Thursday 14 July 2016

Irregular Choice SS16 Sale Shoes


A couple of weeks ago, the summer sale began at Irregular Choice and I took the opportunity to pick up a couple of items I'd had my eye on all season.
Starting with Carni Val. Ok, so there's a funny but slightly spooky story behind these for me. Remember Truly Magical with all the bows last season? Well I loved them so so much, I had a vision of a summer version with an open toe. I got to thinking how it could be adapted for another season rather than just which other patterns or colours I'd like it in and came up with the open toe.  Obviously I was freaked out to the max when the new stuff appeared and lo and behold, there was an open toe, summery version, like I imagined!! Quite possibly the most literal "shoe of dreams".  I have another vision for this style, so I might talk more about that in another post or does it only work if it's a secret in my head? I'm so excited about it and it's not even real, I'm getting way ahead of myself!!
Anyway, Carni Val come in two colourways, both in tropical printed fabric with this...what would you say? Crackled marble finish PU? It's a bit like an up close look at a cut diamond, very multi dimensional, prism-ey, though to touch it is smooth. This has a patent finish, though not overly glossy. All edges are scalloped (actually even the scalloped edges are scalloped if you look closely), which is a theme we've seen a lot from IC lately and I love it. The overall shape is similar to Truly Magical, though there is a visible (very small) platform and obviously the open toe.
They still zip up the back the same. Down the front though, you'll notice instead of bows, we have fluffy balls! This was not in my "vision" but I love it.  Again a sucker for anything pom-pom-esque. The heel is the same "heel-less" wedge as TM and indeed that we've seen over the years on many other styles. I'm very fond of it, so I love that this is becoming a classic like the carved perspex, despite it looking a little odd, it's honestly so comfortable and just like wearing an ordinary wedge heel. Now the colours. I was really torn between the brighter green and the perhaps more modest blue. I had the blue in my basket first, then when I realised a couple of other styles I'd wanted had sold out, I bought the green too. I figured I might send one back, but like my gold and red TM's, I feel they are different enough to justify owning both (if you love them that much). The blue have all black pom pom, whereas the green alternate between yellow and dark green. The heels on both are glittery this time, the blue made up of similar blue/purple tones and the green more multi-coloured.
Size wise, I have the size-up in TM (haven't even tried my usual size) and found those a little big in the shoe but a snug fit around my ankle when closed. So I wasn't taking any chances and just went for the bigger size again with Carni Val. I'd say these are maybe even more generous than TM. Again the ankle just fits though.  The length is fine (I was worried my toes would be sitting too far back), but the shoe gapes quite a bit on me. Like I say I haven't tried my usual size, so I can only speculate, but I doubt I'd fit them around the ankle, so I can live with the gaping.  Aren't they both stunning?
I also wanted to give Stanley a go. You know me and animal themed things. I was initially quite taken with these, but not enough to buy them straight away. I've never forgotten about them and they still intrigued me come sale time, so I bought the brown because the black/white (which I'd probably have preferred) had gone in my size. I'm so glad I did get them. When I took them out the box, I just totally fell for them. They are a high fronted court shoe, made from felt in different shades of brown. The gold fabric accents have a lovely shimmering finish, which I hadn't noticed until I saw them in the flesh. The dachshund dog head sits up on the front of the shoe (it's stuffed and everything) with his ears flowing backwards. The exaggerated tail section comes upwards from the back of the shoe to sit up the back of your leg. I thought this bit might annoy me or rub, but it doesn't at all. Again I opted for the size up as I'd heard they were quite snug and it's a perfect fit for me, so comfortable. You know I love having fun with my shoes and so the "silly" stuff appeals greatly and these definitely fall into that category.  They're not as "showy" as Carni Val though.  
I was going to do individual review posts with my real camera when I felt up to it (these were taken on my phone), but I kinda covered everything in this post, didn't I?  We'll see how things go, everything's a bit up in the air just now because of my health deteriorating (been a month since I've been able to post here) and we have no idea why, so I'm not going to promise anything I can't stick to and am trying to look after myself (easier said than done).  What about you, did you manage to find anything you liked in the sale? Let me know below x

6 comments :

  1. As usual I missed the sale although to be honest, my size, 42, usually sells out of everything. I really like the resin-effect on the Carni Vals like an Erstwilder brooch! Stanley are really cute!

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    1. Yes they do go fast in that size. That's exactly what it's like, I knew it was familiar to me!

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  2. Just out if interest, how much were the blue ones? I also hope your health picks up soon.Xx

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    1. £77 down from £110...now £66 after being reduced further.

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  3. Really surprised at how much more I like Stanley than I thought I would. Maybe it was the web pictures but I just wasn't quite taken with them. Love the other pairs, and I'm very much enjoying scallops on everything, of late.

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