Fashion Fridays: The Flat

Welcome back for Fashion Fridays.  Today, a topic I love  – shoes.  I love high heels.  Seriously.  I know I’m 5’10, but I still wear high heels at least four days a week.  This is the last shoe I bought:

However, recently I’ve had several high-heel-wearing girlfriends have to convert to flats or “flatter” shoes.  Everything from an injury to a pregnancy required the change.  And I’ve heard them panic because they were certain they wouldn’t find cute flats to wear to work.  Au contraire mon ami!  Additionally, unless you work in a super conservative environment like an investment bank, you can even get away with wearing brighter colors in a way you can’t with a handbag.

Most of us wear pants more frequently than skirts/dresses to work, so the biggest consideration when purchasing flats is to make sure it doesn’t read frumpy or casual with your work trousers.  One KEY concept to avoiding the frump factor is to stay away from short stubby heels.  A flat is much more modern than a short square/block heel (though kitten heels are lovely).  It not only ages you, but it makes your leg look heavier.  Make sure to wear a work outfit when you try on shoes because you’ll get a better feel for how professional it looks.  Also, I never go to DSW without my best friend, so by all means take a friend.  DSW is our spot to shop for shoes.  If you don’t live near a DSW, you can order on-line, with a wide selection, and shipping is free for members.  Problem solved!   Zappos and Nordstrom’s are two additional wonderful options though I find their prices less competitive.

Here are my choices for some great work flats.  First up, basic black:

Next up, alternative neutrals (I find camel, taupe and bone to often have more versatility than brown – and I may have a obsession with grey shoes right now):

Finally, if your workplace is not as conservative, the world is your oyster (and ANY of these you can wear with black, navy, brown, or bone pants):

And don’t forget to leave me questions for future Fashion Fridays in the comments or on Facebook or by emailing me – it’s completely confidential!