Bringing Bootie Back

The return of cool weather in Paris signals the time to bring out the boots. Women wear boots all winter long. They’re warm and sturdy and can be stylish without a ridiculously high heel. Boots are the bomb for Paris winters.

Stuart Weitzman bootie

Unless you have been hiding under a big rock for the past year or so, you are no doubt aware that it’s all about the bootie now. Yep- whatever color bootie you prefer, the retailers have got the bootie for you to hold at night, or at day, or whenever you feel the urge to bring the bootie back (out).

I myself own a couple of pairs of booties. I have a grey fringed pair I bought during the Paris sales. I also have a black suede Stuart Weitzman pair that I got for Christmas last year. I love my booties, but lately I have been considering the “moto bootie”, which  follows the trend of the “motorcycle jacket” of the past few years. These booties are embellished with buckles, chains, studs, zippers, and the like. They are decidedly more edgy than my traditional booties, and I thought I wanted some.  Sometimes I feel the need for a touch of edge, as opposed to round and soft curves, just to remind myself that I still got it goin’ on. I know some of you out there can relate.

The bootie options are endless.

Yesterday I ventured into Nordstrom’s shoe department, where I really never, ever should be left unsupervised. I looked around for this boot I had seen on the internet. It was a little moto, but not too much moto.

Stuart Weitzman double buckle bootie

Amazingly enough, they had it in my size, but not in my width. (and where do I file a complaint about the new Houston Nordstrom policy of not ordering any narrows in any brand?) The salesman brought it out to me and my foot swam in it. More than the width, though, it was just too much shoe for my scrawny calves. I looked like a little girl trying to wear her mom’s shoes. Or, more likely, like a little old lady trying to wear her brawny teenaged daughter’s boots. Ouch. That bootie was just too big.

The second box he brought out was by Aquatalia, a brand I was unfamiliar with but that he assured me was THE MOST comfortable bootie, and made by a company that specialized in boots. I was underwhelmed when he showed it to me. Kind of plain. Definitely not edgy. But then I put it on and BOOM- bootielicious! Perfect fit for my narrow foot, comfy padding in the inside, and a heel that was made for walking. Bonus points for being weatherproof suede, since we do have some weather in Paris.

It does have a second zipper on the other side, giving it a tiny bit more pizzazz than shows in this picture, but it’s definitely not a moto bootie. But I loved it anyway. I guess I can skip the moto bootie this year. I have a great moto jacket that will just have to be my nod to the moto mania.

I may not have much in the booty department ( I’m more of a treble girl, myself), but I am racking up quite a big bootie collection.

Keep shakin’ what your mama gave ya, my friends. And if you go to Paris this winter,  don’t forget your booties!