Tag Archives: how to wear shoe boots

If The Shoe Fits….

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Looking your best doesn’t just mean you pay attention only to your top and bottom; accessories really matter too! In fact, the right shoe can take an outfit from amazing to BOING!  Conversely, the wrong shoe, can make a great outfit fall flat.  For instance, knowing how to wear a shoe boot with a cuffed or ankle jean matters.  Small details can be the difference between making it work and having it be all wrong. 

My store has just received our fall shipment of these lovely shoes from L’Artiste by Spring Step. What I love about these shoes is the artistry; they are anything by ordinary, and wearing a shoe like this can really add dimension and interest to your outfit. The combination of multiple fabrics, blended colors, and exquisite details, take them to a whole new level. And, why shouldn’t your shoe be as interesting as the other elements of your style?

But, wearing a great shoe does take a little more thought, so here are my 5 tips for how to wear a great shoe like these correctly:

  1. Balance the details: If you are wearing a beautiful shoe like these with lots of embellishment and details, you can let the shoe be the star of your style, and good style dictates that you don’t have more than one or two items that are really eye catching. If you combine too many pieces with too many details, your look can begin to be a bit over done. For example, if you have a great shoe like these, choose a simple, clean bottom without any embellishments. Then, maybe add another accessory such as a great pair of earrings, a scarf or a handbag as your second “star,” keeping your top simple.
  2. Wear the style correctly: Nothing can ruin a look faster than wearing a shoe the wrong way. For example, with the shoe boot trend, you have three options: you can wear them with a skirt, you can wear them with leggings or you can wear them with a cuffed bottom that hits right at the top of the boot. You don’t want two inches of skin showing between the hemline and the boot. You also don’t want an overly large cuff. Also, don’t let your socks show!
  3. Match the colors: Wearing a multi-colored shoe just requires that you match the colors in the shoe with the colors in your outfit. Take the shoe boot on the bottom right at the top of the page as an example. This shoe combines several key colors of the season, including navy, wine, lavender and gold. This boot is going to work well with any denim, but you would want to choose a top in the same tones as the shoe. Wine, blue and purple tones will work best. You don’t have to match the shoe exactly, just stay in the same color family to keep your style pulled together.
  4. Match the metals: I have never been a fan of mixing metals in your outfits. If you shoe has silver buckles, for instance, make sure that the rest of your jewelry is also silver. The same goes for gold.
  5. Enjoy the attention: When you wear an eye catching shoe, you will….well…catch eyes! You might even have a stranger stop you and compliment you. When this happens, enjoy the attention! When you’ve worked hard to put a great look together, you deserve the praise! And, it feels good to feel great about your style!

These shoes are available on our online store in our “Kyleen’s Picks Of The Week” Collection.

Socks or No Socks with Shoe Boots?

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One of the questions I have received lately is how to wear socks with shoe boots.  My customers want to know: socks or no socks?  My answer: it depends on the weather and the jean.

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When I was at market in Las Vegas for the WWD Magic Apparel Show in August, I watched to see how ladies were wearing the boyfriend jeans and shoe boot trend.  By in large, I saw two options equally displayed, but I will also add a third option as well.

The first is to show your bare ankle like the picture above demonstrates. No socks should be seen, so you will want to choose a bootie sock that will protect your foot and your boot but will not show.  Cuff your jean about an inch and 1/2 above the top of your boot.  This works best with straight legged or skinny jean styles.  You do not want a large circle for your ankle to swim around in when you cuff your jean. For our weather here in Wyoming, this is a style best used in the fall and early winter months.  Freezing temperatures and bare ankles just don’t go together, even for the sake of great style.

The second option, which is equally cute, is to cuff your jeans so they rest just at the edge of the top of your shoe boot.  132b1f36d40b4b682f3a4ce30820c545

As you can see from the picture above, this young woman is not showing any ankle.  The tricky part comes in when you sit down.  Your jeans will naturally ride up.  For this reason, this style will also require bootie socks that will not show.  Wearing your jeans this way protects your ankles from a cold wind, as long as you are standing upright.  It may not be the best option if you will be sitting down outside for a long period of time.  Again, use a skinny or a straight leggged jean.

The third option will be perfect for snowy weather, as it focuses on wearing a fun, chunky sock with your shoe boot.  For this style, you will want to tuck your jeans into your boot and then add a sock that you wrinkle up just above your shoe boot.

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As you can see from the picture above, this style requires skinny jeans that will not bunch up when you add a sock over the top or make you uncomfortable when you tuck them into your shoe boot.  Fashion Crossroads has just received a huge assortment of shoe and boot socks perfect for this look.  They come in fun styles and colors for you to mix and match with your boots.

So, as you can see, the one look you do not want is cuffed jeans that show your sock in between the top of your shoe boot and the cuff of your jean.  Socks should only show if you are wearing them on the outside of your jean.  Hope this helps!

How To Wear Shoe Boots

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I find myself encouraging customers to try the shoe boot trend a lot these days.  Many have no idea how to wear them. Let’s dig into that a bit.

First of all, shoe boots are essentially short boots that come to your ankle and stop rather than continuing up your leg.  The short boot trend has really taken over the boot market because it is a fresh take on a winter staple.  Here in Wyoming, I couldn’t make through the winter without my myriad selection of boots.  They are an everyday shoe for me.  With this new trend, I have an excuse to buy more.  Oh happy day! 

To wear shoe boots, you can either tuck a skinny leg into the top of the boot or cuff your pant so they rest just above the edge of the boot on your ankle.  If you prefer a straight leg pant, you will just wear it out and over the boot.  

It’s also important to point out that shoe boots don’t have to be actual boots.  The open toe and open back shoes pictured first are a great example of that.  The look of having your foot covered achieves a “shoe boot” look but gives you a lighter looking shoe that is better for pairing with transitional and light weight fabrics.  

What seems to be the strongest trend right now are nude or flesh colored shoe boots.  These are great because they go with any colors and look especially wonderful set against denim and paired with natural colored lace.  

You can also wear nude shoe boots with dresses.  I personally prefer less structured dresses with shoe boots for a more cowgirl or bohemian feel, but I’ve seen shoe boots paired with structured dresses too.  

It’s a fun new twist on boot wearing and one to add to your must try list this season.  

How To Wear Shoe Boots and Cuffs

Posted in clothing, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, Jewelry, personal style, tips and tricks, travel, trends by

Yellowbox Shoe Boots

Yellowbox Shoe Boots have arrived at Fashion Crossroads!

One of the trends you won’t want to miss this season is shoe boots. You’ll find everything from utilitarian lace up styles to sexy embellished cowboy boot styles lining store shelves.  This is a great alternative to the riding boot of last season while still providing warmth and practicality on those icy winter streets.  The key shape is a lightly rounded toe which offers a slimmer silhouette without squeezing your toe or looking too boxy.  Thus, even if you choose a lace up style, your foot will still look feminine.  You can choose classic colors like black and chocolate brown or branch out into saddle brown, grey and tan.  There is no wrong choice, so just pick what you love and will work best with your wardrobe.  Wear your boots monotone by matching your pant color to to your boot or choose a contrast for a little edgier feel.  Black looks great paired with grey jeggings and grey boots work to set off a black jean.  Chocolate brown looks great against dark denim.

Any shoe trend only works well when you wear it correctly.  As with any outfit, you need to consider the overall style.  What are you going for?  Is this a casual weekend style or something you want to wear to work?  Casual looks, like those worn with jeans, pair fabulously with lace up boots.

How to wear shoe boots

Three ways to wear shoe boots this season

Consider these three pictures. The woman on the left looks sharp in her brown wedge shoe boot with a cream sock cuff.  The heel gives the boot a feminine edge but the cuff keeps it casual, giving the impression of a cotton sock peeking out and the “I just threw this on and look how great I look” vibe.  Her jeans are clean (no beat up spots) keeping the overall style a little dressier.  The woman in the middle has a black fringe midi boot paired with dark denim jeans. Again the jeans are clean. Notice too the fringe is relegated to one accessory keeping her look trendy and classy.  Going for full utilitarian, the gal on the right pairs beat up jeans with brown lace up boots and a military style bag.  The scarf keeps the look feminine, saying, “I’m tough, practical and stylish all at the same time.”  These three styles work well, showing different ways you can wear shoe boots.  What I like best about this style is it can work for any age from 20 to 60.

For work, you can pair a full short skirt with bare legs or tights and a dressier shoe boot like the black style with silver

Shoe boots and skirts

How to wear a skirt and boot together.

rhinestones from Yellowbox pictured at the top of the page.  Pencil skirts can also be worn with boots, but that look is edgier and harder to pull off. These three pictures show fashionable pairings of boots and shorter hems, including short shorts.  Any of these styles could be paired with tights for a more practical style in the winter.  My only caution here is this style is a little younger, so be careful how you put this together if you are over fifty.

Lastly, this season you will be seeing more boot cuffs and leg

How to Wear Leg Warmers Match to the Color of Your Shoes 2warmers.  Similar to the fun boot socks of last season, the look you are trying to achieve is a sock/boot combo.  Where a boot cuff differs from a sock, however, is that you wear it over the boot.  It’s a great way to help your boot look wintery and keep your ankles warm!  This boot cuff is stylish with its silver embellishment which compliments the chain detail on the boot perfectly.  Fashion Crossroads has already received some great shoe boot styles and will be getting a fabulous selection of boot socks and boot cuffs in October – just in time for the snow.

Get inspired about these new ways to wear boots this season and give one of these trends a try!