TOMS Shoes has made a corner of their business giving people free shoes. Each time you buy a pair of TOMS Shoes from their store they donate a free pair of shoes to those in need.

MyCoupons.com is one of TOMS Shoes biggest promoters and currently they have a TOMS Shoes coupons that will save you $5 off your entire order until May 4th.  So save $5 using your coupon, they’ll donate a free pair on your behalf and then you can go barefoot showing your support until your new kicks arrive. Win-Win-Win.

I found these Nike sneakers for $79.99 if you want those exact ones.

Sneaker News just did a feature on John Mayer for being a “sneakerhead” and noted his Nike’s were the Nike x Dave’s Quality Meat (DQM) Blazer High’s in Black (that’s a mouthful). Wanna know why they’re so fun? Because they have an aqua swish on them! It’s a fun pop of color. They noted, “This pair of collaboration Blazer High’s was released exclusively at Dave’s Quality Meat last June. Mayer may have taken some style tips from his friend Jay-Z as he was dressed in all Black with the exception of the Swoosh on the Blazer’s.”

Here is one of the many pictures they show of Mayer in these particular Nike’s (it is currently my desktop background):

The point is that sneakers should be FUN – let them be splash with color! The other point might be that I’d really like to just TOUCH John Mayer, or maybe lick his face. You know, nothing too intimate! (YesIHaveAMajorCrush.) But what kind of fun sneakers can you come up with? I found six pairs I think are cute.

Nike Air Max Torch+ 5 @ Zappos $84.00 (or black & pink sneakers)

Nike Sweet Classic Leather @ Zappos $64.00

Nike Run Avant+ @ Zappos $82.00

Circa Crook Select W @ Zappos $69.95

KangaROOS Women’s Lotus one piece Sneaker @ Amazon $49.95 – $51.99 ON SALE: $35.99 on Grey/White

PUMA Women’s Cabana Racer II Sneaker @ Amazon  $42.90 – $67.00
ON SALE: $44.99 on selected colors & sizes

BE SMART!

Expensive Look:

Lipsy Bustier Ruffled Dress @ Oli L70

Black Cocktail Ring @ Shopthetrend

Black Patent Pumps @ Piper Lime $200

Yves Saint Laurent Shimmering Lip Gloss @ YesStyle.com $28

Inexpensive Look:

Tiered Strapless Dress with Belt @ Forever 21 $22

Julianna’s Square Black Onyx Cocktail Ring @ Fantasy Jewelry Box $50

Snakeskin Pumps @ YesStyle.com $32

Paul & Joe Lip Gloss -  ( Secret Of Gold ) @ Make Me Heal $22

Important EDIT: Christian Siriano just announced on Oprah that everything he has done for Payless is 50% off. Go to Oprah.com to find the Payless store nearest you and to get the coupon. There ARE a few things that might be nice but a smart shopper knows that even though something is suddenly only $15.00 doesn’t make it a good purchase if you still don’t love it. I suspect this coupon rouse might be because his items aren’t selling.

Christian Siriano is doing shoes for Payless, which is instantly a mood-lifter. (He was the winner of Project Runway, remember?) Except…well, until you SEE the shoes. I’m torn. First off, the shoes and boots Siriano has done look very much like the ones designer Rodarte did a while ago. But my biggest problem is that I’m not sure if many of these shoe designs are wearable for the every day woman. One might argue that the reason they’re so affordable (all of these shoes are under $50) but still funky is that you’ll buy them just for special occasions. And if you’re a younger gal in her 20′s then it makes sense to buy them. But otherwise, I’m just not so sure.

Siriano has also done handbags but I’m less impressed by them – I think they should be MORE out there, more SPECIAL! The purses for payless look like almost anyone could have designed them. And we want to buy them for Siriano’s MARK on them!

You can view all of the Christian Siriano handbags and shoes on Payless.com. There is definitely a tonal difference between what Siriano had previewed on the runways and what has made its way into the store.

(First shoe shown: Christian Siriano for Payless Carolina Pump $34.99. This is the one shoe I really do like by him here, I do think this one is wearable.)

Christian Siriano for Payless Patent Zipper Boot $49.99: Payless.com says, “Designer Christiano Siriano fuses some of fall’s hottest trends into one totally wearable boot.” The boot is CUTE but uh, NOT wearable in the snow and slush. Even in the fall it’ll make your toes cold. One of our She’s Smart Style Tips: Pass on something cute that isn’t really wearable. You’ll thank me later.

Payless Zippered Flat $29.99 – From the side these look ugly until I realize that flat gold thing is a ZIPPER. Well, I can dig that. And these ones are also wearable.

Strappy Sandals $29.99 – The way the top band is cut (and the thickness) is going to actually make your ankles look fatter than they are and give you cankles, rather than slimming them. BAD! Such a  rookie design move. If you’re a model who is size 0, it’d look okay. But uh, who is really a size 0?

Bottom line: These are mostly unrealistic shoes for women in the real world.

Shoe Booties by kudumomo on Flickr

When it comes to shoes for fall 09, booties are still hot. Whether you call them a shoebooty or shoe bootie (or ankle boots), they’re cute. Calling them “booties” reminds me of the little booties that babies wear, but no one seems to mind. So, what shoe boots are cute for right now? And, even more importantly, let’s discuss how to wear shoe boots. Because the worst thing is to buy something great and then have no idea what to do with it besides look at it longingly in your closet.

June of JuneLin.com has posted pictures of booties seen on the runways for Hermes, J Mendel, and Marc Jacobs. Those shoes are BANANAS, as Rachel Zoe would say. But seriously, I PINE, I YEARN! And yet, I still can’t buy them because then I would have no where to live… And now I feel like I need to reference that Sex and the City joke that Carrie Bradshaw makes about how… ‘I will literally be the old woman who lived in her shoes‘. Of course, if my shoes were as fabulous as Bradshaw’s, I might not mind AS much.

Wearing ankle boots with zebra leggings - fun! By idhren on Flickr

Okay, so what do you wear a shoe boot with? It’s actually simpler than you might think. Tights or leggings are a must.  Skirts or dresses of just about any length work. Tight pants that meet where the boots start, or can be tucked in, are also great. Do not wear your ankle boots with bootleg jeans.

What I like about ankle boots… is that they have nice accessories on them – like studs or ruffles – and you get to really show them off. But you need to remember that, ankle boots are best with the other current trends a la leggings and tights. If you aren’t into those, you might not be as into ankle boots as you thought.

Buckled Zipper Booties $20

Buckled Zipper Booties $20

Ruffled Booties $60

Steve Madden Ruffled Booties – $60 (Also in berry or black, but I don’t like either of those options. The taupe is the best one.)

Me Too Booties ON SALE $70

Me Too Booties ON SALE $70

Studded Booties $30

Studded Booties $30

Suede Booties $50

Suede Booties $50

P.S. Are Oxford shoes still trendy? I don’t really think so. I’m surprised so many people are still curious about “How to wear Oxfords” and “How to Wear Oxford Shoes“. Really, they’re over! Booties replaced them.

She’s Smart : Your place for bargain news!

Cute little Tater Pots at Urban Outfitters, photo by maveric2003 on Flickr

Urban Outfitters is a great, hip, store. But it’s pricey, too. Ergo, we shop the Urban Outfitters sales! What do I look for when I see the rows of items with an urban outfit discount? That’s easy! Items you can still incorporate to your wardrobe right now, items you’ll wear next season, items drastically marked down, things you’ll always need (you wear a bra daily, yes?) – stuff like that. Good ol’ Urban outfit stocks plenty of great things – like the tater pots you see above! If there’s an Urban Outfit outlet near you, I highly suggest you get thee to it. Make sure you check out urban outfit discount code sites.

Kimchi Blue Pieced Herringbone Dress

Herringbone Dress on sale – $50

Kimchi Blue One Shoulder Ruffle Tank

Ruffle Tank on sale – $20

Calvin Klein Seamless Boyshort

Calin Klein Underwear on sale – $10

Marais USA Prince Wedge shoes on sale – $60 (was $90)

The site won’t let me post these pictures because it’s doing that weird zoomy thing with the mouse pointer, wah!:

Two Tone Crochet Full Foot Tights on sale – $8

Calvin Klein Sleek Perfectly Fit T-Shirt Bra on sale – $30

Silence & Noise Faux Leather-Sleeve Jacket on sale – $80

She’s Smart : Your place for bargain news!

Wanted Frills Flat - Round-toe ballet flat

Okay, so ruffles are a major trend for Fall 09. I hadn’t realized it extended even to shoes, but apparently it does.  If I’ve learned anything from my sister, it’s that a serious shoe habit is hard to kick. So if you know that you’ll absolutely NEED to buy a new pair of shoes this fall, I think I’ve found the pair for you. These Ruffled Flats from PiperLime are versatile-but-special enough to fit all sorts of needs.

They’re not too ‘out there’ that you can’t wear them a lot, but you’ll definitely feel happy about them having a little bit of flair. Style Tip: I doubt you already own a pair of shoes like this. That’ll make you appreciate them all the more. They’re available in silver or bronze (I like bronze) so the metallic also gives it a nice little punch. Yikes!: Banana Republic offers a very similar pair of ruffled flats for almost twice the price!

American Eagle Eve Ruffle Ballet

I also like these pretty berry ballet flats from Payless.

Coconuts Holly are Earth friendly

Eco-friendly shoes named Holly at Piperlime.

Think you could try heels with ruffles? Just be careful.

Even though I’m talking about flats, it doesn’t hurt to let you know about a Style Tip from Renee at Beauty Fool, right? Have a bit of trouble shifting around in your heels? Guess what will fix that? Nope, you never will! But you already own it.

Get in on the bedazzled bandwagon and subscribe to She’s Smart!