Budget Fashions: How to find shoes that won't break the bank

Ever feel like you are missing out on the best shoe trends because you can’t afford the shoes from all those designers you love soo much? Well, I don’t and it’s because I know that there are great shoes to be had without spending your rent money to get them! All it takes is a few tips and your willingness to spend a little time doing some research. Don’t think term paper research, think surfing the net and walking the malls research (difficult right?). Nothing puts more pep in my step then the look on the face of someone admiring my shoes when I tell them where I got them or how much I paid for them. So are you ready to hear my tips for how you can get that same pep in your step? Ok ok don’t beg, I will tell you!

Tip #1 Don’t rule out catalog shopping. How many of us get catalogs in the mail that we throw away every day. STOP! Don’t just throw good potential sources of footwear without so much as a glance at the shoe section. I’m not saying you are going to find shoes equal to a Louboutin in every catalog you flip through, but isn’t a few minutes of flipping worth finding one great pair of shoes (I vote yes!) Often retail catalogs have fun shoe options and they are almost always on sale or not expensive at all.

Tip #2 Step outside your fashion comfort zone. Most of us have a hand full of stores that we hit when we go shopping. Often there are stores we pass on route to our regulars and never give a second glace. The next time you are out shopping, take a detour on your way to your regular shops and step into a store that you always pass and never enter. We can often find great finds in places we least expect.

Tip #3 Fast fashion stores have shoes too! We all have a favorite one; Forever 21, Charlotte Russe, H&M, and the list goes on. But often we are so busy looking at the clothes; we ignore the final touch to that outfit we find: the shoes. I have found some great shoes in these very stores as prices so good, I could afford to get more than one pair. The most important thing to keep in mind when choosing your shoes from stores that are less expensive is to select those that don’t look cheap. Buying from “cheap” stores, doesn’t mean your purchase has to look cheap. There is no one rule for figuring those one out, you know cheap when you see it.

So I think this is enough to get you started and just to prove to you that I’m not just making this up I actually use these tips, I’m going to show you three pairs from my own shoe collection from each of these tips. Have fun trying these tips out and make sure you let me know what you find; I’m always on the hunt for new shoe finds!

Good Luck and happy shoe shopping!

Lady with sole



This is one of my catalog finds, they look just like a pair Louboutin's but didn't cost me $1600



Classic black with a little twist, got these from a little shop in a stripmall that I hadn't shopped before

These are my latest buy and I love them especially since I only paid $18 for them. They were only $34 which I would have paid but half off is always better!