THE CAT AND THE SPARKLING SHOES

You know when you as a little girl couldn't dream of any more wonderful shoes than the red ruby slippers Dorothy had?

Although my own acute carvings for glittering shoes are long gone I did get myself a pair worthy of those Oz-tastic shoes; black velvet heels covered with small sparkly diamonds!(Yeah, yeah, real diamonds). Perfect for burlesque parties and for shows; one can never sparkle too much in stage.
I got these on sale at Halonen.

PREPARATIONS

I'm at work in Siberian weather loaing like hell until midnight, but yesterday and this morning I prepared a lot of things and put ourselves in the Christmas mood!

With a martini and some Sinatra we decorated our small Christmas tree last night.

It's actually the first Christmas tree I've had since I moved away from home a decade ago!

I usually pack a lot of my gifts in old newspapers - saving money, saving nature. Normally I go for the daily papers I've read at home, but this time I picked up some free chinese magazines in my local supermarket (apparently Tapiola is full of Chinese readers?). I make the cards out of lace-like cake paper or left over gift paper from last year.

If you have no idea of what gifts to give, a pretty bowl (from the flea market/super market/fancy store, however you like it) filled with fresh fruit would at least be appreciated by me.

I baked heaps of gingerbreads! Spelt gingerbreads with a hint of orange and another set with almonds.

Eddi wasn't totally happy with being dressed in my apron, having to mix the other dough. But he did enjoy eating it later on.

Saved some for ourselves, while the rest is meant to be decorated and given away.

The decorated ones turned out surprisingly ugly though. For a while I considered saying it was Eddi's kids who baked them. Disappointment. But well, I'm good at a lot of other things! And they do taste good.

I also gave myself a little Christmas present!I had already give up on receiving these before the holidays, but then the delivery boy arrived only minutes before I was on my way to work. Ave Maria was playing in hte background when I opened the parcel. It was a very beautiful moment.

And very beautiful shoes!It is however minus 20 C outside so I won't be wearing these beauties for some time. Well, except for indoors.

Bonus cat-in-the-box!

How are your Holiday preparations coming along?

Ok, Edit : it's almost minus thirty, not 'just' twenty.

TIME TO TAKE OUT THE WINTER BOOTS AGAIN

And so I have; taken them out and in to use. Although it still is pretty warm* and wet over here; I wouldn't have had to quite yet.

*)=That of course depends on what you compare it with. Warm as in plus degrees yes, but the weather is still totally, like we say over here, from the arse.

I got these boots last year as I needed shoes for winter and thought they were pretty ok, although a bit 'trendy' for my taste due to the extra zipper on the side without any use. However, they turned out to be super comfy, kept warmth surprisingly well considering they are made out man made materials only, they fitted an extra pair of socks and still made my feet look super tiny and they did not let any water in when it was soggy and wet. Nor did I really think of that zipper either. So, it was a smart buy, I wore them a lot and I almost worn them out. That's why I was smart at the end of last winter and bought myself another pair! So far I'm still wearing the old ones, and saving the extra pair for later.

Anyway, I have received lots of questions from people elsewhere about the boots and where to find such; mine are from Din Sko, a shoe chain here in Scandinavia with rather cheap shoes, often considered to be of rather low quality. (Funny thing is, the shoes I've worn most for daily use and have lasted a long time have been form Din Sko...). The company makes new collections every season so I'm afraid they do not carry these shoes any longer (although they seem to have an uglier version available).

But, perhaps this will interest some of you; I spotted a smiliar kind of skiing-inspired boot on ModCloth; the Bowery Boot!



Oh, a little PS. still concerning shopping : Shabby Apple is offering the readers of The Freelancer's Fashion Blog a 10% discount for thirty days; Monday November 15th to December 15th! Shabby Apple has lots of lovely dresses, jewelry and other accessories. The code is freelance5810 and the shop can be found at shabbyapple.com.

A SHORT STORY ABOUT CLOGS (IN PLURAL)

I though I'd write a little about those clog sandals of mine (conveniently now that summer is coming to an end and it's getting colder - well, at least it's still warm in some parts of the world. And ok, it's still sandal-weather here too. Over and out.) as some of you asked me about weather the hasbeens really were comfy or not and how their sizing was. So here's yet another shoe story for you:

As you know, after a lot of talk around town (the internet that is) and hype about what sounded to be the comfiest shoes ever (for this season at least) I was going though a tiny struggle on weather to put or not to put over 200 euros on a pair of clogs. I have had clogs as a kid, those more traditional ones, and clogs are no new pehnomenon for the 00's either - Carrie wore a pair of Hanna Sarén clogs in SATC years ago and FINSK has been all about wooden soles for years too. But now I could not get the thought of soft wood under my feet (or smooth actually, wood is pretty hard) out of my head. And, I was still on that endless quest to find the pair (or, at least a pair) of comfy and high heeled shoes to be able to wear all trough summer. I got a lot of tips from lovely people around the world (well, mostly Sweden since they know their clogs) about other, less pricey brands (than Hasbeens). And I did see a lot of cute clogs out there (again, internet) but none of them were as pretty or as high as the damn sky highs.

Then, on a hot humid July day with aching feet I stumbled across a pair of Moheda clogs (at Indiska) for a third of the price and decided to try them on and Oh! Feet orgasm!
So I bought them, altough not that high and thus not for the same purpose the sky highs would have served. But every woman needs a pair of less fancy sandals for when she goes to the countryside you see! Then one hot evening (you know, those hot humid Helsinki nights we have grew accustomed to...first time I was able to say that, ever!) when I was about to hit town with a big flowing skirt and with flowers in my hair I was reaching for my high heels those clogs in the corner started going all "tum tu dum", whisteling and looking up the ceiling. I tried not to notice them and squeezed a foot in the high heeled shoe. Clogs still all 'tum tu dum dum' in the corner of my eye and goddamit, the walk to the bus (yes! the bus nowadays!) and the strolling around town flashed before my eyes and I couldn't resist anylonger - I had to leave the pretty shoes behind and go for the comfy (and ok, rather cute) clogs.
That was the sign for me; nothing else left to do anymore, I was now allowed to order myself The Hasbeens.

One or two days after the UPS boy stood behind my door and there they were, all bubblegum coloured and new. After two days of walking them in and a little olive oil they were soft enough not to make my feet blister (and almost bleed) anymore. So I thought it to be a good deal although the price, as I did wear them quite a lot during summer. (It might be a bit alarming that I considering something worn a lot if I've had it on me five times or so per season but hey, that's today's world I guess - and I did wear the sky highs pretty much actually).

My clogged feet.

So, my real point here and to answer your questions however was that yes, they are comfy and go for the smaller size if you're in between. And watch out the pastel leather gets dirty easily.

OH SUMMER, HOW I LOVE THEE

I've spent some great days. in the city lately. One of them went like this:


After Eddi got his hair cut at Rody's we met up with Ina and H (or also known as Julien, well, only by me :) for a few cans of Sangria and a lot of tapas.

See what hat Ina is wearing? She got it for her birthday!




Oh, food!

Ladi dadi da. (Ina wore a sixties dress and I a fifties skirt, and a Vivien of Hollowayhairflower. Check the shoes! Oh yes I got them - comfy ad coloured like bubble gum ♥)

I continued on to Bar Moskva (going to Helsinki? Go there.) to celebrate Tinker's last night (well, almost, close enough) as an unmarried girl with a lot of champage and lovely ladies. And later on also a bunch of great guys and a very happy groom.

Oh, summer, oh love.

TO BE OR NOT TO BE, OR TO HASBEENS?

First I'm going to tell you something and then I'm going to ask you something.

The telling: I'm completely fucked in the head.

To start with I blame the internet, my paypal account and then a bunch of other facts, phenomenons and whatever. The thing is, I just can't stop wanting stuff, not only believing but knowing I need it/that/those/whatever, trying to make my wardrobe complete; perfect for any occasion. You know, one part of life such as it is seen upon nowadays is a constant search for the perfect something - the perfect job, the perfect home, the perfect partner, the perfect hand bag, perfect black skirt, foundation, mascara, every day shoes, life you name it... The longing for all things perfect and then even a little more prefect is something of a challenge we create upon ourselves but also something being fed to us all the time in magazines and commercials.

Well, enough about blaming society for my materialistic cravings as the thing here was about me and my f:d up head, plus, for the moment I actually have the perfect home-in-the-making and a pretty perfect partner (plus perfect lashes done so skip the mascara and I've given up on the black skirt). But, as it seems, not the perfect easy going shoes for summer. As that is clearly something everyone needs. And one fine day when I should have been out in the park enjoying the sunshine but instead sat down by the wonderful never-ending world of the internet I found the perfect ones:

Swedish Hasbeens candy coloured sky high sandals. That at least in my book look comfy enough for the so called every day wear.

But but but. I have a whole box of -yet-to -unpack-and-nowhere-to-put-after-that-shoes (not sandals though! Very few such!) at home. (Not to mention clothes, still a couple of suitcases in waiting. And strangely though, I think I have less and less to wear day by day. How can it be?)

Well anyway, I may be fucked in the head but the sandals are still pretty sweet aren't they? And one pair more wouldn't hurt. Plus my comfy everyday summer shoes so far have been a pair of red H&M peeptoes, well serving their 19 euros since 2006, now falling apart. I mean, these even come in mint green! (Even though I do think one pair of mint green shoes are enough, believe it or not. Might go for pink or natural-shaded ones instead).


Hmmm.

So, now over to the questions: since the apparently much hyped Swedish Hasbeens still are a little bit on the more expensive side I'd really like to know if they are comfortable. That would pretty much be the whoel point of purchasing. I sort of think that if you pay more than 150 euros for a pair of shoes comfot better come with the price - that works for Minna Parikka shoes at least, but you can never be sure.(And no, lower heels are out of the question. I don't think the sky high ones look that high anyway.)
So any experiences on the sky high ones?
Or hasbeens in general?

And does anybody know about the sizing? I read they are rather small but their size chart seems to be pretty regular, almost bit on the bigger side. I've been measuring my feet over and over here at work, even standing on a ruler and the result indicates I should go for a 36 but that would be one size smaller than my normal one and I can't really trust that.

Well over and out, let's see if I end up with a pair or if I find something else more necessary and interesting before I click Buy.

A DAY ON THE MEADOW / ALMOST FORGOT TO TELL YOU...

Yesterday I took the bus (only 15 minutes during rush hour, very important for me to point that out now that I'll be moving away from the inner city. It's the bus-thing you know.) and got off at my stop-to-be, surrounded by it's white flowers.


Bugs are cute in natrue, where they belong. (As in Not in the house!)
The way down to the new home. You'd never believe one of the most heavily trafficked high ways in Finland runs just around the corner. Our building is behind the trees, in front of the large meadow. The sea is to the right.
I pretty much grew up around here you know.


I sat down on the meadow for a while...
...and then I lay down before going in and renovating my behind off me the rest of the day. Ah, summer!


Oh yeah, and I almost forgot the mention : I got my green shoes!


...

(Well,
I guess I can squeeze in a couple of more pictures of the shoes and a quickie on how I actually got them:
So here's the story : Stupid girl who should think about everything else than shoes feels she has to get the green pumps and emails stupid Vagabond Finland who say these shoes were never brought in to the country (since stupid Finns can't appreciate the good stuff she interprets). She then emails evil Vagabond Europe who say the shoes will never ever be on the online store in size 37 ever again. Persistant shoe-girl does not give up but tracks them down at nice German shop who happen to carry them but not in size 37. Nice German shop has a wish list and silly shoe girl clicks it and receives an email one week later that the shoes are now in stock (lying evil Vagabond)! Nasty German shop does not ship to Finland not even though hopeful shoe girls emails them in very polite German and kindly asks. Obsessed shoe girl does not give up but get's a little help from wonderful Frollein in Berlin who orders the shoes herself and then sends them to mint-green-obsessed-shoe-girl in Finland. Oh, the wonders of the internet, now they are on her feet!End of story.)

So, back to the meadow. At the and of the day, very tired and very dirty after hours of work, I took the bus home (8 minutes downtown).

VARFÖR? DÄRFÖR!

My life is full of things right now - my calendar is booked until December (! or Februay 2011 to be precise); we have arenovation coming up and otherwise there are a lot of big things going on in my mind. Sometimes it helps to erase all of those and concentrate on something totally different and less important. Like a pair of shoes (well at least it's a great excuse isn't it). So here's a wellfare country problem for you:

I spotted a pair of mint green Vagabond pumps online and directly dismissed the thought of buying them as I already have plenty more than enough of shoes, but then it struck me - is this it with the shoes? Does this mean I just won't get any new shoes, like, eh, ever? Then I happily reminded myself that my old rule still apply; no new shoes unless in a new colour. (It's not an absolute rule since one is entitled to have more than one pair of black and red shoes, at least). Plus surely every woman needs a pair of heels matching her refrigerator? Well, at least if it is mint green!


Now the only problem is stupid Vagabond Finland didn't have the guts to ever take in the shoes in this colour to the stores. And it seems they are sold out everywhere in my size online. So now a lot of happy size 37 bitches all over Europe are running around with my shoes on them (how dare they!).

This bugs me out like hell. I like the shoes, tried them on in black; they're comfy and has the same shape as a pair of 40's pumps I got from my grandmother but were too small, but they are not the most fantastic shoes in the world. Although right now it still feels like a mission for me to get them. Why? Well - just because. Because I can't have them, which made me reflect over the fact how easy it is to get things these days; I think we are quite accustomed to getting what we want as consumers (unless you loose a bidding on ebay of course :) Of course I do not always get what I want, not even when it comes to those things that money can buy as I am not made of it and do set some boundaries on how I use the money I have (yes I know it's hard to believe when reading this blog...). But a lot of things are so easy to get nowadays, nothing but that magical little click away and off to the post office we go to pick it up or pop by the store. And now I can't have these! Damn.

I will most likely get over this great loss rather soon, but until then, if anyone spots a pair of these green ash palma pumps in size 37 let me now ok? (Or I might just buy them for that German shop that carry them in size 38 and use them with socks or have the clobber somehow shrink them a bit. I can be quite persistent :)

SHOES SHOES SHOES

Compared to most towns, even Helsinki that also tends to be a bit on the more expensive side, Oslo isn't exactly a place to make bargains in. But when I was there earlier this year I did manage to spot a great sale and get three pair of shoes for just under 50 euros!

Now I'm just waiting to be able to actually wear them... (well I kind of have already, a little bit; I used te cookie-like ones for a photo shoot. BUt that doesn't really count).

But new shoes means getting rid of older ones, so keep your eyes open for my other blog, I will sell away some of my heels there really soon!

A NEW PAIR OF PARIKKA'S

I think one should always be happy about and appreciate every single gift and present one gets, but when your boyfriend gives you a pair of Parikka's for Christmas it's OK to be a little bit more happy about that than all the rest.

I originally got a pair of red booties but they were a bit too big and the smaller ones out of stock so I changed to these soft pink ones. And that's just as good.

BRING IT ON

I have bought myself a pair of winter boots.


They feel quite robust compared to what I normally wear so I wasn't sure at first but then again they are winter boots , they are supposed to be a bit heavy. And they're still rather slim on the foot plus have a nice firm heel. Makes me think of old school skiing boots!

I also got myself a pair of warm tweed pants. (Pants! Me! Again! What's going on here? I guess I go both ways now, dresses skirts and pants...).

This makes me pretty well prepared for whatever winter has up it's sleeve this year. So bring it on I say, bring it on.

NEW SHOES

Oh the thrill of opening up that fresh box of shoes that's just arrived.
You know I love it, as seen before!


Exciting...

Ta-taa!


Ehh... what?
Hehe. I just had to. I can't be too serious here all the time now can I.
And these really are new shoes of mine you know. Workwear boots for the harbour.

You can't really beat workwear boots when it comes to keeping warm and having you feet feel, well, stable. Sometimes if the weather's real shitty I put my heels in my bag and let my boots take me home from work.