commuting shoes Archives - Corporette.com

You Could Walk a Mile in These Shoes…

08/23/2011 by GuestPoster

Which are the best commuting shoes? Staying fashionable on the commute is a dilemma for a lot of professional women — and today’s guest poster has the answer! My friend Kai Falkenberg — newsroom lawyer for Forbes and all-around fabulous and fashionable overachieving chick — rounds up some of her favorites for Fall 2011. Welcome to Corporette, Kai! – Kat

For those like me whose commute involves walking – and occasionally running – street friendly shoes are a must. Long ago I decided changing shoes at work was not for me – wearing sneakers with suits looks ridiculous and it requires too much carrying back and forth. So I was forced to seek out shoes that could brave the subway but look stylish in the boardroom. After years of searching, I’ve finally discovered what works – and it’s not flats. Unless you’re blessed with height, women in the corporate world should wear heels. Particularly if you’re in an office of mostly men, it’s important to be eye level with your peers and that usually requires wearing heels. The solution I’ve found…. is wedges. So most days, regardless of season – you’ll find me wearing some version of a wedge heel. When I’m not wearing wedges, I wear stacked heel shoes – thick heels usually 1 to 2 inches high that provide height without altering your gait. For this Fall, I’ve spotted a number of shoes that could walk the distance…here’s a sampling, below. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Commuting, Shoes Tagged With: commuting shoes, stacked heels, wedges

Toning Shoes at the Office – Yay or Nay?

06/24/2010 by Kat

Reader and blogger Siouxsie Law wrote in with a suggestion for a poll about Shape-Up Shoes — as she wrote about the topic here, these things supposedly a) help you exercise muscles you wouldn’t normally, giving you a great lower body, and b) they help your posture by engaging your core. But… are they professional? Are they appropriate for the office? We haven’t had a poll in a while, so we thought this seemed like a perfect topic for one. (Pictured: MBT Women’s Nama Casual Patent Shoe, on sale at Endless.com for $145 (were $265).)

We haven’t tried any of these shoes, so we’re going purely on looks. For our $.02, though, we would venture that they’re fine for commuting to and from the office — particularly with pants that might otherwise drag on the ground with lower flats. That said, though, we probably would raise an eyebrow if we saw someone wearing it around an office unless that person had some kind of foot ailment that required them to wear it.

Readers, tell us your thoughts:

For those of you who DO wear them — please comment! What brands are you wearing? Have you noticed a difference in your body by wearing them? From a brief survey of Zappos, in addition to MBT, it seems like the following brands make similar shoes: Reebok Easytone, Sketchers Shape Ups, Avia iTone, New Balance Rock & Tone, and Mephisto Sano Evasion. (Are we missing any biggies? Please let us know.)

Filed Under: Business Etiquette, Commuting, Exercise, Fashion, Fashion Gaffes, Shoes, Wear to Work Tagged With: commuting shoes

Coffee Break: Naturalizer – Beacon

05/10/2010 by Kat

We got an e-mail from reader C, raving about this “Beacon” shoe:

The heel is higher than it looks and oh-so-so-comfortable. I bought these to be able to commute in dress pants and heels (my comfy commuting flats only work with skirts b/c all my trousers are tailored to heel-length). From the subway stop, I have to walk 3 avenue blocks and 3 street blocks (in NY) to my internship at a not-for-profit law office and these are amaaaazing.

We agree — these are great shoes for pants, either for commuting shoes or just regular running-around-the-office shoes. The brown is on sale today ($69), while the black are at the regular price of $78. (Reader C also noted that she had gotten them for $51 at Nordstrom, but there doesn’t seem to be a link online.) Naturalizer – Beacon (Oxford Brown Leather/Shiny)

Filed Under: Accessories, Coffee Break, Fashion, Shoes, Wear to Work Tagged With: brown, commuting shoes, Mary Janes, Shoes

Reader Mail: On pant lengths and shoes…

11/17/2009 by C

Today’s reader mail comes from J, who is trying to keep her pants from dragging on the ground…

As a New Yorker, I walk at least a couple blocks to get to commute to work. As many women do, I usually leave my heels at my desk at work and wear more comfortable shoes to and from work. The problem is that for my pants to look good with heels, they are too long to wear with the comfy flats/cute sneakers I wear for the commute and drag on the dirty streets. How do women who have to walk for part of their commute deal with this conundrum and not ruin their pants???

This is a dilemma a lot of women face, and there are a variety of ways to deal with it. (Pictured: Pants too long, originally uploaded to Flickr by puck90.) First, we would suggest assessing what heel height, in general, you’re comfortable in for work shoes — and having your pants hemmed to that level. As a reminder: your pant should brush the top of your foot, and no more than an inch or so of heel should be showing in the back. For us, that comes to around 2″, 2.5″ — which, honestly, can usually be worn with commuting shoes that have a decent (thick) sole. (We just tend to wear our higher heels exclusively with skirts instead — it works out particularly well in the summertime if we opt to commute in flip-flops.) But let’s say your comfort level is close to 4″. In that case, you have a few options.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Commuting, Fashion, Tailoring Tagged With: commuting, commuting shoes, Flip-flops, hemming, high heels, Hunter, tailoring, wedges, Zakkerz

Weekly Roundup

06/19/2009 by C

Liking these posts? Follow Corporette on Twitter — this is the edited version of what we’re reading! (We also Tweet if we hear about a good sale.)

– Rare Vintage has some fun Chanel suits from the ’50s and ’60s.

– Sweet Hot Justice advises how to find time for your therapist AND your busy job.

– ForbesWoman explores chic commuting shoes.

– Hiring Partner’s Office offers some good advice: avoid being overly familiar with your boss.

– In the market for a new bank? A better bank? Check out FindABetterBank.com. [via Lifehacker]

Filed Under: Career, Fashion Tagged With: Chanel, commuting shoes, therapy

Flip-Flops: Not the Best Office Accessory (Poll Results)

06/26/2008 by C

So about a week and a half ago we ran a poll about flip-flops — specifically, whether they were ever acceptable to wear to the office. Poll is ongoing, but thus far, these are the answers…

Are flip-flops acceptable to wear IN the office? According to 68% of you, NO.

Are flip-flops acceptable to wear to office-sponsored social gatherings? According to 70% of you, only if it’s a BBQ or outdoor event.

Are flip-flops acceptable to wear TO the office? 51% said sure, as long as you change into regular shoes when you get to the office. (A surprising 20% of you said No! Never.)

The picture above may not (according to most of you guys) be appropriate for the office, but damn they’re cute. Sigerson Morrison – 7948 (Green Patent) – Footwear, available at Zappos for $299.