I love shoes, but as a vegetarian committed to buying only vegan shoes I often struggle to find ones that aren't either badly made or ugly (or both!). As I search the world for beautiful cruelty-free shoes, I write about my fab finds in this blog. The blog is now in intermittent summer mode so sign up via RSS, Twitter, Facebook or Email to be notified when new posts arrive!
Well, the sale is definitely on at Office Shoes, so it’s time to check out the vegan offerings and grab a few bargains. These sweet and simple vegan slingbacks are only £15 right now and if the British summer is to continue as well as it has been then you can never have too many cute sandals.
I’ve tagged these with retro mostly because of the polka dots, but I think they’re retro-esque enough to play along nicely with vintage stuff. Apart from that they look like they could be fun shoes to wear with just about anything summery.
They come in a bunch of different colours and you can get them from…yup, Office.
It’s back to the seven seas with another pair of nautical shoes! This time on the good ship Lollipop, we have these cute striped flats with a big red bow. Cuteness!
Although not sandals, these are definitely beach-ready in style and would look pretty cool on holiday (or in your every day environment if you have the nautical outfits to match and are feeling frisky). You can never have too many nautical things, if you ask me, and these are a fine option if you don’t want towering wedges, giant retro heels or anything else likely to make you fall overboard.
Simple, sweet and not too expensive, these are, so set sail to the Office website and grab yourself some fine loot.
Here’s a cool pair of shiny retro heels in classic black and white. I like the big white button and white piping on the outside and the lining is really cool too. They look like they’d be super cute with either a dress or trousers and at 26 pounds they are so within reach it’s almost too good to be true. I mean, as I always say in this blog, don’t expect miracles for this price, but they do look very sweet and girlie and the low heel means relative comfort too.
Here’s a nice pair of stylish green vegan heels from Next. It’s a very nice shade of green, too.
I know how hard it is to get vegan shoes of a particular colour so I thought I’d include it here. The shape is very retro / pin up, too and these shoes also come in classic animal print or a nice shade of sexy dark pink.
These are all smart but funky. You could easily wear them to work if your job required heels, but they would also work with both modern and retro fashion.
All in all, not such a bad buy for £32, I must say and a good choice for spring (assuming spring ever comes).
Who said the 80s were dead? Here are a couple of 80s styles to go with your shoulder pads and that jump suit or cat suit you’ve been keeping in your wardrobe. So first up are the Zebracorn heels from Iron Fist. Their shoes are usually a bit more emo / teeny-goth, but not these. Ooooh aren’t they Miami Vice (and no, that wasn’t Cockney rhyming slang).
If you’re the kind of gal who sees 80s as retro, then these will go well with all your charity shop purchases (or posh vintage shop purchases, whatever works).
But if the wild tropical animal pattern paradise is not your thing, then how about these paint splash beauties straight from the dark, arty clubs of New York city? Everyone will be asking “who’s that girl?” when you wear these.
I’m sorry, I just can’t do 80s stuff with a straight face. I find the whole look so incredibly over the top.
But hey, if this is your look and you’re all about the jump suit, the bleached jeans and the batwing tops then definitely add these to your arsenal of fun.
They’re called Mistie Airbrush and are by Rocket dog. You can get both of these at Schuh.
And here’s a little something to get you in the mood for strutting your stuff in these vegan 80s heels:
You gotta love the sales! Take a look at these nice red heels from Dorothy Perkins. They are now only £15.
I love the mock snakeskin design on top of the faux suede. It looks almost like flames or a sort of fringe. Quite rock’n'roll in its own little way.
In fact, I reckon you could match these up with a modern rocker outfit or even a retro 50s style one and it would work. I’ve tagged them with the retro tags because of that, even though they are decidedly not so retro in shape. We’re talking cheap shoes here, so I wouldn’t expect miracles, but for £15 you can afford to go wrong.
They’re currently in the sale and sizes are running out, so you really want to be quick if you want to get them.
Ooooh check these out! Yes, they are also in the sale, yes they are pretty damn cheap and… well, just look at them!
They are by Miss L Fire, a company that makes really really beautiful shoes…usually made from leather. Bleah. These, however, are canvas. They look like proper old-style wedges, with the added twist of having totally outrageous patterning. That’s some kind of flowery piping mixed in with the polka dot mass. I’m still not entirely sure what I’d wear them with, but when you see shoes like this at this price, you should really buy first and ask questions later.
I know that it may be hard to think ahead to summer when the UK is experiencing the coldest winter in the last 100 years, but for a mere £22.50 summer can start just a little bit early for some of you.
Look what I found in the sale for only £10! I know it’s snowing (in some places) but these are the sort of thing that doesn’t go out of style. Classic raffia base, practically nautical stripes… you know the score! Simple, effective and incredibly useful. For this price you can get them now and put them away till spring.
8 CM is about, what, 3 inches? That’s not too bad for heels. I wonder if they’d make good dancing shoes. You know, for swing or lindy hop or stuff like that. Who knows. For £10 it’s worth a go. Worst case scenario you just wear them with your vintage dress or skinny jeans and pretend.
They also come in a whole load of other (solid) colours, all for the same price. Beware of the brown suede ones though!
I have been going through the Office site and looking for bargains and have found quite a few. Pay attention over the next few days as I tell you about some other cool retro wedge surprises!
These “Sora” polka dot heels from Rocket Dog are so very cute! One of the things I like most about Rocket Dog is that they really do pay attention to detail. Their shoes always have such nice little touches and these are no different. Check out the lovely red trim, the sweet retro flower and the polka dot heel and lining.
The material, in case you’re wondering, is velour: soft, velvety velour. If you click through and go through the rest of the pics, you’ll see the heel has quite a funky shape too.
All in all, this is a lovely, rather bohemian shoe. It’s a bit too distinctive to be 100% versatile, but would certainly blend in nicely with both modern and vintage outfits and even with a simple pair of jeans.
It’s definitely been the week for crazy shoes, but you know how it is: we’re never gonna survive unless we are a little… crazy! (Cheers, Seal, for that fine truism).
OK, so these might not be quite as crazy as the last two pairs I wrote about, but they’re still pretty out there, so the perfect “a little bit crazy” shoes.
I can’t make up my mind about these shoes. I love the colour and the polka dot pattern and the big oversized heel gives them a sort of childish girly charm. I even like the fact that it’s a fabric upper, which adds to the retro-styling. Not sure if the bow is a little bit over the top, though. A bit, Minnie Mouse…
I’m kinda thinking that with the right vintage outfit (not the more refined, dainty type, but the somewhat more alternative, oddball type) these could look pretty wicked. They’re definitely of the sort that are just about wrong enough to be right, but you’d have to wear them, well, somewhat ironically for it to work. I mean, after all, how could you take them too seriously?
These mad vegan heels are available from Miss Selfridge. They also come in an all black version.
OK, this little picture sucks. You’re going to have to click through to the actual page to see the good pictures and realise these shoes are actually rather nice. I don’t know why, but I’m kinda thinking “Bond girl”. Maybe it’s because it’s quite a classic design and the jewel bit, although plastic, looks pretty sophisticated in a somewhat 80s sort of way. They’d make nice pin up girl shoes.
These would go well with a little black dress (I mean, what doesn’t? But I think these would go particularly well) or if you’re young enough to buy into the whole 80s retro style, I’m sure there’s some sequinned and jewelled outfits you could throw together with these.
Take a good look at these insanely high, absolutely mouthwateringly delectable shoes from Pleaser’s Bordello range and remember the name, because I recently discovered the Bordello range and am going to be writing about lots and lots of their shoes. They are all gorgeous, some of them have much lower heels and all the ones I’ve looked at so far are vegan.
Here they are in sexy black and white oxfordy-type finary. Tres retro!
Yes, these do appear to be impossibly high to walk in for mere mortals not versed in the way of the high class burlesque or fetish stripper, but who gives a crap?
If you wear these shoes you won’t actually need to walk anywhere, because everywhere you go, men would fall at your feet and beg you to let them carry you around. Seriously, take a good look at these shoes and tell me you can’t see it.
I’d just like to point out that these do have a platform, which does make the heel height more tolerable. Let’s be honest: I can’t imagine them to be too comfortable to wear, but does that really bother you?
Oh yeah, they also come in black.
You can get these wicked vegan high heel shoes on Endless.com.
Here are some cheap leopard print heels from Next. They’re pretty cute, surprisingly retro and, while not the world’s most amazing leopard pin up heels, they do the job nicely.
You could wear them with jeans quite happily or with a cute 50s outfit and they would blend in quite well with your overall look. Obviously, I’m thinking about these in a 50s pin up look context, but animal prints seem to always be in fashion, so I’m sure you could find a whole array of more current looks those would fit in with (though, of course, the 50s bombshell lookis very current).
At less than 30 quid, don’t expect any head turning miracles from these – they won’t quite carry your outfit on their own.
They are, however, a great, cheap pair of heels you could pick up quickly to match to a particular dress or outfit, without worrying about it too much. In fact, this is exactly what many retro and vintage aficionadas (that’s female aficionado for you)do when they need something to go with a particularly eye-popping ensemble.
If you’re going to match these to something with a leopard print pattern of its own, though, make sure the patterns don’t clash!
These vegan peep toe heels are available from Next.
I absolutely love these beautiful vintage-look heels by Timeless!
I discovered Timeless shoes a while back, in a little shoe shop next to where I live. I remember thinking “these shoes look far too nice, I bet they’re leather” and then being overjoyed when I realised they were 100% synthetic. A few random places in London carry their range, but because of their rather generic name, they can be difficult to find online.
These heels are sexy and sophisticated, like something you’d wear if you were a burlesque starlet or a pin-up girl. They would certainly add some retro chic to an elegant evening outfit too. The twist that gave these shoes their name is a nice touch and very retro (and therefore very trendy).
The baby blue colour is quite unusual. It might not be to everyone’s liking but I think it’s pretty lovely.
Timeless shoes are cheap and cheerful but still look absolutely beautiful on. These peep toe heels are no different and would definitely make you stand out.
To make things even better, they are now on sale at oli.co.uk!
Well, the sale is definitely on at Office Shoes, so it’s time to check out the vegan offerings and grab a few bargains. These sweet and simple vegan slingbacks are only £15 right now and if the British summer is to continue as well as it has been then you can never have too many cute sandals.
