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.

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Plaid patterns by mukluk on Flickr

Fall makes me think about lots of great things… new school notebooks, apple crisp (which I make myself!) and plaid. When I was younger I had little plaid skirts and wore actual knee socks. During the 90′s, flannel and plaid was popular with the entire 90′s grunge thing – and I remember I had one flannel shirt that I loooved. It was peachy with turquoise and if I knew where it was I swear I would still wear it.

But it’s okay, because right now plaid is so trendy for fall 09 that it’s impossible to find a store that isn’t stocking it. So the chances of me finding a new favorite plaid shirt is good. Plaid shirts for women are major right now. MAJOR!

There are lots of plaid shirts online to shop through. They’re virtual racks that let you think about what color combination for the shirt you might like while walking barefoot to your kitchen to get a bowl of Lucky Charms and think about what it’d be like to kiss Jude Law, and THEN come back and make your final decision.

It’s so much easier than being in a store and trying to make sure have time to make your purchase without being late to your sister’s birthday party. (What, that never happens to you?)

Plaid shirts are like comfort food. Beauty Fool talked about Five Ways to Boost Confidence and I think one of them could also be wearing plaid. Because you’ll look great, but you’ll also feel so comfortable it’ll be craaazy. So, here are four plaid shirts I think you’ll really like:

Plaid Shirts for Women

Plaid Shirts, clockwise from top left:

Elisa Flannel Shirt @ Delias $40

AE Shrunken Bonfire Flannel Shirt @ AE.com $40

Kimchi Blue Plaid Shirt @ Urban Outfitters $60

Plaid Shirts @ The Gap $25

The Budget Babe also loves Plaid for Fall!

Who says you only need one writing utencil in your bun?! Photo by Evil_Erin on Flickr

Jeanie Syfu is a TRESemme celebrity stylist who attended New York Fashion Week and looked at the hair trends for us. She focused on what hair styles to do and how to create the hair style with styling products. I won’t be taking ALL  of her advice, but some is fairly helpful.

You see, there is a bit of a translation you need to do when you get hair advice on TV/magazines. Those people are in a different environment, with lots of money, and they also have to plug their products most of the time. So, I listen to what they say and then translate it to apply for real life  functionality.

She says: Good hair styles include messy buns with controlled ‘front hair’. Use one big simple hair accessory. Try disheveled hair textures, and deep side parts. Basically, do anything that will be simple enough to showcase big outfits (large collars, statement necklaces, whatever).

What I take from that: The stylish women of France always do a low, back bun for a reason – it’s very chic. So that advice doesn’t seem very new to me. A deep side part might be interesting to throw into my look…  But since I’m not buying any $4,000 sweaters from the runway my clothing and hair do not have to really compliment each other in the same way they needed to on the runway. I like hair accessories like a flower barrette, but it’s not because it’s a trend. But I guess I’ll look trendy anyway, score!

Conair Titanium Tourmaline Cork Paddle Brush on Amazon

She says: Using a flat brush is great for creating sleek hair instead of a lot of volume.

What I take from that: Fair enough! That seems like a good tip if you plan to wear your hair sleek quite often. I wouldn’t invest in that brush, otherwise. (Flat Brush – $8 on Amazon)

She says: Use your blow dryer attachments like the directional nozzle to make sure the hair cuticle stays in one direction to eliminate frizz.

What I take from that: Well, I understand the science behind that. But I really do not like to spend a lot of time blow drying my hair, and if I bought an attachment I’d probably use it about five times before I got sick of it. I don’t think it makes a ton of difference to me if I don’t do this step.

She says: Use a smoothing product – an anti frizz cream.

Neutrogena Triple Moisture Smooth Shine Anti-Frizz Cream, with UV Shield, 4 fl oz

What I take from that: Ah, that IS the crucial step that I use when I want to have sleek hair. And the video shows a good technique for doing it (melting the product in your hands). (Anti frizz cream by Neutrogena – $8 on Amazon)

Ruffle Neck Bandage Sweater Top : Under $20.00

I’ve been noticing a lot of ruffled sweaters, ruffled cardigans, ruffled shirts… ruffles are really taking over! And it’s not that ruffles are bad, not at all. I think they’re very cute, often romantic (cue a dreamy sigh here), and a nice way to make an otherwise boring shirt have some added flair. And really, who doesn’t like some more flair? (Occasionally some celebrities go too far with the flair… see: Bai Ling in most anything she’s ever worn.)

Ruffly inspiration! Photo by audreyjm529 on Flickr

Here at She’s Smart we focus on deals under $100.00. So while a really nice ruffled top from J-Crew can be very pretty, we’d rather not spend $88.00 on it. J-Crew actually has a LOT of new ruffled tops right now, but most are a tiny bit overpriced. This is where you sigh dejectedly, knowing you really would like a cute ruffly blouse, but don’t want to spend THAT much on it. Well, this is luckily also where I come in to tell you I’ve looked around to see where you can find this look for less. It’s what I do. The best way to get this ruffled trend is to buy a sleeveless version of the ruffled top.

Pair this with a cardigan. Merona® Collection Ruffle Bow Top - Honest Purple

Ruffle Bow Top from Target. Also check out the Sleeveless Ruffle Top with tummy flattering vertical lines formed by a tie at the top. Pair either of these tops under a cardigan. Fashion Mistake: Please skip the Go International Ruffle Sweater because it looks cheap and droop… and like weird worms are dangling off the shirt! No one should wear that. It is not attractive.

The same goes for the first picture of the Arden B Ruffle Neck Sweater Top. Style Tip: Note that this top might be too clingy, so if you’re self-conscious about your stomach I’d make sure to try it on and be totally confident in it before purchasing. Something you love and buy but don’t feel comfortable wearing is something you’ll probably never actually wear outside of your house.

Ruffle Knit Blouse & Satin Ruffle Top

The Ruffle Knit Blouse and Satin Ruffle Top are both from Charlotte Russe. They have good deals, but I cannot stress how much you should probably not be wearing their stuff if you’re 25+. Their items are geared for a younger style set, is all. It really depends on what you think, though. Style Tip: If you opt for the Satin top, make sure to pair it with a cardigan that looks fancy enough to match.

Belldini Women's 3/4-length Cascading Ruffle Cardigan

Lastly, there’s these ruffle cardigans on sale from Overstock. This combines the trend of ruffles with the trend of long cardigans – so it’s a pretty good deal. Style Tip: You’ll be tempted to get the gray cardigan, reasoning that it’ll match everything. Nope. You’re spending around $40.00 on this, make it count. Get the pink cardigan because it looks prettier and it’ll stand out more. Make it work (like Tim Gunn says) with all sorts of other items that you have. When you pair it with different pants or skirts, it can look entirely different. Ruffle Cascade Cardigans are adored by many!

Have you found a ruffled top under $100.00 that you want to share? Let me know in the comments.

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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.

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