Manolos for Less

I was lingering around the stores in Square One when I decided to enter into Browns. I can't help it! I don't have any money, but at least I can stare longingly at the beautiful shoes and pick out the ones I would buy if I had ANY money. Moving on... As I was window shopping, I noticed a familiar shoe but not a familiar name. It looked like the the Manolo Blahnik Sedaraby silver shoe from Sex in the City! Remember, in the episode "A Woman's Right to Shoes" Carrie is forced to take off her Manolos only to realize that someone had stole them!

Unfortunately, the price tag for these beauties is a whooping $715.00 dollars. But don't despair! Browns has come out with a shockingly similar pair of shoes, that made me do a double take in the store. This said shoe is from their own line, Brown's ID and will only run you around $158 dollars (plus shipping). There are NO Brown stores in Ottawa (eurgh, when will this city start catching up!) but Brown's DOES offer a flat rate shipping rate of only $5 dollars! If you want to take a closer look at the price and the shoe, click here. 

Here are the two shoes side by side. Obviously there are some differences, but the similarities are uncanny! 

Would YOU buy a knock-off version of these Manolos? Or would you wait until you could get the real thing? 

Dolce and Gabbana S/S 2011

I have fallen head over heels with most of the Dolce and Gabanna Spring and Summer 2011 collection. This season the designers decided to focus on a more simple palette with dresses that were either white or black (with a few dresses that had flower prints on them.)

I have always been a huge fan of white outfits. Sadly, white outfits aren't very fond of me. Stains LOVE me. I'm never surprised when I notice that my white shirt has a mysterious stain on it that I often try to wipe out with a Tide stick (which doesn't put a dent in the stain) 

Yet that does not destroy my love affair with beautiful, flowing white dresses worn on those warm summer evenings (come back to me summer!!) 

I'm not usually a fan of Dolce and Gabanna. The designers use too many animal prints - Sorry guys but I don't think that animal prints are ever a good idea to wear.

I also remember Carrie Bradshaw buying some hideous looking feathered shoes in the first (or was it second) season. And who can forget those bejeweled panties that Bradshaw rocked on the runway ... Oh my god, she's fashion roadkill! 

Ps. who wears bejeweled panties?!

Anyways, I got off track...


Dolce and Gabbana kept it rather simple this season. Their models wore minimal (gold) jewelery and rocked that "disheveled/just out of bed" hair look. But what really made these pieces truly breathtaking was the gorgeous lace accents that the designers added to their dresses. The designers show that you don't need to add a lot of colors and patterns to make a piece one-of-a-kind.

Simple yet FIERCE! 

And I added a black dress too!

Check out the whole Dolce Gabbanna S/S 2011 collection here