The Practical Girl

The buzzword on the street may be recessionista, but that's a little too precious for us. We don't love the idea of taking advantage of a bad economy to score some deals for our wardrobe – we're all in the middle of it! But it would be a mistake to deny that fashions aren't pegged to the Dow in one way or another.

Recall that old chestnut about rising stocks and hemlines? Well, as The Dow rollercoasters around we're seeing a return to the practical girl which makes the trend toward neutral hues great for summer. There's a downplay on glitz and embellishment (though by no means gone) and a renewed emphasis on good design and value. The neutrals and nudes we're carrying are versatile and apropos the warmer months. Pair them up with bright whites for a clean, easy, breezy look as fresh as laundry on the clothesline.

Lori's current favorites:

Graffiti's 3511 in Onyx & Brown is a chic twist on a simple sandal.

Jeffrey Campbell's Tier in grey steps up the style in a fantastic dove/milk chocolate combo.

Sniks's woven wedge in taupe suede is casual sophistication with a touch of huarache trend.

Popular Favorites on Polyvore

As we've mentioned before Polyvore is a social network built around building outfits. Fans use Polyvore's suite of tools to pluck images from the web, perform some simple editing and then compose them into a wardrobe they can share on the site. It brings out the inner stylist in all of us. While results range from the ho-hum to the inspirational, the real success of the site is building a community around a shared passion for style and fashion.

Lori's is, naturally, a popular destination for sampling footwear. We got to wondering what the kids were using when purchasing wasn't the primary goal – a straw poll of sorts on what styles were most in demand.

The most popular by far was Jeffrey Campbell's Attic. We love the suede fuschia version with cool aqua lining. It's so fresh and fun and full of sunshine. Sassy and saucy, it's the perfect pop under denim or to complement the kick pleats on your favorite summer weight dress.

Close on its heels (heh) was Sam Edelman's Giada in yellow. Another bold shoe in yellow ponyhair with a bold pile of carved wooden beads on top. The Giada's gladiatorial styling and maximal embellishment are a great counterpoint to running scared metality of the current economy. We like that.


We were happy to see some bags make the popularity cut. Hobo's Valentina Clutch feels like a prop from a Nagel painting with its black and white palette, sharp angles and mesh panel detailing. Equally graphic in the opposite direction is Shira Leah's embroidered Bird Clutch in pastel blue with five perching birds.





It's no surprise that big, bold patterns that show up well in wardrobe arrangements are popular. But we think it also speaks to our customer. We're happy to see that, recession or no, our shoppers and style mavens aren't afraid to be bold and take risks with their fashions. Take a look on Polyvore for these and more styles from Lori's. We'll sure you'll be just as inspired.

Shoetube.tv love

Thanks to shoetube.tv for posting on Lori's! We like this all-things-shoe site (and we can really get behind their tagline: Live Life. Love Shoes.). We were one of the first features for the site's Chicago correspondent and we're proud to be a part of the community.

Special thanks for this nod to our fanatstic floor staff who make Lori's the place to find the best shoes, trends and styles in Chicago.

Watching the staff prepare for a day’s work is like watching a kid in a candy store, or your girlfriends at a sample shoe sale—it’s pure joy. Their enthusiasm for fabulous footwear is apparent each time they arrange a display or occasionally slip on that “perfect” shoe for a test run.

Read the full article.

First Look: Steven by Steve Madden Fall

Steven by Steve Madden is shell-shocked. The New York designer has taken his fall inspiration from combat boots and paratrooper detailing. Pictured here is a short combat boot in a beautiful, muted brown. The leather is supple and looks as though it's seen more than one tour of duty.

The usual details are here: reinforced heel, reinforced cap toe, stirruped vamp, lace-up front, but taken to the next level with fantastic details. Fat leather laces knotted at the end are meant to be worn open with the laces a-jumble over the bellows tongue. This gives you plenty to work with regarding the tuck-in. The sole is nailed on bottom, a great hand-crafted touch.

Steve Madden's Vice-President of Sales Michael Fishbein personally flew in from New York to give Lori first look and picks for fall. We're eagerly anticpating getting this military look in our first fall deliveries. Expect it to be online in early August.

Inspiration: Serge Gainsbourg & Jane Birkin

One thing we can't keep up with is the proliferation of free music players. From Seeqpod to Pandora to Grooveshark to today's discovery, Songza, we're paralyzed with kid-in-a-candystore syndrome: there's so much we want, we can't decide. Fortunately, Songza forced our hand with their inspired featured playlist. Eighteen Serge Gainsbourg tracks? Why not? By the time we got to Comic Strip, backed by a vintage video (left), we were trawling the 'Net for pictures of Gainsbourg and Jane Birken.

It would be difficult to find a more stylish and attractive couple. Even knitwear geniuses Lutz & Patmos have been influenced. The way they wore their clothes was just so ... French! It was ennui in an outfit. Inspired, we searched the floor for shoes in the spirit of late '60s Paris and discovered some gems we simply had to share.

Nicole Serene in Canary
We love the stacked wood chunky heel and round buckle. Double-needle contrast stitching points to quality and the sunny yellow leather is the perfect counterpoint to a risque mini.

Biviel 1893 in Blue
Chunky stacked heel, check. Softer, vintage palette boldly mixing gray, brown and blue, check. Add padded platform and retro-modern styling and the 1893 is the perfect throwback to '60s haughty and wild chic.

Bronx 083422 in Marrone

The pillar-like quality of this straight, leather-wrapped heel is a thrill, as is the apropos contrast stitching. Adjustable slingback and cross-over front straps on top a platform make this an incredibly cute, fun and laidback shoe.

Poll! Gianna by Boutique 9

Does This Make You Glad or A-Greaved? Boutique 9's Gianna tackles the Roman sandal trend.

One of the trends we're looking at is a continuation of the gladiator look of Spring 2008. Whereas last year's re-introduction of the style stayed true to the classic look of the form – a strappy-strappy thong bound about the foot and up the ankle – this year's models tweak convention to give the sandal a more sleek, contemporary feel.

Boutique 9's Gianna addresses the basics, then abstracts them: buckles along the outsole bind the foot from toes to ankles, giving the sandal a functional vibe. The all-leather construction is perfect for a trip to the Forum. Straps, however, have been filled-in, replaced with a wide top greave. Cutouts here reference straps without actually binding anything. The full heelcup has a zipper, making them easy to get into and out of.

Is it a good look? Take our poll and let us know!

Now That's a Review!

We were trawling the Internets as is our wont when we stumbled across what may be the most enthusiastic and glowing review of Lori's we've seen in a long time. Many, many thanks to Erica G. for her wonderful review and witty repartee. Get in on the fun yourself by reviewing us on Yelp.

Can't believe I haven't reviewed Lori's, I LOVE Lori's. I have shopped here since the area was not as swank as it is now. I shop here today. I worship shamelessly at the Altar Of The High Heel. They're bad for your feet, but shut up - they're HOT! I can't wear them every day (woe is me!), but I can keep them in the Archives to bust out when necessary. Gorgeous, gorgeous shoes and bags (and jewelry and accessories!). I browse more than I buy, but that's a comment on my wallet, not Lori's selection.

I bought a pair of shoes here that I took on an imminent trip to India. The shoes were casual! shiny! cute! dressy! hot! comfortable! They were all that and a slice of vindaloo. I wore them OUT in the Subcontinent, and bid a tearful goodbye to them when I left them behind, gasping for breath in the throes of their demise, in a fleabag Chennai motel. They wished me well. But ohhh, did they serve me well - and stylishly - thru cities, villages, rickshaw rides, train cars and ghats.

The selection is, yes, that good. You will find the shoes here that will change your life. You heard it from me. :-)

Petra ist Wunderbar

German shopping magazine Petra was kind enough to include Lori's in their spread of online shoe retailers. And even though we don't carry the shoe they show (we're sure there's a good story in there somewhere), the Germans certainly find us worthy of the mention: German-bound orders are way up! So thanks to Petra and our new base of German shoe fanatics.

Original Text:
Sandalen sind im sommer unverzichtbar, selbst wenn sich die Sonne in Stadten wie Hamburg nicht allzu oft blicken lasst. Egal, dann nehme ich eben elle mit in meinen nachsten Urlaub. Meine neuen sind Wedges, siehe oben, die ich auf dieser Seite super gunstig erstanden habe und am liebsten jetztschon jedenTag anziehen wurde. Loris hat wirklich echte Must-Haves - ab 60 Dollar.