Soles with Soul

I've been challenged by the lovely Helena Halme over at her eponymous blog to show off seven pairs of my favorite shoes. After much deliberation, I've made my picks. Here they are, along with the reasons why I love them so:

1.

I bought these sequinned leather shoes in Jaipur, India a couple of years ago from a little boy who relentlessly followed me down the street. "Shoes for three hundred rupees!" he cried (about six dollars). "Here, here, I show you!" The guide we were with pursed his lips in disapproval, but I stopped anyway. The boy untied an enormous cotton bag and revealed a bottomless trove of colorful shoes like these. "My father, he made them." All were beautiful and precious and exotic...and this pair fit me with a Cinderella-like perfection.

2.

If you ever see me dashing around town on errands, I'll probably be wearing these platform wedges from Kork-Ease. (This is actually my second pair, the first pair having passed on after enjoying a rich life in 2009.) Can you say "crazy comfortable?" They come in various colors and styles, but I like the nude cork best. They go with everything, have an organic simplicity that I love and never fail to imbue my psyche with a relaxed, "whatever goes" 1970's hippie attitude (perfect for being stuck in traffic on the carpool run).

3.

Oh, the geisha shoes. I bought them on sale at a hip boutique here in Los Angeles years ago. I think they were maybe $20. I love them because they have a little bell on the bottom of the sole that clicks when you step on it. I wore them to work at "Will and Grace" one day and caused considerable consternation among the sound crew whenever I walked onto the set. Later, someone told me they were training shoes for geishas to learn to walk noiselessly (touching the bell is a no-no). The only way to manage this is to take very little steps and adopt a submissive shuffle. Needless to say, when I wear them, you can hear me coming.

4.

There are countless hiking trails in the Hollywood Hills and my new cross training shoes from Nike are coming with me every step of the way. My last pair of cross trainers was blah-bitty-blah brown, and I love these because they have a slightly glamorous (or, as my husband says, "disco ball") edge to them which makes them as suitable for urban browsing in Paris, Rome or London as they are for a dawn trek up the local neighborhood peak.

5.

Although I love me a good pair of designer shoes, I'm not a brand snob. So when I spotted these boots at Nine West about four years ago, I knew instantly they were the perfect accompaniment I'd long been searching for to go with my Marc Jacobs Couture patent leather 3/4 coat. I love the two-tone color and the nod to classic 19th century spats. It's all about the high-low mix.

6.

This sexy shoe-boot from Michael Kors is my go-to pair for when I am craving a few extra inches in height (umm, which would be always). Lately, I've been wearing them with jeans and my new Irving and Fine Lamu coat with hand embroidered raffia and wooden beads. The built-up platform on the front part of the shoe means your foot doesn't slope down at a painful angle. I wore these at my recent art opening (where I was on my feet all night) and not one tendon or toe filed a complaint.

7.

My friend Suze, fashion editor of Glamour Magazine, made me buy these Jack Rogers sandals the last time I was in New York. "You'll wear them with everything from jeans to dresses." She was right. I've worn them to lunch at the Columbe d'Or in the south of France, to the beach in Malibu and even around my kitchen accessorized with this Tony Duquette-inspired kaftan and a 5pm cocktail.

8.

Bonus pair: I couldn't not include my latest love, this fabulous pair of mid-calf boots from Tory Burch. I only bought them last month, after I spied them at a friend's house and nearly fainted with passion. "Whaa? Hwa?" I sputtered. "Yesterday. Tory Burch. 50% off." I sped over to the store on Robertson and the gods were smiling because there was one pair left in size 7. My heart still races thinking about it.