Tango Shoe Divas

I saw these shoes on someone a few months ago and since I have a thing for purple…and paisley or florals…and stilettos…and Comme Il Faut shoes…well…I had to try to find these. I looked all over and did find them, just barely! The stars must have been aligned or something….I got these through Diva Boutique and they *just* fit without being too big. (She’s pretty good to talk to on the phone. A little harder to get ahold of by email but she got her site working again for online orders.) I think these must be an older style because the newer banded sandals are cut a little wider and these are cut the same width as the peep toe ones I have. The current cut of the band sandals seems to be wider than the peep toes. Usually I have to try a sandal in the next size down but I got lucky on these because of the (older??) cut. DOn’t know- either way- I was VERY glad they fit.

The build on them is a little differnt than my other stiletto pair. On the pony print pair with the black stilettos, the leather sole joins with the heel under the stiletto and on this purple pair, the sole stops at the stiletto. So I guess I’ll find out which build is sturdier as time goes on. The only problem I have found with the slingbacks is not enough holes! On both pairs of slingbacks I have had to add holes almost halfway up the strap because the 3 holes that come with the shoe are near the ends- not even close to being snug when buckled- so I have to put more holes in them- a minor detail. Ohterwise, they are as fabulous as ever.

 Purple, aqua and gold paisley brocade banded sandal with sling back (my fav!) and 3″ (YES!) gold stiletto heel.

Here’s my most comfortable pair of shoes. These are  burgundy suede, envelope front, sling backs by Comme il Faut I got from Jennifer at Maleva shoes. I have to admit, sling back, ankle strap shoes are most definitelty my favorite. No rubbing of the heels (I’m in between sizes) and this suede is butter soft. Fits like a glove. The louis heel is very elegant and not what I thought it would be. (I was thinking, thick and curvy like a salsa heel). This is thin and elegant. It’s a little harder to do some of the “foot flip up” embellishments without the stiletto, but that’s ok, I have another pair for that!

She’s also got some nice new models coming in with fun lace trim and pom-poms…I tried them on a couple of weeks ago. Wish they had been lower heel because they were really fab. Maybe next time.

I got these NEotango’s last year and they felt GREAT on carpet…not so great once I got them on a real floor (funny how that 4″ heel feels better on carpet- innit?). Finally, my toes were hurting too much so I found a friend who knew a cobbler who could cut them down because they were just sitting around. So, after an extra $15 having them cut they are now about 3/16″ lower (YAY!). The only bad thing is they had rock solod balance before, now the heel is only “fair” balance. They certainly aren’t any worse in balance than some of my other dance shoes, but I sure do miss the stability they had.

Lesson learned: Don’t buy a pair of really expensive shoes if the heel is too high and then have it cut down (unless the balance is already off). I’d never do it to another pair of Neo’s or especially CiF since their heels are made to be balanced just the way they are.

I’ve been on the search for the “perfect tango shoe” for a couple of years now. Even as a ballroom dancer I searched for the “perfect shoe” and I’ll be the first to admit I have spent WAAAY too much moeny on shoes. But, Tango woldn’t be the same without the cool shoes and since I get asked lots of questions about shoes in general (since I know so much from having SPENT so much!), I wanted to get something solid down. Maybe if someone reads this they’ll make better shoe decisions than I did and get better shoes the first time instead of 2 years down the road.

 Here’s my little collection so far:

and

Here’s what I’ve learned:

Comme Il Faut ROCKS! And when I found out I could get a 3″ heel, I was so exctied. I’d only ever seen the 3.5 and 4″ ones and I can’t wear them. Plus the ones I tried on at a show were very stiff and it felt like wearing a board on my feet….Now…when I went to look at the burgunday suede pair I have, my feet have never known such comfort! (well- not outside of a Earth Shoe sandal that is). They were light, flexible and the suede has just the right amount of give in it so my toes don’t hurt. This euphoria induced a spate of quick shoe selling of pairs that I was only slightly to moderately happy with (problem feet) and so led to my second pair with the pony print velvet. So far I am finding suede is the softest and stretchiest, then velvet, then leather. I don’t find the satins very stretchy.

 Next up- Neotango. I have 2 pair. One was too high in the heel and I had it cut down (shoe near-disater story coming soon) and the other is a little too narrow in the toe so I will probably sell them. They are very comfortable otherwise, both of them, with good flexibility. Maybe they changed their cut on the toe or sole area recentely becasue I was expecting them to fit the same….too bad…I guess I need a replacement.

Tango-wear. The purple shoes came from Tango-wear and were on sale and I can’t pass up metallic purple. I’d love to have the so called “metatarsal padding” ripped out and have real padding put in, but am not sure I care to spend anything else on them. They fit pretty well, flexibility is good in the sole, heel is not as stable as CiF for a stiletto. The straps were too long and instead of doing the right thing and NOT wearing them to the milonga, I cut them myself and botched the leather. Now I am too embarrassed to take them and try to get it fixed so I put a bow on it. I rather just save my money for another pair of CiF.

Traspie- I love the pretty brown and flower pair of TRaspie shoes I have. Got them on eBaybee. Fit is a little big for size and the blue pair I bought I didn’t like very well so I sold them. I found it weird that the sizing ran so big on the brown pair but almost ended up too small on the blue pair, despite them being the same size…so…it seems to be a pot shot. I’d ask for inside shoe lengths before making a size selection with them- they do answer questions.

Tara- these black and silver shoes are my biggest disappointment. The amount spent and the hype about their comfort gave me HUGE expectations, which have not been fulfilled and I can’t return them now. I can only hope that dratted stiff platform will eventually become more flexible. But the fact that the are cut more narrow than the narrowest of my shoes when I thought the shoes were supposed to be “modeled off a real woman’s foot” can’t be ignored. Most likely my one and only purchase from Tara, though she was a nice person on the phone.

Other shoes: Darcos- I’ve had 3 pair of Darcos. All sold due to various issues (foot measurement wrong not once but TWICE and the third time the measurements were right but they were too stiff and Darcos seems to have gotten rid of their nice padding they used to do).

I waited in a 25 minute line at the post office today in order to claim my new pair of Comme il Fauts. I know that this is a serious addiction because I will not be dancing before Monday, when I could have waited in a 3 minute line instead of one that snaked out the door of the post office. But I needed to have them in my hands NOW, especially since I expected to have them LAST FRIDAY, and have been stalking the mailman every day this week. So I dashed out the door (since I realized at 11:15 that the post office closes at noon on Saturday) and braved the insanity.

The annoying part is that I was HOME when the postman should have delivered them and then I would have had them for last night’s milonga. Ahh the pain of being the strange hidden house on the post office’s training route. I never get packages. I cought the postman three days in a row, when of course there was no package. And Friday when it finally came, I missed him. For a moment I considered getting in my car and seeing if I could find where he was on his route, but my practice partner was due to arrive at any moment. In fact my fellow shoe diva and I had arranged our practice specifically so that she could be there when they got delivered. Maybe she has a worse addiction than me since she was there just for the VICARIOUS shoe thrills…

They are pretty fabulous though. I am more sold on the new Comme il Faut chunky heel than I thought I would be. I don’t know that I would pay full Comme price though (these were on “sitting there for two months” clearance from Maleva Shoes. You can bet I am going to be checking that site pretty often from now on.

This picture doesn’t do them justice. The purple is just a gorgeous jewel tone and all of the little cutouts and details give it a really elegant and refined look. The chunky heel is really stable. There is one misfire though. I can barely buckle them! Either the T-strap or the ankle strap is TOO short. I am on the last hole, and I can’t really then put the end of the strap back through the buckle. My foot isn’t THAT fat (plus my fellow shoe diva had the same problem and she has a smaller foot than me), so it is a bit annoying, though they do fit, if JUST barely. I do like the way the T-strap pulls down the ankle strap. I think it makes my legs look longer, I just wish the ankle strap was long enough.

Other than that, I LOVE these shoes. It is just unfortunate that they came when I am taking a brief hiatus. I just have to let my body have a few days off. Maybe I will just put my new shoes on and look at them while I sit on the couch with my icepack numbing various parts of my body… And try not to mutter unhappy things about my postman.

No, I don’t have a tango shoe problem…

I told this joke last night to my favorite tango couple and I thought it would be good to share it here…

A tango couple, lets call them milonguero and tanguera are talking.

Tanguera says, “If something ever happens to me, I want you to be happy, I want you to move on and find another partner. I know how much tango means to you and I don’t want you to lose that just because I am gone.”

Milonguero, “Don’t talk like that! It would be impossible to replace you. I hate to even think about finding another partner. You know that!”

Tanguera, “I just wanted you to know that I would be fine with you dancing with someone else if the time comes. One thing though, I hate the idea of her wearing my Comme il Fauts. Please promise me that if something ever happens to me, you won’t let your new partner wear my shoes.”

Milonguero, “Oh, you don’t have to worry about that, she’s a size 6!”