Red-Soled Shoes

The shopping I did in Paris was capped off by an idea I had in my head for over a year. I can't say I've ever been a "shoe person," but this is not to say I don't love shoes. I just rarely get that excitement and adoration you see in an episode of Sex in City as Carrie sees a beautiful pair of Jimmy Choo's in a store front window. This is beside the fact that she was to be willing to go into debt for a pair of shoes. While I say that, my personal opinion is that the more expensive the shoes, the better they are made.

I still can't remember where it was that I first heard of Christian Louboutin shoes. It was probably a combination of things. Although I didn't watch her show religiously at the time, I knew they are a favorite of Oprah Winfrey. I began seeing the shoes called out in magazines and realized they were "the" shoes to own, along with Jimmy Choo's and Manolo's from SITC. The brand stands out especially because each pair, no matter what color they may be on top, has red soles. I took my time over the last year, looking at Louboutins in Barney's and Neiman Marcus and perused them online as well. I have taken only a few overseas trips in my life so far, but each time I travel that far, buy myself what I call, "a little treat" that is reminiscent of the country I visit. I bought myself a Prada purse in Rome, Italy in 1998, then a Burberry purse while I was in London in 2003. In Paris, I thought, "Maybe it's time to finally by some Louboutins!" The designer founded his line in Paris, so doesn't that make sense? ; )

I visited two Christian Louboutin boutiques in Paris. The customer service (um, not a widely accepted idea in France) was not-so great in the first shop, so I considered that a warm-up. The afternoon after my culinary tour was finished, I headed to the original Louboutin store, on Rue de Grenelle. The shop is small and was fairly busy so I slowly made my way around looking at the shoes. There are some crazy, simply crazy, shoes that this man designs. The highest heel you've ever seen with sparkles or giant bows or suede tassels. I didn't want any of that. I wanted a basic black pump or maybe a black peep-toe pump. I thought about trying on the platform heels, but they cost a lot more money than I was willing to spend. The most I had ever spent on shoes up until this point in my life was around $200 for a pair of boots. Listen, as much as I loved (loved!) the platform heels, the basic pumps were already going way above my comfort-level! No pun intended.

It turned out there was a very nice young-lady in the shop who would look over at me from time to time to let me know, I was the next person she would help. Thank goodness, a sales person in Paris that understands her customers! I tried on the Simple Pump 85 and a peep-toe style (I can't remember the name). The peep-toe was pretty, but I realized I liked the heel better on the Simple Pump. It was not with the highest heel available in that style, but not the lowest either. I purchased them, taking advantage of the VAT discount, and was finally on my way back to my hotel carrying my pretty shoes with the red soles!