An Us for Us

Ask and you shall receive! The Jeffrey Campbell Us – a studded ankle bootie with a wide strap and big, beautiful buckle – is no stranger to the internets ... in suede. We, however, wanted something a little different. We asked if we could have it in leather and voila! We have an Us for, well, us. We love how the leather works with the studs. It's so tough and '80s! These booties make us want to yank them on and binge-watch Joan Jett videos. Smug in the knowledge that no one else has this particular brand of JC coolness.

Time Out Chicago Fall Fashion

Report from Padova

A Brief Stop in Padova on the Way to the Milan Shoe Shows.

As Lori travels toward Milan and the shoe shows, she sent us an update from a sojourn in Padova.

"Right now in Padova vintage is happening. Vintage gym shoes, vintage clothing ... the more worn out, the better. The styles seem pretty young and aggressive. Lines like Marc Jacobs and Ralph Lauren are popular here, as well as Guess.

"I am seeing a lot of oxfords on heels and boots – all sorts of boots. We are dead on with the styles that they are showing in the stores in Florence. Janet & Janet and Vic Matie have a strong presence here. Milan will be a different story. Milan tends to be more high fashion and extremely trendy. I will be interested to see what they are showing. My guess is yet more gladiators with ornamentation and styles similar to the Laura Brandon [tall, foldover gladiators] style from last year.

"Buona notte,
L"

Save Some For Us: One of Lori's many new dishes.

Report from Fiesole

Overlooking Fiesole outside of Firenze in Tuscany.

Lori has been reporting from Italy where – in addition to shopping the trends, learning Italian and apprenticing in local kitchens to perfect her Mediterranean cooking – she will be walking the Milan footwear shows to track down the next wave of trends. Herewith, her report from Tuscany:

"Well, I have to be honest and tell you that I am enjoying my experience in Florence immensely. I have been studying Italian every morning for four hours – total immersion. When I am not studying, I am cooking at the restaurant. I normally get home around 7:00 PM and hang with my friends, study Italian and then finally lay my head down about 1:00 AM in the morning.

"Yesterday I took a stroll around the Duomo and saw a lot of the same styles that we carry. They even held over styles from last year like the man-tailored looks. They are showing a lot of short cowboy and oxfords on heels. In terms of the natives, they are just returning from Ferragosto and you don't see many of them around. (It has been nearly 95 degrees everyday so no one is wearing fall.)

"I am staying in a sweat box. No fans here and obviously no A/C so I don't want to hear anyone complain when the air conditioning isn't working for a day!!!!"

Being on-trend with our Italian counterparts during a big fall season? A/C or not, no complaints here. :-)

Time Out Puts Us Top Ten

Aw, shucks. Time Out Chicago recently rated Lori's one of the Top 10 shoe boutiques in Chicago. Flattered, we are. Take a gander at their capsule summary and then take a shop around the site for some great new boots, shoes and leggings for this strong fall season!

Lori’s Shoes
(824 W Armitage Ave, 773-281-5655; Mon–Thu 11am–7pm; Fri 11am–6pm; Sat 10am–6pm; Sun noon–5pm)
If Sex and the City were set in Chicago, Carrie Bradshaw would’ve had at least a few scenes in this Old Town shop. Lori’s has one of the city’s largest ranges of American and European designer shoes, all at between 10 and 30 percent less than department-store prices.

Trends: Rock & Roll Love at Polyvore

We took a look on favorite site Polyvore to see how the fashion-addicted were using our shoes and boots in the service of fall trends. We found amazing sets. Click through the preview below or visit Polyvore for inspiration!

View 'Fall '09 Trends: Rock & Roll' on Polyvore

$5 Shipping is the New Ground Shipping

We made a big change to our shipping rates. Now all orders sent to addresses in the continental United States ship for a flat rate of $5. One pair of shoes? Five dollars. Ten pairs of boots? Five dollars. Shipping to Paris? Well then we have to charge you standard carrier rates (but Paris, Texas? Five dollars!).

Can you still expedite your order? You betcha. Standard rates apply. International? We encourage it ... at standard carrier rates.