to warn you that without matching tights, they’ll look really weird, so while we’ll probably see a lot of interpretations like this Kenneth Cole pump on the New York girls, we’ll need a more toned-down version here in Tampa.

Patent Leather
This is something we can all embrace—shiny just looks fresher now than matte, and after so many seasons of distressed leathers, it’s a welcome, cheery change.  Plus it’s stormwater friendly, which is good news for anyone who lives in South Tampa!

Lighter Leathers
If you do go with a natural leather, it’s a little chicer this year to choose the lighter tones of luggage and light tan over black and deep brown.  We like this idea because leathers in this color are still neutral and classic enough to wear with everything.

Chunky Heels
The thicker shoes look better and are easier to walk in with thicker heels, whether they’re stacked or cone-shaped.

Two-toned/Spectator/Colorblocked
Another way to add visual weight to anchor the shorter skirts and lean pants, and newer looking than the patterns and prints of previous seasons.

Navy, Yellow and Gray
Navy is huge news this year in clothes as well as yellow and gray, and shoes are following suit. Any two of the three colors look great together, so yellow shoes with a navy dress or visa versa is a great look right now, especially in our climate.

Lucite
We only mention this, lest anyone accuse us of not being thorough.  A lot of fashion magazines have made a big deal over shoes with Lucite wedge heels and platform soles, or sometimes even Lucite uppers.  (Chanel or somebody showed them in their Spring 07 show).  Yeah, they’re cool, and we can’t deny that our inner Cinderella kind of digs them, but this is what we’d call a “trendlet”—in other words, not even substantial enough to be a passing fad, so we’re not going to pay much attention. 

Our game plan this spring is going to be to stay away from the high-vamp bootie stuff for now and focus on some of the other trends to take us through the summer. 

For instance, we think these Tod’s, pricey as they are, would be worth the investment right now—they’ve got the chunky heel, the lace-up detail, they’re patent leather, and they come in navy!  Yet they’re classic and flattering enough to be completely wearable with everything from suits and dresses to jeans. 

But we don’t necessarily have to play it too safe and classic—we also could go a little edgier with this Nannette Lapore patent slide.  It has a higher—but not too high—vamp that leans toward the newer look, and the yellow band is snappy-cool.

And we can tell you with certainty that flats aren’t going away anytime soon, especially if they’re rounded and have some big detail at the toe, or a peeptoe.  Although you can snag cuties in every price range right now, we wouldn’t hesitate to invest in some of the pricier brands because we know we’d wear the heck out of them and this is probably the one trend that will be hot for several more seasons. 
These navy patent Fendi skimmers are freaking adorable, and we could wear these Guiseppe Zanotti slip-ons every day—notice how the lighter leather gives them just the right amount of zing…

And if you absolutely can’t live without another black shoe, we can’t think of anything more up-to-the-minute stylish-goes-with-everything-in-your-closet than these Cole Haan Nayas in black patent.
So when it comes to shoes this spring, be careful, but not afraid—and remember, we live in Tampa, so we’ll always have our flipflops!