Not a Blogger: A Corporate Fashun Blog

Did you know that the internet is more than just kitten videos? (Katie 2 would like to say that goat videos are vastly superior to cat/kitten videos.) I know- we're shocked. Other things we find shocking? How atrociously bad a lot of the "career advice" available online is. This is especially true when it comes to shoes. We think we've previously mentioned that work appropriate shoes were one of our biggest struggles when it came to dressing for our careers early on. There were many factors that contributed to this being such a struggle but one of the biggest was the fact that we're pedestrian commuters. Learning the difference between commuting shoes and office shoes proved harder than it seems. Also, because there is so much hostility surrounding work shoes on workwear blogs (looking at you, Corporette!) and commuting in what's comfortable and changing at the office it was especially hard to figure out what is truly inappropriate and what out of touch anony...

You may have caught on by now that we’ve been constantly expanding on our Shoes Every Woman Needs guide by providing you with recommendations based upon type. So far, we’ve discussed (1) Neutral pumps ; (2) Black pumps ; and (3) Evening Shoes . With spring on the horizon, we're all sick of the black pumps + tights look that tends to be our uniform during the winter months so we thought now would be a good time to discuss another one of the more controversial additions to our original essential shoe list: red and metallic pumps. Because of their versatility, we believe that red and metallic shoes fall firmly within the neutral shoe category. Metallics can literally be paired with any color combination and red looks great with black, navy, charcoal, purple, leopard print, etc. In fact, Katie 1 finds red to be such a versatile shoe that she has multiple pairs of red shoes (3 pairs of pumps and 2 pairs of flats to be exact). Additionally, metallic shoes can also be dressed down f...

We are longingly remembering the days when February meant spring break. When the monotony of every day life was interrupted by trips to far off places full of sunshine and tequila shots. Even if you didn't ever go anywhere spring breaky, that week off during the dreary days was a welcome distraction from the dull, grey every day.  Last year at this time, Katie 2 was doing some last minute shopping for a trip to Hawaii. She pulled Katie 1 along and the two of them passed the time looking for the perfect nude wedges/sundresses/sun hats. This year, there is no trip to warmer climates on the horizon for any of us (Katie 1 is taking a ski vacation), but we still like to break the monotony of winter blues by shopping for the must-have shoe for tropical vacations, the espadrille. We also think this post is a great Shoes Day Tuesday/Travel Tuesday crossover. Win win! Frugal (Under $100) There are a ton of cute options in the frugal price point. For starters, these come in...

We have a very special Shoes Day Tuesday for you today. Why? Because the Lunar New Year is this Friday, February 16th. Many moons ago (HAHAHAH, see what we did there?), Katie 2 had a friend who explained that it was tradition to wear new shoes on the Lunar New Year, as a way to avoid carrying the dirt from last year into the new year. We went online to try and find confirmation of this tradition and found none. But we decided to write about it anyway. Why? Because it's Shoes Day Tuesday. Because we love the idea of celebrating a holiday with new shoes. Because when we asked an Asian friend of ours if this was in fact a thing, she said "That sounds like an Asian thing to do, so I say 'yes'!" Because apparently it's bad luck to buy said new shoes too close to the actual holiday. (Don't ask us why, but apparently it's bad luck to do a lot of stuff too close to the Lunar New Year, such as clean your house or cut your hair.) So our post today is ...

[We know the title of this post is a little misleading because just about ALL SHOES are fun, but go with it.] We are back today with Shoes Every Woman Needs recommendations. When we introduced the category in the initial post, we all pretty much agreed that a woman should have an animal print shoe in her arsenal. Katie 2 and Elizabeth also each showed a floral pair they already own. We are here today to give you all sorts of recommendations of fun shoes to kick up your fun factor! Frugal (less than $100) In the initial post of shoes every woman needs (and since) we have sang our praises for leopard print. We hope by now you have invested in some leopard print for your wardrobe, so we will take this opportunity to suggest some snake skin instead. Normally these would fall into the mid-line category, but lucky you! These Cole Haan Amelia Grand Pumps are on sale!  Katie 2 loves black and white so these glen plaid pumps may be hers in the near future   (Katie 1 a...

You may have caught on by now that we’ve been constantly expanding on our Shoes Every Woman Needs  guide by providing you with recommendations based upon type.  So far, we’ve discussed the following: (1) Neutral pumps ; and (2) Black pumps . Given that it’s the festive season, we thought now would be a good time to discuss one of the more controversial additions to that list: the evening shoe.  You might recall that Elizabeth did not feel like this should be included in the list but Katie 1 lobbied hard for it and it was included.  Katie 1 stands by her choice and is now going to share her evening shoe expertise with all of you.  Get excited. Evening shoes come in all shapes and sizes and depending on the shoe; they can be quite the versatile addition to the real working girl’s wardrobe.  The versatility will certainly depend on the shoe but a good rule of thumb that has worked for us is that embellished shoes in leather/suede/non-traditional evening f...

If you live in a warmer climate, you may never understand the struggle of finding the right winter boots. Here in the Midwest, we need boots to wear when we have somewhere to go and won't be able to change our shoes and therefore need them to look presentable. We need a pair that will withstand a blizzard. And we need boots that we can wear after the blizzard when the snow is melting, the whole world is wet, and we are waiting for the next snow storm.  Those in more temperate zones may be able to get away with the basic bitch standard Hunter boot with a pair of wool liners. In fact, that was the #1 recommendation Katie 2 heard when she first moved to Chicago back in 2011. But for many reasons , that is just not a viable option, least of all being that her feet were frozen after just 10 minutes outside. Fear not! We are here to offer you plenty of options to fulfill all your winter booting needs.  Boots That You Can Pretend Aren't Sorel is the gold standard wh...

We're back with more Shoes Every Woman Needs : Recommendations. Up next on this Shoes Day Tuesday are black pumps. Katie 2 is very happy that we are going back to the top of the list, and hopes that we can proceed through the remainder of the list in order. But the real reason we are doing black pumps next isn't because of Katie 2's neurosis, but really because black pumps are the most basic and therefore sometimes the hardest to find. And, because you wear them all the time they will probably have to be replaced the most often (even if you do follow up on the regular shoe maintenance and shoe repair tips we've given you). We would like to note before we get started that some of the n ude  pumps we recommended   a re also available in black. We refer you to that post for many more options, but here we will attempt to highlight different shoes and designers than we did in the Nude Recommendations and Shoes Every Woman Needs posts.  Without further ado, her...

According to the calendar it’s fall, so as a fashion blog it’s time to discuss boots.  Boots are one of those autumn items that are super versatile and if the pair you own is classic enough, you can wear them forever.  Boots also come in all shapes and sizes, especially as the bootie trend seems to be sticking around for awhile.  We here at Not a Fashun Blog certainly have opinions on booties (Elizabeth is a fan, the Katies are more skeptical) but we all own at least one pair.  We also have opinions on boots and we all own at least one pair.  Because the world of boots is fairly large, we’re going to divide this post into 3 sections: Boots, Booties, and Novelty Boots/Booties.  As always, recommendations will be at 3 price points.  Let’s get started! Boots   A classic riding boot is perhaps one of the most timeless staples in a real working girl’s wardrobe.  A classic boot in a classic color (think black, brown or oxblood) will neve...

Remember our very first Shoes Day Tuesday post ? Yeah, we know we recommended that you not get the basic bitch tall Hunter boot. But that recommendation was not because we don't love the look of the boot- it's because it doesn't really work for us. But if you're looking for the classic Hunter rain boot, we are here to let you know that Costco has them currently on sale for $89.99 . And that, my friend, is a smokin' deal. You can thank us later (and if you're looking for a way to say thanks, pick up some wine while you're there. Nothing says "thanks a bunch" like a bottle of wine).

As we’ve discussed on a number of occasions (like here , here , and here ), we spend a shitload of money on shoes.  Because our annual shoe expenditures are fairly close to our annual 401k contributions, we take care of our shoes with regular maintenance   and repairs.  We haven’t discussed repairs yet, so we’re going to do that today because Katie 1 just had two pairs of shoes repaired, so this is a good opportunity to take our readers through the shoe repair process she utilizes step by step (with before and after photos). Before we get to Katie 1’s recent experience, here’s another reminder that you need a good cobbler. Just do it.  Don’t make us tell you again. Now that our nagging is out of the way, let’s discuss shoe repairs.  No matter how much you baby your shoes, there will be a time when they probably need to be repaired because let’s face it; shit happens, especially when it comes to shoes that are in your regular rotation.  ...