As a shoe addict matured far too late, I have a frustrating amount of discontinued Christian Louboutin styles on my “if I get ridiculously lucky” wishlist (which, unfortunately, grows much faster than I can fulfill it). You know that feeling when you randomly spot a shoe that is just perfect and you frantically search for it for hours online and you finally find it on season-end sale at Barney’s Warehouse only to discover that it has been sold out? Well, that is the story of my love affair with Louboutin…and the exact narrative of how my wishlist gained its longtime number one. I introduce to you: Christian Louboutin La Favorita 140 Pumps.
See, there are two things about this designer that are as disheartening as they are defining: sizing and scarcity (well, at least for seasonal styles). Sizing is an all-time concern that requires several levels of mastery: (1) of the brand in general and its toe-crunching cuts, (2) of the time of production, eg. old vs. new Pigalle, and (3) of course, of every individual style, which inexplicably vary up to three whole sizes (I am serious–I own a 35 as well as a 37.5). As if all this does not make it difficult enough to find the right fit, Louboutins are also inexplicably scarce, limiting themselves to only a handful retailers with very limited stock online. I mean, we live in a time where you can buy hundreds of thousands of dollars of the finest jewelry with a click. Are you really telling me that your $700 shoe warrants an exception?
Anyway, this whole rant is merely background for my four-year search for these strappy babies that began, as usual, with a picture. A picture of a model/socialite/whatever whose long legs ended with the nude version of the La Favorita and had me obsessed under three seconds. I had to play quite a bit of the creative keyword game on Google before discovering this style’s name, then quickly finding that I had just missed the end of its 2012 sale term. I then looked on Far Fetch, eBay, Yoogi’s–anywhere I might possibly find it in boxed and new, but no such luck. I repeated this process regularly over almost four years until I magically came upon my size (or so I guesstimated) just last month. Note: in case it helps you, I bought size 37, which fit fine though my TTS of 36.5 may have been better.
Needless to say, many outfits have ensued. I am the type of girl who proudly wears impeccable outfits no matter the situation because, hey–it feels good to look good, and even better to look better than everyone else. So if you are wondering how a medical student gets to wear so much Vero Cuoio, there is your answer. And yes, I can walk in these heels…easily. Give me platforms and I will sprint in six-inch stilettos if you want.
Now, as you may guess, my tastes have changed over four years. I actually have more boxes of Jimmy Choo than of Louboutin, and my favorite heel of all time is currently a drop-dead gorgeous pair of suede Aquazzura stilettos–a designer which mostly has me infatuated. You will hopefully be seeing more of my shoe closet as I figure out how to more smoothly integrate OOTD posts in the future.
Vogue, M.D. 