Ankles Away

{Long-sleeved tee, leggings, kind-of-awful ruffle skirt, and cardigan: F21; Kenneth Cole for Macy's multi-chain necklace, Elliot Lucca bag, and "Kamea" ankle boots from Target.}

A few weeks ago, I went into the city for a Holiday Dinner with Liz and Marina.  Being the sort of borderline-OCD, meticulous loser who loves the process of packing for trips, I had assembled the "ultimate overnight bag" a long time ago so I could be ready for assorted adventures at a moment's notice.  At any time, I'm ready to go with toiletries, pajamas, phone/camera chargers, Kindle, neurotic "just in case" case (instant stain-remover balm stick, Advil, batteries, PeptoBismal..), and even travel flip-flops.  Imagine my smug self-satisfaction as I slung said getaway satchel over my shoulder along with my every-day bag and and caught the earliest train right after work as smoothly as an 8th grader tells a lie.  My one extreme rookie move: wearing intense 5" wedge booties that are not, in fact, as comfortable for hoofing it around Manhattan as they are for racing around school.  The "these shoes really are comfy" subterfuge is, unfortunately, a self-deception characteristic of suburban gals who wannabe city gals.  Doh!  A zany bicycle-rickshaw-ride and painful night/morning of walking later and my feet were shot - to the point that I simply had to purchase totally superfluous travel flats at a discount place, my flip flops being out of the question in December.  So not ideal in spite of all my planning.  (Although dinner with my girlies at Spice Market was fantastic.)
Enter these totally random beauties from Target, where I've picked up a few surprisingly decent designer rip-offs for minimal dollars.  I first saw these a month ago for $32.00 and didn't pull the trigger, which worked out great since this week the last pair of 6's was lurking on a bottom shelf - and marked down to $14.99.  Score.  The price tags on Target shoes also state their "features;" in this case, cushioned soles!  At around 3.75", these Balenciaga/Tory Burch-feeling boots are - gasp! - actually comfortable.  (I swear!  I even did a test run and wore them to take my pup for a vigorous walk.)  I cannot believe how wearable and awesome they are, especially since I've been craving a rock'n'roll edge to my accessories these days, even going so far as to break out my 2001 punk-rock studded belt.

The front view is really the best - I love the aggressive combination of ankle boot, wedge, motorcycle styling, hook-lace-up, top-stitching, and faded black "leather."  This amalgamation would make for quite the multi-hyphenate!  From the side, the grainy rubber wedge is relatively cheap-looking - not that I'm complaining, what with the bang for my buck.  Comfort, height, style, versatility, and warmth are a great bargain for under twenty bucks.  I love accessories that inspire the exuberant over-use of commas.  Oh, and those button snaps?  They fold over to reveal awesome furry lining, should one choose to wear them so. 
So weird, funky, fierce and yet oddly classic (at least to me) all at once.  Love.
-xo