Jimmy Choo shopping

A few weeks back I went to the Sydney Family & Friends Jimmy Choo sample sale, which was very similar to the one I previously went to in NYC (read about it here). The only difference was that the crowds were much more tame as this was not advertised but all through word of mouth.

Personally I found prices not to be as good as NYC, but items were all in ridiculously good condition with 95% of items coming in boxes and all pristine. Those items which had sign of wear or were press items were priced as such, however I found similar semi-scuffed Press items were also cheaper in the US.

Anyway, I was naughty and bought two pairs that weren't amazing but were very well priced and in my size. I'm a very common size so it can be hard to score, though on the plus size I am 'sample' size. This particular sale had only one of each item, and sizes ranged from 35 to 41 so not strictly in the traditional sense of sample sale. I worked out most shoes had been display stock before, hence not truly 'sample'.

The pair above may just be a boring low heel black court shoe, however its in suede with a croc patent kind of finish at the toe. They just look elegant and looked perfect with the sheer black hosiery I was wearing. I can definitely see these being easy to wear!

The next pair I bought are very Jimmy Choo and the perfect mix of fun with classic, due to the suede finish and the peeptoe front. The red isn't quite the favourite red I would usually wear but they're definitely a style that I can see myself wearing quite regularly with denim or to dress up a boring black dress.

Unfortunately they told me they probably won't be running this again anytime soon, but it was good to get my bargain shopping in now!

NYC: Jimmy Choo

So I was in NYC just in time for the Jimmy Choo sample sale and picked up some amazing bargains. To be honest I'm not usually a big fan of Choo bags and while he has some amazing shoes I tend to stick to my other favourite brands a little more because of the variety. But anyway, seeing as my NYC trip coincided with the first sale in two years I just had to get myself down there. The first day was friends + family first then opened to the public in the afternoon but with short afternoon opening times and a 100+ person line, we had other things to spend our time doing. The next day there was no line and while the stock was a little picked over we still managed to get our hands on some cute things!

So this iPad case is totally over the top but the candy pink colour is kind of cute and I know this will make a cute gift :)

This is by far my favourite purchase - a pale buttery yellow/orange Eel clutch with gold hardware. I loved it so much I bought another in a slightly limey yellow (see below)!

 I'm in a bit of a rush so didn't get the chance to rotate this image but this is a 'seconds' item so was super cheap! One of the mirrored box clutches from the recent bag collection! You can see the mirroring is slightly flawed but from far away it is hardly noticeable and it is the only 'damage' to the bag which has a perfect non tarnished chain strap.

And onto the shoes! Both pairs are classic 'Choo' styles and while I definitely don't need any more shoes I don't have anything like them (as you may be able to tell I generally tend to buy blacks and closed toe shoes) so they will be a welcome addition to the shoe-drobe.

Who else loves a bargain?

Shoe Celebrations

So it appears it is the year of the shoe - what with it being Christian Louboutin's 20th Anniversary and Jimmy Choo's 15th. After all they are two of the world's most famous shoe makers (most would include Mr Blahnik in that accolade but I much prefer Louboutin and Choo).

I loved the pics I've been seeing of the dedicated windows in Barneys Madison Avenue because they were simple yet evocative of his twisted sense of beauty.

Christian Louboutin Barneys windows - the King of spikes.

Patent Pigalles!

And then there's Mr Choo with his XV collection commemorating his 15 most iconic shoes. I love the iconic shoe idea because once I love a style I'll stick to it so I'm sure many fashionista's around the world are excited by the prospect of being able to get their hands on styles that previously sold out.

My favourite of the icons - Tippi

But most of all, I can't wait to get my hot little hands on both the shoe master's books...I don't really want to wager who is copying who here! Both books, in collaboration with Rizzoli, at least seem to take a different spin. Louboutin's is part biography, part retrospective and of course a beautiful picture book at the same time whereas Choo's is a celebration of his XV collection with many of the photographs by Mario Testino.

A page from Louboutin's book

I think I need to make more room for these two coffee table books...

Images thanks to Racked NY and Rizzoli