For shoes. Fantastic, fabulous red shoes. And not just any red, mind you, no. Deep, dark, burgundy wine red. Since my dress isn’t red, I want my accessories to be my favorite color. Besides, it is more practical to get shoes in red, which I would wear after the wedding whenever I could find an excuse to- holidays, formal wedding, vacuuming- whereas white/ivory/ecru/snow colored shoes would just stay in my closet for a couple of years before I donated them to goodwill, like I did with the white satin ballet flats I wore to prom.
Unfortunately, while red is a big color for shoes this season, it seems that patent leather is the material of choice. While I covet these shoes (identical to ones available at a local boutique):
Red ballet flats by Jeffrey Campbell
I know that I want something with a heel, and I don’t want patent leather (or any leather, for that matter). I’m looking for something similar to the ones worn by knottie MrsKurtz:
Perhaps slightly darker red, but if these were still available, I’d definitely snatch them up. My first trip to the mall led to…nothing.
After looking extensively on Zapppos, Shoes.com and other readily google-able online vendors, I came across the following shoes:
Nina “Floy LS” at solestruck. Not completely sure about the stripes…
Nina “Farita” at solestruck. Gorgeous looking, and seem like the perfect color. Not sure about heel height and ankle strap.
Caparros “Reese” from Lori’s Shoes. Not sure about color- a little to bright?
Stuart Weitzman “Tonight” on bluefly which are sadly no longer available in my size. Just as well, as they were out of my price range. But they have a lower heel (2.5″) which is good.
Kenneth Cole Reaction “Wicked Rich” from Zappos. Reviews on Zappos suggest that they could pinch, and to order up 1 size. Problem: I wear a 10, and they don’t make a 10.5.
Unfortunately, most of these shoes have high (3″+) heels. Mr. Dahlia is taller than me, but he’s not that much taller. Also, I’m about 5’10″, which would put me towering over nearly all my guests (but not my family, of course…at 6’, I’d still be the second shortest out of five in my immediate family). Dyables are not much of an option, since the colors can bleed (and I don’t want to risk it with my light colored dress and the potential for rain in May).
Does anyone have any recommendation of other places for shoes? Where did you get your wedding shoes?
Have you tried endless.com? It’s one of my favorite newer shoe sites.
For that color, I would stalk the holiday sales — you’re sure to find a dark red shoe around that time, and they’re probably just now coming out in stores.
I’m about 100% sure I’ll my Grazia brand shoes from Amazon.com. They’re a few bucks cheaper there than at the bridal stores like http://www.bellissimabridalshoes.com/ and http://www.myglassslipper.com
Have you tried DSW?
What about finding a fabulous pair of dyeable satin shoes? A friend of mine wanted ice blue wedding shoes, and after coming up empty via the usual avenues, she found a great pair of white satin dyeable shoes, sent a color swatch to the company, and they dyed them for her. They came in yesterday and look great and match her swatch perfectly.
I know what you mean….one of my colors was a dark bright red and finding the right shade on everything was tough. And everything was in candy apple red. Who knew it was that difficult? It looks like you’ve got a good start though, and I agree with Rachel about the holidays.
what about these fab kate spades? http://www.katespade.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2859053&cp=2632454.2666615&parentPage=family
I like the Nina Farita you posted. How divine!
Go to Amazon and look up caparros
ebay! 
I had a similar issue — wanted deep purple shoes and definitely didn’t want to worry about dying them. I ended up with a gorgeous pair of Ninas I found at DSW that are the PERFECT color! (Although their style is closer to the look of the Stuart Weitzman ones you picked out.) They are a little high, but I’m only 5′4″ and my fiance is 6′1″, so I still end up being shorter than him, but now I don’t have to worry about cranking my neck when we kiss!
Highly recommend the Ninas.
I know I’ve preached it before, but I LOVE Chinese Laundry. Great shoes, super comfortable, lots of variety and really affordable. Might want to browse around their site.
Ms Dahlia!
I did the same thing, hunted *forEVER!* for the perfect red flats to wear with my dress. And I know what you mean about the ridiculous amount of patent leather flats out there. Doesn’t anybody have any imagination anymore?! Anyway… I finally found these:
http://www.twolipsshoes.com/shop/proddetail.php?prod=HAILEE
red in satin with such a cute rhinestone detail! they went on sale and i grabbed ‘em. however I feel like i’ve settled, because they look nothing like they do in the picture. In fact the quality is terrible, so I don’t recommend them. But I did want to say keep trying! Zappos has some good ones if you can afford them (budget was a big issue with me, as always) and i LOVE these
from smartbargains.com
Good luck! Just don’t accidentally tell your fiance that you’re wearing red shoes. I did and the poor guy felt awful that he knew, almost guilty!
I’m a red shoe fool too! Pics on my blog (linked to my name). Welcome to the Club!
I agree with the post above for endless.com. they have a great search engine to search by color, style, and size with multiple options. Plus they have A TON of size 10, 10.5, and 11 shoes. (I am a 10.5 which is impossible to find). Good luck!
Kenneth Cole Reaction “Rags to Riches” is gorgeous and comfortable. The red is perfect, I think.
They weren’t quite as comfortable as my ballroom dance shoes, though, which were a slightly brighter red and which I had custom made for the wedding. If you want super comfy shoes with customizable heel height, check out http://www.bestballroomshoes.com
Have you ever tried Barefoot Tess? They specialize in shoes that are size 10 and up and they have great sales. And FYI with those Kenneth Coles, Reaction always runs HUGE, so I’d be willing to bet a regular size 10 would do you just fine if you like that style.
I wanted deep red shoes too, but I chose flats that I can change into later on in the night. They are from zappos and are “Gasper” by Guess. They arrived quickly and are super comfy. Plus, I love that they are velvet and look all fancy with the brooch thing on the toe. Good luck!
Thanks for all of the suggestions! tanya2s, I especially thank you for the ballroom dance shoes recommendation- I’ve been having a hard time finding a place for red dance shoes.
If anyone has other suggestions, I’d love to hear them!
For the 2nd time today, I’m with TriciaJ — I LOVE Chinese Laundry. I find them comfy and quite stylish. They do make a nice red, but you have to click around to find out which shoes are available in that color. (They do tend to run to the higher heel heights, tho’, which is why I eventually nixed them for my wedding shoes.
I ended up getting a pair through http://www.whatapair.com — good service, and a really awesome “shoe finder” search system. (You can search by color and style, etc.)
I love Red shoes!!! Nine west has a pretty color deep red, I saw a few different styles at the nine west in chicago a few months back. You could try them online or if you have a local store. I agree with trying nordstrom as well. Good Luck finding your perfect pair!
my MOH has the shoes you want that knottie MrsKurtz wore. she has them in black, she said she got them on a trip to NY. I think she got them from Macys during a shoe sale. Anne Klein. They were $220 on sale
my MOH has the same pair that knottie MrsK wore. she got them on a trip to NY, I think at the Macys there during a shoe sale. Anne Klein. They were $220 on sale
I keep seeing these at Target, not expensive, but I think they’re super cute, and if you don’t ever wear them again then its ok!
My friend bought the most beautiful pair of red satin pumps with chrome heels and a beautiful bow on top at Zara for $80. So incredibly worthwhile, and so irresistible!
Ms. Dahlia, Detroit/Cleveland
Age and Occupation: 24, PhD Student
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, IT System Administrator
Engagement Date: December 31, 2006
Wedding Date: May 2008
Blogging Since: September 19, 2007
Venue: United Methodist Cathedral & historic downtown hotel in Cleveland
About Me: I enjoy cooking, dancing and swimming. I am a geek and apply game theory to my everyday life. Winter is my favorite time of year, especially when spent curled up with good coffee and a book by Madeleine L'Engle.
How about Kate Spade’s Elisabeth? (satin sling back peep toe in red w/small bow and 2 1/4″ heel?)
I’m not sure you mentioned it… but I’d recommend the best shoe store on the planet… Nordstrom.