The Buy: Boots, Equestrian-styles

I had an idea awhile back to start a blog about things I bought as a way to gauge my own consumer habits and talk about the reasons behind the purchase. I later found out Mindy Kaling (who plays the hilarious Kelly Kapoor on The Office) writes a blog that does almost just that, but with more biting wit than I could ever hope to have. 

My consumer blog never materialized, but I'm thinking of starting a regular feature in that vein on this blog. Here goes!

Once in awhile I set my sights on finding a perfect item—e.g. black pumps, short peacoat—and I make it my goal to find an affordable version of it. Tired of my frumpy winter boots, I recently decided I wanted some tall flat boots that were somewhat equestrian looking. This desire stemmed from how classy Betty Draper on Mad Men looks when she goes riding. 

I saw several fashionable girls on Queen Street wearing the boots I envisioned I wanted, but when I hit the stores (which, dangerously, I can now do on my lunch hour), all I could find were boots with heels, flaps, strange stitching, and pointy toes. For the most part in fashion, I appreciate things simple and classic, but these items can be the hardest to find in a trend-happy consumer world. 

There's that saying about finding what you're looking for when you're not looking. Sure enough, when I was on my way to buy a snack from the underground market in First Canadian Place, the sale signs in the window of Nine West drew me right in. I was skeptical when I saw rows of boots with ridiculous heels. But then, there they were. Tall, skinny, black flat leather boots with a rounded toe and no weird details—except for a little ruching on the back, which gives them a bit of a Victorian feel that I can appreciate. 

I look like I'm on the way to the stable when I wear them. I love that.