Shoes, Glorious Shoes! 10

Simple, but so me. That’s what this pair is all about. I have had them FOREVER, so I don’t remember any story tied to them other than the fact I got them on clearance at Rack Room.

Since I have no story, I am just going to start rambling and see where this blog takes us. This outfit is from a full month ago, and I am just now getting around to typing this up. Life has been a little crazy, and seems like it’s not going to slow down any time soon. And even though these blogs are just for fun, I still wanted to get caught back up so I’d have one less thing on my mind. I am in desperate need of a vacation, and thankfully I have a mini-one coming up in a couple weeks.

GUESS WHERE WE’RE GOING????? SAME MALL, SAME STORE!

Ok yes, we’re doing more than just camping out in a shoe store for 4 days. We’re going to Atlanta first and foremost for the Aerosmith concert. When I looked at the Braves schedule to see if they were at home the week of the concert, I saw they’re playing the Phillies, so OF COURSE we must go to those games while we’re there. Which means I’ll get to see a lot of good friends. All of that equals a rocking good long weekend, so why not add some shoe shopping in with it?! Speaking of shoes, here they are!

Brand: X APPEAL

Store: Rack Room Shoes

Review: 4” heel. Run a little big, so they’re not UBER-comfy. If I had gone down a ½ size I think they would have been perfect.

The only way I can wear denim to work! Well, and a jean jacket/top. But you get the idea.

And finally, with that, I am caught up on all of my shoe blogs. Guess that means it’s time to go shopping!



There's No Place Like Oz

I cannot remember a time in my life that “The Wizard of Oz” was not a part of. That’s probably because growing up, I would watch it at least once a day. Now to me, this sounds like perfection, and still to this day I wonder why I don’t watch it more often than I do now. But I can imagine to my parents and my sister, it was like “AGAIN????” Thankfully, they did not stifle who I was though, and now can be proud (or ashamed?) of their contribution to my crazy, possibly-a-little-out-of-control, obsession with “The Wizard of Oz”.

Sometimes I have to explain to people that I am not obsessed with all things Oz. While I obviously pay homage to the book, and even have several copies [though I don’t think I’ve ever read it all the way through] on various shelves, I do not have a pull towards it like I do the movie. The movie wouldn’t have been the movie without the book. I get that. But I’m not going to buy every single copy of the book I don’t have, like I do the movie. I think I am up to 7 copies of “The Wizard of Oz” now. The one nearest and dearest to my heart, my first copy - recorded from TV, complete with 80s commercials; the rest divided between VHS and DVD copies. Every time a new version is released I have to buy it, just in case there are bonus features I haven’t seen. Or the packaging is different. Or it’s an Anniversary Edition. Or… well… you get the point.

The Scarecrow is my favorite character in “The Wizard of Oz”. I think when I was younger it was probably because he was Dorothy’s favorite. Growing up, it’s been more about my favorite line from the movie. “Some people without brains do an awful lot of talking, don’t they?” Two reasons I love that line. One, it is SO true. Think about it. The people that usually know the least about the situation are the ones that have the most to say. Two, while I am not by any means stupid or without brains, I do have my blonde moments [which I embrace proudly] and anyone who knows me in person knows I sometimes *cough* all the time *cough* can talk a lot, so I relate to it as well.

I love how this movie still holds true as a classic, even 73 years after it was released. You’ll see it in every movie countdown. You’ll see it on any show you watch on TV right now. No seriously, you’ll hate me for pointing it out to you, because now it will jump out at you. I can’t think of one show we watch or have on DVD that doesn’t have at least one Oz reference in it over the seasons. Even reality TV. “House, M.D.” is particularly fond of this movie. I’d love to pick the brains of the writers, to see which one of them is an Oz freak. CONSTANT references to Oz over all of the seasons. In music, funny lines, posters on the wall…

Which leads into my own little treasure trove of Oz goodies. I have really had to tone myself down over the last couple of years and only buy the unique, haven’t-seen-this-a-million-times items. Otherwise I would have no room to live. My entire guest room is devoted to “The Wizard of Oz”. If I were to take a picture of each individual item or set, this blog would be 10 miles long. Instead, I’m just going to give you the general idea.

While this was taken as the shelves were still a work-in-progress, it does showcase all of the Oz items I had at the time. The bottom two shelves that are empty in this pic are now filled with my Disney snowglobes and misc. collectibles.

Since then we have added this Wicked Witch snowglobe which plays her theme song and has smoke that swirls eerily around inside the crystal ball.

And this stagecoach. Probably one of my favorite things on the shelf, since they rarely make the “black and white” collectibles. It plays the entire “What’s this I see?” audio from the movie.

Who has a Wizard of Oz cuckoo clock? I do! Toto is the “cuckoo bird” and barks on the hour.

The bed and opposite wall house everything else Oz.

Probably still one of my fave things in the whole room. So simple, yet so funny.

And since this is the “fun post” for the shoes you met here, one last pic of the Ruby Peep-Toes. This pic was taken a couple of years ago when we were off to see The Wizard at the summer movie series at The Orpheum. I of course had to wear my Dorothy-esque blue gingham top!

Shoes, Glorious Shoes! 9

I am so super excited about this post. Not only because the shoes are super cute. But because it'll lead into my "fun" post for these shoes. And let's be honest. We all already know what's coming.

Every time I wear these shoes to work, I get two reactions. The people that are aware of my Wizard of Oz obsession and say "Hey Dorothy", and the people that [clearly] live under a rock and have no clue about my Wizard of Oz obsession and say "Hey, has anyone ever told you those shoes look like the Ruby Slippers?" And that usually leads into me going into a long, detailed, and much more than they thought they were in for, description of my everlasting love for everything Wizard of Oz. More on that in the next blog. Let's get to the shoes.

Got these at "same mall, same store" when I was in town for the Christina Aguilera concert a few years back with my bestie. She must be given all of the credit, because she spotted them from like 4 stores away and instantly pulled me in there to try them on. The thing I love most about them (other than the obvious Ruby Slipper association) is that even if my outfit isn't super snazzy, as you'll see below, they give it a little kick and still get attention. And... who are we kidding... I'm all about the attention!

Brand: Luichiny "Name": L78318
Store: Off Broadway Shoes
Review: 4" heel. Fits pretty true to size, not super comfortable though. The insides of the shoe almost feel like they're lined with glitter, too. I endure it simply because they are what they are, but I would never actually tell people they were comfortable if that was going to be the make or break factor.

See? Simple outfit, but still snazzy because LOOK AT THE SHOES!

And now I can FINALLY type the blog I have been waiting all my life for! :)

Gettin’ Buggy With It

No, the name of my blog page is not just a coincidence. I actually have an obsession with all things ladybug, or katybug, as known in my circle.

It started when I was a youngster. My grandfather always called me Katydid, and that caught on throughout my family. Not really sure how that transitioned to – or if there was even any connection – Katybug, but at some point during my school years my friends started calling me that. Most memorably, my friend Natalie in high school. That’s when I think *I* adopted it as my nickname.

Push forward a couple more years, and somehow someway ladybugs were crowned katybugs in our little group, and the rest is history. I started collecting, on a very limited basis, little katybug collectibles. It started so innocent. Now, years later, there is no part of my life without katybugs in it. Even my license plate says Katybug. Spelled differently to accommodate the state of TN, but Katybug all the same. So the next pair of shoes should come as no surprise.

Store: Shoe Carnival

Review: Kitten heel. Fit small, these are actually a full size larger than what I usually wear. Obviously being near-flat flip-flops, they’re super comfy. And given they have katybugs on them, I of COURSE love them dearly.

More katybugs. I have a new katybug dress that I need to let out just a smidge in the top before I can wear it, but it WILL be showcased here eventually. Perfection.

And the accessories. Even katybugs on the glasses.

One question I get ALL the time is “Why do you spell it Katybug and not Katiebug, since Katie is how you spell your name?” I have multiple answers for this, and I’m not sure which is the right one. But the two I use most often are “Maybe because I insisted people spell my name with a y when I was younger.” And “I guess my friends just thought ladybug and replaced the beginning of it with the beginning of my name.”

Either way, rest assured the Katybug collection will only continue to grow!



Shoes, Glorious Shoes! 8

Same mall, same store. That’s right. I warned you a lot of them would be this way!

I actually got this pair while my shoe beast was still in hibernation. We were just basically going in every store in the mall and looking around. I’m really kinda surprised I bought these, honestly. Only for the fact I have maybe 4 brown outfits in my closet. I typically don’t do brown, and don’t do gold jewelry. Silver jewelry, and my closet is FULL of black, hot pink, and red. I always tell myself I’m going to switch things up and start buying different colors, but never do. So for me to buy these must’ve been fate. You’ll understand once you see the outfit.

Brand: Carlos Santana Name: Roulette

Store: Off Broadway Shoes

Review: 4” heel. Fits large. To the point I went down a half size. But because of that, and the fact I don’t wear them but a couple times a year, the toe area fits TIGHT. I only wear them on days I’m pretty sure I won’t be doing a lot of walking, otherwise I’m going to come away with blisters.

See what I mean about worlds colliding in wonderful ways? I had already had this sweater for probably 5 or more years when I bought the shoes. Didn’t even think about the sweater when I bought them. And come on! I don’t think I could’ve found a better match if I tried!!

Also, I apparently just decided to pay attention to the fact you can change your pic size once you insert them. I have now gone back and corrected all blogs so the outfit is easier to see.

Shoes, Glorious Shoes! 7

This pair took some work. We were in Atlanta, in Discover Mills…

You’ll notice a lot of my stories revolve around this mall. In fact I believe one of my blogs already has. Maybe I should come up with a code word or shorthand for it: Same city, same mall.

…we had already been in Rack Room and another shoe store that I can’t think of the name right now. No finds. I was beginning to think the shoe gods had turned on me. Then we walked in Off Broadway. After walking two full aisles and not finding anything, I half-heartedly started down aisle three. Now if you’ve ever been in an Off Broadway Shoes, you know how massive these stores are compared to other shoe stores. So for me to make it through two whole aisles and not stop once to try anything on, or even just look at the price… crazy.

Aisle 3 brought me these gems. Well… sort of. I stopped dead in my tracks as soon as I saw them. Looked at the boxes below to see if they had my size and… of course not. So I put a “sticky note” on my phone with the name of the shoe so I could search it once we got back home. Cut to a month (and about 20 web searches) later, FINALLY someone put them on eBay in the size I was looking for. Of course I instantly purchased them, wasn’t about to let someone else get MY shoes.

Now, it should be noted that I am a very VERY impatient person when it comes to waiting on a package to be delivered to me. I want it the day after I order it. I’m nice enough to give them that long. But even with all of that said, these shoes took forever to get to me. 7 days was the final transit time, and they were shipped Priority Mail (supposedly a 2-3 day transit). They said out for delivery 4 days before they were actually delivered. This was not a shocker, I mean it IS the USPS we’re talking about and I am hands down the biggest USPS hater in the world, but still incredibly angering. I sent them an angry e-mail. I picture them reading it and laughing an evil villain laugh. They lost their “we give a shit” chip years and YEARS ago.

But I digress. I had my shoes and they were finally ready to be seen in all their glory!!!

Brand: Betsey Johnson Name: Dita

Store: eBay

Review: 6” heel. They’re actually about 5 ½” but they have so much attitude, I’m giving them the extra half inch. I had read several reviews online that Betsey Johnson shoes run a size small, so I purchased a half size bigger than I normally do. Figured half size was less risky than a full size. Boy am I glad I did. They definitely run small. It was work getting them on for the first time. But as the day went on (I tend to kick my shoes off under my desk when working on a project, so I can pull my feet up under me in my chair) it got easier and easier so I think I stretched them a bit. I think if I had gone up a full size, they would’ve ended up being loose after wearing them a few times.

The best part about these shoes are the heels. Again, attitude even when walking away. And I LOVE how shiny they are. Words and pictures don’t do it justice. You’d have to see in person. But you definitely see these shoes coming from a mile away.

The outfit was flirty, to play off of the shoes.

And the accessories. I love when worlds collide in the most delightful ways. I bought this ring online a month or so ago, for the katybug of course. It didn’t even occur to me at the time I had this bracelet that my grandmother bought me years ago. Perfect match, right? The only bummer is I have a red flower Y necklace that would have been the accessory trifecta, but I couldn’t find it that day. Come to think of it… I still haven’t.

Shoes, Glorious Shoes! 6

The story behind these shoes is simple. Right place, right time. We were out shopping for a new pair of dress shoes for the bf, and happened to find a pair at Rack Room. Well you know, they’re Buy One, Get One ½ Off every day… and nobody likes to see a deal go to waste. So, I did what any good girlfriend would do and sacrificed by picking out a pair of shoes for myself that we could get ½ off.

When I first posted a pic of these shoes online (by themselves, not on my feet), the response was very “eh”. They didn’t really do anything for anybody. I promised them all they’d understand once they saw them on. Lo and behold a few days later, I snapped a pic of them at work, and the response was a complete 180°. Let it be KNOWN: Katybug does not purchase shoes that are just “eh”. There has to be something special about them, or I’m not getting them. The only shoes in my closet that I am not 100% in love with are shoes that I’ve had for 10+ years and get worn maybe once a year, if even that.

Brand: Limelight Name: Yvette

Store: Rack Room Shoes

Review: 4” heel. Fits perfect to size, though they *are* difficult to get on and off. Very comfy but I will say, with all the criss-cross straps, if you do a lot of walking in them those start to dig in a bit by the end of the day. If you’re wearing them to a party or for a desk job NOT like mine (I walk almost all day long most days), you’re not going to have any complaints.

Edgy shoes ask for an edgy outfit. Well, as edgy as a business casual environment will allow for, anyway!

It’s hard to tell in the picture, but there is a zipper up the back of the heel. I love a shoe that has attitude even when walking away!