Exciting Events

Well friends, I was on track for a little bit with blogging on a regular basis, but failed greatly since the winter. Once again, I am recommitting to blogging regularly- it's not like there is nothing to write about! So, the last few months have been really busy with awesome events. The biggest event was our sold out spring fashion show at Copley Place in April which was hosted by Jackie Bruno of NECN. This was our best event ever! Copley did an awesome job with the fashions and the food/beverage vendors were excellent- there was a plentiful amount of delicious food and drinks. This was definitely our best show so far.  Here is a photo of some of our models wearing their spring outfits.

I'm really excited for our fall show during Boston Fashion Week- aptly titled The Show. It will be at an awesome new venue, the Harborside Inn on State Street in Boston. The venue is donating the space and we will be bringing in outside food vendors. We're working with an event planner who reached out to us to work on an event. She is donating her services which is great. I can't wait for this event!

So, I can't write a shoe club blog without writing about what shoes are on my tootsies. For the last 2 summers, I practically glued my feet into a pair of Clark's platform sandals. They were amazing and I loved them, but they are now a little worn out, so they are relegated to the rain. Clark's no longer had the same style available and I wasn't a fan of their new styles. Most of their new sandals have ankle straps which don't fit me properly- the buckle rubs the little bone that sticks out on my ankle. SO- I switched over to my next favorite comfy shoe brand- Aerosoles. Their black sandals with a 2 inch heel are now my go-to summer shoes. They are cute enough to wear out for work and socializing and best of all- I can walk a decent distance in them! As everyone knows- cute and comfy rarely go together in describing shoes. I snagged these shoes for only about $29 at Marshall's. I was in the Fenway Marshall's a couple of weeks ago and they had a very similar pair on sale for only $20, so I plucked those ones up too. Their shoes don't last very long, but given the price- that isn't a big deal.  It takes a few wears to break the shoes in, but after that they are great.

Well friends, that's the latest for tonight. I promise to blog again next week. I am committing to blogging at least once a week. There is always lots to write about! Until then.. happy tootsies!

Great Red Shoe Soiree

Greetings friends and shoe lovers! So what's new? Well, we had a wonderful annual event last week, our Red Shoe Soiree at Vlora.  Luckily, we had the event the night before the blizzard, where people could still come out and have fun without having to deal with snow. The event was a lot of fun. We had shoe designer, Thom Solo, who showcased some of his latest shoes. He brought two models with him that wore gorgeous clothes and jewelry which made for two fantastic looks. He also donated a gorgeous pair of shoes that we auctioned off during a live auction. One of our long time members bought the the shoes. We also had a local designer, Bondij by Blondi who showcased some of her latest fashions. We had some of our members model in a pink carpet fashion show. ShoeBuy.Com donated a gift certificate for the Best-in-Shoe prize and I also had a pair of shoe earrings that I gave for a prize. Here is a photo of Thom, the shoe designer and his models. My sister Eve who is close friends with Thom came to the event as well- she's in the photo.

Here is another terrific photos of our Smiling Stiletto members who modeled in the fashion show portion.

This photo is from Jolie Lune photographer.  They attended on behalf of Bondij. Our photographer, Walter, was there too. I can't wait to see his pictures. We should have them soon. Here is a picture of Bondij designer Dionne (far left) and the models along with her brother and business partner.

When we get our photos, I'll post them on our FB page. Here is the link to the rest of the photos from Jolie Lune photography.
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.532338543473431.122414.479874985386454&type=1

We had the event at Vlora which is a great venue. They donate excellent appetizers and they have a wonderful private function room.

I was so glad that I brought the backdrop with me. I was feeling a little lazy in the afternoon and thought about not bringing it. It takes a little while to set-up and you have to load/unload- it's a lot more effort than just bringing our sign.  However, we have the backdrop precisely for events like this. Obviously, we don't need to bring it to every event, but for larger events like this with a fashion show, it is important that we bring it. It adds to the event and it makes for great photographs. Sometimes, you have to remind yourself not to be lazy. I was so grateful that I made the effort to bring the backdrop. I love the photographs that we have so far!

Well, that's the latest for tonight. I promise to blog again soon. There are so many fun things to share! Until next time friends...

Welcome 2013!

Welcome 2013! It is a new year and I'm re-committing to my Smiling Stiletto blog! I keep intending to write more often, but I've been pretty bad about it. I have a blog for my full time job, Project Smile, so I spend a lot of time on that blog. In the spirit of new year's resolutions, I am committing to blogging at least once a month about Smiling Stiletto!

2012 was a wonderful year for the Shoe Club. We had so many fun events. The Copley Place fashions shows were the biggest events and they were great. We just booked our Step into Spring fashion show at Copley Place- Thursday, April 25, 6pm. We're only doing one show this year at Copley, so this event will be extra special. This week, I've been working on reaching out to food and beverage vendors as well as a host for the event. We've booked a new food vendor- a sandwich shop which just opened last month on Newbury Street. I left a message yesterday with the woman who handles catering. She called me today, it turns out she is also one of the owners. She was so amazingly nice on the phone and was happy to participate. We also have a soda vendor on board for the first time. Finale is returning to provide some more delicious desserts! We are off to a good start for vendors!

One of my favorite events last year besides the fashion show was our 1st Annual Diamond Drop. DeScenza Diamonds in Peabody reached out to us in the fall about having an event at their store. I was a little reluctant at first, because attendance has been lower at some of the events we've tried outside of Boston. They came out to Framingham to meet with me and they planned a phenomenal event. We had the event the week after Thanksgiving, so it tied in with holiday shopping. DeScenza provided guests with complimentary cocktails, wine and champagne along with a delicious selection of hot and cold appetizers and desserts. They offered guests a 10% discount and then they donated 10% of sales to Project Smile. They also gave all the ladies really cute black t-shirts with a tasteful diamond slogan. They also did some amazing prizes for the Best-in-Shoe walk-off competition. Best of all- they gave away a diamond pendant necklace worth $7K to one lucky winner! It was an amazing night! I don't live anywhere near Peabody, but it is the type of event that if I saw it posted, I would definitely attend. The young woman who won the necklace was so excited that she had tears in her eyes! We had an awesome attendance and we received a $500 donation for Project Smile which was great. We've already booked our event this year. It will be the Thursday after Thanksgiving- same as last year.  Here is a photo of the necklace winner!

We had our first event of 2013 tonight- a cocktail party at a new bar in the Faneuil Hall area called the Wild Rover.  The venue did a wonderful job- they provided a huge selection of complimentary appetizers, a large private area with our own bartender and a DJ. I love working with venues like that. The event was a lot of fun. There were a few new members as well which was great.

Well, that's the latest for tonight. We have so many fun events coming up, I'm really excited for this year. I promise that I will be blogging more frequently! Until next time... keep smiling in those stilettos!

On Bare Feet

Is it right for someone who runs a shoe club to blog about her love of bare feet? Probably not! But here it goes anyways. The truth be told- there is no shoe that compares to the comfort of bare feet. Now, I'm not one of those girls that you will see walking the streets, bare feet, high heels in their hands. Despite the pain, I will not be bare foot in public. I rarely go barefoot any further than my front steps at home. I have the luxury of working from home, so I am barefoot all day when I'm in my office. When I am out, the first thing I do when I get home is take off my shoes. It feels wrong to be constricted by shoes in the comfort of home- and I also don't want to track dirt from my shoes around the house. When I'm working, I love curling my feet under me, putting my feet on my desk when I'm on the phone, perching my feet on the bar under my desk- all things that are easier to do with bare feet than shoes. I walk faster in bare feet than I do in regular shoes (not counting sneakers). There is also something nice about feeling the floor beneath when you walk- feeling the texture of a carpet, the temperature of the floor, the smoothness of wood- it is all there to take in. Of course, lying in bed while watching tv, reading, on the computer- while feeling the soft sheets under my feet or being soft and warm under the duvet or my little quilt- it is all fabulous and not to be ruined by socks.

Of course, running around in bare feet- even at home, does lead to injuries that shoes might have prevented. When I was a girl, I broke my toe stubbing it on a radiator. I've stubbed my toe viciously while rushing for the phone, dropped a shovel on my toe which caused the nail to fall off- things that probably would not have been so bad if my feet were covered. My mom has warned me many times about the dangers of spilling boiling water on my feet while cooking. When she was young, she spilled boiling water on her legs while cooking.

Anyways, that is probably enough on my love of being barefoot- at least at home. I posted our next cocktail party at Mija in Faneuil Hall on July 17 and sent the email invite to our members. Ideally, I didn't want to invite people to events this week because a lot of people are on vacation, but I needed to get the first email sent out so people can plan for the party. If I waited until next week, that would be too late. We are doing well with sign ups, so it looks like it worked out fine.

Well, I'm off to read for a bit and catch up on some work emails. Until next time friends...

Latest and Greatest

I can't believe it has been 2 months since I blogged last- dreadful! Our Shoe Club is so active, so there is always lots to write about, I just need to actually sit down and write it! Things have been really exciting for Smiling Stiletto during these last few months. Our Step into Spring fashion show at Copley Place on April 19 was wonderful.  Copley Place was a big help with the event and they were great to work with. This was my first time having such an active role in organizing a fashion show. It is a lot of work, but everything worked out well. We have a ton of great photos on our FB photo album page. Here is a link to more photos: Spring Show Album
Here is one of my favorites- our Smiling Stiletto members are modeling Bebe:

 

The fashion show tickets sold out two weeks before the event, which was a record. We raised almost $2k for Project Smile which was good too. Meredith Goldstein from the Boston Globe was our special guest and she did a great job.

We're working on some more exciting fashion shows. On October 4 will be our Fall into Fashion Show at Copley Place. This event takes place during Boston Fashion Week. Emily Reimer, news anchor/reporter on Channel 5 News, Boston will be hosting the event. We already have our liquor sponsors on board as well. Christine, one of our long time shoe club members, is working on organizing the show as well. She did a fabulous job organizing our fall show last year.

On Wednesday, August 22, we will be working with the Northshore Mall in Peabody for our Summer Soiree and Fashion Show. I already have 25 Smiling Stiletto members on board as models for the event. The event will be similar to our Copley Place fashion shows. The ticket will only be $10 and all of the proceeds will go to Project Smile.

On Friday, I met with Burlington Mall and we're going to be working with them on a September event for Fashion's Night Out and a fashion show in October. It is really exciting to expand and do more fashion shows. They have been popular events and our members really like them. I love them too. It is great that we're also able to raise funds for Project Smile with them too.
 We have been doing a lot more events too. Last Thursday, we had our annual party at Pandora in Legacy Place, Dedham. The store provided complimentary wine for the guests, pizza from Wicked Pizza, chocolate from Chocolate Therapy and they donated 10% of the sales to Project Smile- which was about $250. Every donation makes a difference and I'm happy that they are so supportive. They've been great about donating auction items for PS as well. We had about 40 ladies in attendance. We always get a bunch of members who have attended before and a bunch of new ones. Pandora did a prize drawing for a bracelet and they gave away a beautiful bracelet with a shoe charm for the winner of the Best-in-Shoe pink carpet competition. I was really happy that one of my friends who is a really cool girl, Victoria, won that prize. The local Sephora store also donated a gift pack as a shoe prize. The owner of Chocolate Therapy had an awesome chocolate shoe made with little chocolates inside it as a prize- it was so cool. Here is a photo of the prizes.

There were so many awesome shoes at the Pandora party- here is a photo-

The lady who was wearing the shoe on the right won the Chocolate Therapy prize. Her shoes were even more awesome in person!

Well, that's the latest for tonight. I promise to blog more often because there is so much to share! Until next time friends...

Ann Taylor Concept Store Opening Party

Greetings! Last week, I attended the opening party for the new Ann Taylor Concept store in the Prudential Mall in Boston. The party was held in a penthouse apartment at The Clarendon. It was a fantastic time! There were about 150 very glamorous ladies and guys in attendance. During the party, guests enjoyed complimentary champagne, Voli vodka cocktails (they are low calorie and so good) and delicious appetizers. The event was cosponsored by Boston magazine. The view from the penthouse was amazing- the John Hancock tower was directly across the street and you could see the Boston skyline from every direction- so beautiful!

I was really impressed with the new Ann Taylor fashions. There was a small fashion show during the party which featured regular professional women as models. I love it that because you get to see the clothes on a figure which is more realistic for the average women. One of my favorite dresses was a neon yellow dress with a skinny pink belt. One might usually think that neon yellow would be a hard color to pull off, but the dress was brilliant- it stood out, but still looked professional. There was a lot of color in their spring clothes and it looked amazing- it actually inspired me to wear a colorful dress the next day. I really liked the Ann Taylor looks because they are very versatile. They are great as work clothes, but they can also be dressed up for the evening or dressed down for a more casual look.

Neon colors are a hot trend right now and they are being done much more tastefully than they were in the early 90's! Of course, the shoes were great too. One of the models was wearing a pair of cream colored pumps with red trim and a red heel. I wish I snapped a photo of them, because they were so pretty.

I spoke to the manager of the new store and the regional manager. They were familiar with Smiling Stiletto from when it used to be Hello Stiletto. They told me that they were actually trying to reach out to us earlier, but couldn't remember the group's name. They are interested in having an event in the store, so that should be fun. Hopefully, I will be hearing from the soon.

This was such a fun event to attend- the drinks and appetizers were delicious, the views were unreal, the crowd was so friendly and the fashions were great! What else could a girl ask for on a Thursday night??
They even gave us Ann Taylor tote bags which included a gorgeous gold cuff bracelet with a black studded strap. It isn't something that I would have usually bought for myself, but I've worn it twice already and it looks great. I love it when you get something that makes you step outside of what you usually do- even something as small as a bracelet. It is so important to keep changing things up.

I brought one of my best friends with me who is a long time shoe club member and she had a blast too. She was inspired as well to get some of the new looks.I'm really looking forward to checking out the store and now I'm inspired to wear some really bright colors!

Miles in my Boots

Today, boots are on my mind- not cute, sexy boots that come in all sorts of fancy colors and styles- all meant to make the wearer look sophisticated, hot and ready to be taken to bed, but the tough, kick-ass, all weather, sturdy boots which will take you miles. These boots only come out of my closet when it snows- the other boots get significantly more air time. I have one pair of sturdy, water proof boots- a black pair of Timberlands that I bought in 2000. The funny thing is that although I barely wear them, I love my Timerberlands because I know that they will take me anywhere. I may look sexy in my high heel boots, but they won't take me very far and when I wear them, I calculate exactly how much time I will have to spend walking and standing before deciding to wear them. Of course, if it is raining- the pretty boots remain sheltered. The sturdy boots only come out when the weather is rough.

I bought my Timberlands when I was still in school at Hunter College. I had a pair of winter boots, but I had them for a while and my feet were getting soaked in them. I didn't have much money, but it was winter and I really needed a new pair of boots. I remember walking in Manhattan, thinking about getting boots, but not wanting to spend money. I think I was near Herald Square and I walked into what I remember was a Sports Authority- but it might have been Lady Foot Locker- either way, it was a store that sold more sneakers than boots. I stared at the boots and finally decided to try on a pair of black Timerblands. They were very comfortable and exactly what I needed given all the walking that I did in NYC and it was the winter. However, they were $70. When I was in college, I spent very little on clothes and shoes. The most that I had ever spent was $35 on New Balance sneakers when my old ones wore out. I was pretty much always in sneakers when I was in college. I stood in the store debating for what it seemed like forever about getting the shoes. The $70 felt like a fortune- I couldn't actually afford it. Finally, I decided to get them- I knew I was going to have them for ages and that they were good quality. I wore them that winter and when I moved back to MA they came with me. After I graduated and left New York, I stopped being a sneakers girl and I barely wore my Timberlands. They still only come out when it snows and I have to shovel or when the streets are so wet and slushy, those boots are the only choice. The boots are far from unattractive- they are not feminine, but they are decent looking ankle boots.

I wore them this morning when I was shoveling and later doing errands. When I put them on this morning, it dawned on me how empowered I feel when I wear my Timberlands. There is something to be said when you put on a pair of shoes and you know that they won't make your feet hurt, they will look after you- keeping your feet dry and protected and if you get into trouble, you can give someone a pretty mean kick with them. Every other pair of shoes that I own (besides sneakers), have a limit on them on how long they can be worn without pain, but with my Timberlands there is no limit.

So there you go my friends- an ode to my Timbies. Perhaps I should wear them more often, but it's also enough to know that they are there- sitting in my closet for when the travel gets rough.

Back Drop Debut

Well, our Smiling Stiletto back drop is no longer a dream, it is a reality! I picked it up a couple of weeks ago and we debuted it last week at our Red Shoe Soiree at Vlora, Boston. It looks awesome! Avni Fashion participated in the event- Avni is a Boston based designer who has gorgeous clothes based on a fusion of Indian, hand dyed fabrics with a western silhouette. Her clothes are very delicate looking and beautiful. Avni approached us in January about being involved in our events. We had ten Smiling Stiletto members modeling the fashions on the pink carpet and they did a trunk show as well. Avni paid a vendor fee which went directly to Project Smile, so it was also a small fundraiser. Here is a photo from the event of Avni and all the models in front of our back drop.

I can't begin to tell you how much I love the back drop! I wanted to combine both the Smiling Stiletto and Project Smile logos because Smiling Stiletto's official charity is Project Smile. Many of our events help raise funds and awareness for Project Smile. I worked with Staples to do the layout for the back drop, but I was having trouble with getting the look right- the logos are very different, so it can be hard to combine them on a page. Last month, in a dream, I was standing right next to my back drop- I could see exactly how it should look. I called Staples in the morning and that became our final design. It's pretty cool when you visualize something in a dream and then you get to see the finished product. The back drop is big- it's 8 x 8. One person can set it up, but it is a lot easier with two people.

Our Smiling Stiletto FB page has a lot more photos from last week's Red Shoe Soiree. We had 85 people at the event which is great. I promoted it on Yelp, MeetUp and Boston.Com as well. I just booked our March event which will be at the Lansdowne Pub- it will be the: Print and Pattern Party at the Pub. Members are encouraged to wear their favorite shoe with a fun print or pattern. The Pub is giving drink tickets so that every guest will receive a complimentary beverage and appetizers.

Well, that's all for tonight- I'm going to make a major effort to blog more frequently. Until then- happy heels everyone!

Spring Fashion Show Planning

Well, I have been so bad with my blog for shoe club- if you were looking at my blog, you would think that we haven't been doing any events. We've been doing a lot of fun things. We had a great event at Red Sky earlier this month to kick off the new year. The theme was sexy boots- members turned up in some very awesome boots. Shoebuy.Com donated a $50 gift certificate for the winner of the Best-in-Boots pink carpet walk-off. Guests also got to enjoy some complimentary Double Cross Vodka cocktails and appetizers. It was a lot of fun.

We are working on our Step into Spring Fashion Show at Copley Place which will be on Thursday, April 19, 6:30pm. It is going to be so much fun, I really can't wait! Copley Place coordinates all the stores that participate in the show and they handle all the event set-up and preparation. I sent out the email to the shoe club members this morning to recruit members who would like to model in the show. It was amazing the response that we got. We decided to expand the number of models- we will now have 30 models. We had 10 in our fall show. I had well over 50 emails from ladies wanting to model and I'm still getting more emails tonight. It is really great how many people want to be involved. It took a long time to go through all the emails earlier tonight, put their info into an excel list and write back to everyone- I still haven't gotten to respond to every email. I worked on a first come, first serve basis for the most part and I also tried to mix it up so that we got models that represented different sizes. One of my favorite things about our fashion shows is that they represent 'real' women- we have a variety of ages and sizes- just the way things are in real life. I know that's what other people like about our shows too.

We have some great food/drink sponsors on board as well. Bulldog Gin is our official hard liquor sponsor- they will be making special cocktails for our guests. We're also close to finalizing a beer sponsor and I'm working on a wine vendor as well. Michelle, who is on our Project Smile board, started a cupcake business- she has done cupcakes for a couple of our events now and they are delicious. She will be there along with Finale which is a restaurant known for its fabulous desserts. Popchips will also be giving out samples along with Saka Water. We're also working on obtaining other food sponsors. There is a new restaurant which will be opening soon in Copley Place- right next to where we do our show actually, so hopefully they will like to provide some appetizers for our guests as well.

There is so much more to write about- I can't wait two months to blog again. Shoe Club is such a fabulous part of my life- I want to keep sharing our stories. I will be blogging again very soon! Until then- keep spreading the shoe love!

Dashing in Heels

I haven't blogged since October- oh no! Things have been going great with Smiling Stiletto. Tomorrow night is the huge Shimmer and Shine Shoe Ball which benefits the Accelerated Cure Project for MS. It is an event that shoe club founder Melissa started years ago and it is a lovely event. The Accelerated Cure Project does all of the work for the event. We help promote it to Smiling Stiletto members. The event is at the Liberty Hotel and it is sold out, which is great. I'm going to be one of the shoe judges. That will be fun, but I know it will be very hard to choose. There are going to be so many pairs of gorgeous shoes!

So what's been happening lately? Well, we have had some great events going on. On November 3, we had a party at Vlora in Boston which was sponsored by Marshalls. Marshalls displayed a great collection of fall shoes and boots, along with accessories and a couple of outfits. They played a 'guess the price' game and they gave away 3 great prizes to the guests who guessed the closest Marshalls price to an outfit. They gave away a beautiful cashmere scarf, designer sunglasses and a Michael Kors purse. Every guest received a Marshalls gift card and they also got an additional gift card if they filled out a survey. Instead of the usual pink carpet shoe walk-off that we do, Marshalls brought their blue carpet for the walk off and they donated a gift card for the best shoe winner. Vlora donated appetizers as well. It was so much fun- I got a ton of great feedback. I would love to work with them again.

Last month, we also participated in a style swap where guests brought clothing, accessories and shoes and got to swap the items for other fun items. I'm actually wearing the Express zip-up hoodie that I got at the swap right now. I traded a top that was cute, but I hadn't worn it in years and I got this comfy zip up which I've been wearing around the house.

I've been planning our events next year- we are going to be a lot of fun stuff. Our spring and fall fashion shows at Copley are planned for April and September. Our annual Red Shoe Soiree will be near Valentine's Day at Vlora. We will be doing our annual ladies night event at California Closets in May- and that's just the beginning. It is so much fun to come up with new shoe club events.

We have some great photos on our Smiling Stiletto FB page, you can check them out at:
https://www.facebook.com/Smiling.Stiletto?sk=photos

Well friends, that's it for tonight. I promise to blog more frequently- there is so much to write about! Here is a great photo of some of the models from our Fall into Fashion Show, courtesy of Emily Wilson.

Fashion Show Success

I can't believe I haven't blogged since August! It has been busy times over here- we had our first Smiling Stiletto fashion show at Copley Place on September 22. It was a big success! One of our shoe club members Christine did most of the organizing, she did a great job. Copley Place hosted and they were very helpful in getting stores on board to showcase their fashions and setting up the stage and event area and organized really nice gift bags for all the guests. We had to cap the tickets at 125, we sold out the week before and had so many calls and emails from people who were looking for tickets. What a wonderful problem to have! Our event tied into Boston Fashion Week which helped increase attendance as well. We raised $1,800 for Project Smile and $500 for the Simon Youth Foundation which is the Copley Place charity of choice. I got Lisa Donovan from Kiss 108 to host the event. She did a great job and said so many nice things about Project Smile. The show had been going on for a few years with Hello Stiletto, this was our first time running it as a Smiling Stiletto event. I definitely want to do it again and the mall said they would like to have it again as well. We have some great photos on our Smiling Stiletto FB page and on our website. Paula Dias and Pino Domenico volunteered their time and photographed the event. I usually have to do all the event planning for Smiling Stiletto and Project Smile so it was great to have someone else who did the event planning. It is quite a bit of work to organize the fashion show. I was really happy that Christine did such a good job. Christine got Skinny Girl Margaritas on board to provide complimentary cocktails and Cameron Hughes wine. We also had Cabot Cheese, Legal Seafoods appetizers and Sweet M's Bake Shop cupcakes. I modeled in it as well- I wore Cache, Elie Tahari and BeBe. It is a lot of fun to model in the shows. We get to have our hair and make up done, then strut down the catwalk showing off our sexy clothes- what can be better than that?? In other personal shoe news- I need to get a comfy pair of attractive winter shoes that I can wear every day. I bought my very first pair of Clark's sandals this spring and I love them, but sandal weather is quickly coming to an end (I went to Niagara Falls over the weekend where sandal weather has long since disappeared). I have two pairs of shoes that I was planning on wearing as my every day winter shoes, but they are not very comfortable- I feel like I don't walk properly in them. I tried on some winter shoes at Clark's last month, but didn't find anything that felt right. I want to go back and have another look or find another comfy attractive pair of shoes which are reasonably priced. Let me know if you have suggestions please! I promise I won't take so long before blogging again. I enjoy my Smiling Stiletto blog and I'm going to write more frequently. Until next time friends..

Party Night!

Tonight was shoe club party night! We were at McGreevy's on Boylston Street in Boston- it is the nation's oldest sports bar. We had the downstairs section to ourselves. The venue donated appetizers and they created a delicious signature cocktail for us. We had our pink carpet out and we got to debut our new Smiling Stiletto sign- which I have to admit I'm rather in love with! I had printed at Staples and I bought one of those terrific stands which folds up easily and can be carried around in a little bag. The sign has our logo and tagline "Do your shoes make you smile?" and our website. Now that we have our new logo, website, business cards, signs- it feels official.

It is funny how different it is from just attending shoe club events to organizing events. It is two very different experiences. I've loved coming to shoe club events since my very first one in 2007- it was fun hanging out, showing off my shoes- I even won prizes a couple of times, meeting people- I'm met one of my closest friends at Shoe Club. I never imagined that one day I would take over the group. I love organizing our events now. I enjoy the planning, contacting venues and creating the vision for the party. I don't particularly mind the work of sending out the email invitations. Of course, the events themselves are the best part- it is fun to greet members, chat with everyone and check out the fabulous shoes. My favorite part is taking photos and then just taking a minute and looking around and seeing everyone enjoying themselves- that makes me very happy. The pink carpet walk-off is always a blast to watch and then it is great to see how happy the girls are who win prizes. On the other side is that there is pressure with every event- you want to create a fun event and get a good turnout- not only for the shoe club's sake, but also so that the venue is happy and wants to have you back. As the host, you want to greet everyone and make sure that members feel comfortable. You want to introduce people to each other, especially new members. Then there is also the logistics of getting to the venue ahead of time, dropping off the pink carpet and other items, parking, then setting up so everything is ready for start time. It doesn't sound like a lot and compared to the date auction and other events, it isn't much work- but there definitely is a certain amount of pressure associated with running the events.

Well friends, that's it for tonight. It is 1am and I am off to bed. I posted photos on our Smiling Stiletto Facebook page, they will be on our website soon too. Until next time..

A Little Girl with Shiny Red Shoes

This blog has got me thinking about my life in shoes, particularly about my earliest shoe memories. One memory that stands out is when I begged my dad to buy me a pair of shiny red patent shoes. I don't remember how old I was- probably around 7 or 8. I don't remember what store he bought them in, probably Ann & Hope. But I remember trying them on in the store and my dad pressing down on the shoes where my toes were, trying to see if the shoes were big enough. The shoes were definitely too small, but I wanted them so badly that I told my dad they felt fine. I think he knew they were too small because he kept asking me, even when we got home and I was trying them on again, but I kept insisting they fit perfectly. I remember standing next to my bed and looking down and admiring my adorable red shiny shoes. I remember how they pinched my toes, but I ignored it- all for fashion! They were just simple flats, I don't remember them having a bow or anything, but they were shiny and red. The funny thing is that I don't remember wearing them very often, probably because they were too small!

I don't remember a pair of shoes that I had in elementary school that I thought were super cool. Before I describe them- remember this was the late eighties, actually it might have been 1990, since it could have been 5th grade. I had a pair of silver tennis sneakers which had glitter all over them. Oh, how I loved those sneakers! I remember sitting on the floor in gym class (which I always despised), my legs stretched out in front of me and I was quietly admiring my glitter tennis shoes. It made gym class almost OK because I could run around in my favorite shoes! I even got compliments from the other kids on my sneakers, which was something because I always dressed differently from the other kids and was not exactly known as one of the 'cool kids'.

Well, that's it for my shoe stories for tonight. It's fun trying to remember the shoes of my childhood! Until next time...

My First Heels

I would love to start collecting shoe stories- stories of women and their relationships with their shoes! So I'm starting with my shoes. My father bought me my very first pair of high heels when I was around ten years old. I might have been younger, I'm not sure. I don't remember if we were at a shoe store in the North Dartmouth mall or at the now departed store Ann & Hope, near where we lived. We were looking at shoes for me and I spotted a pair of light gray heels in my size. My dad said that it was about time I learned to walk in heels and he bought them for me. I don't remember how high the heels were- they probably weren't very high, but they were definitely the highest heel I had ever owned. Before that, I would clomp around in my mother's high heels when I played dress up. I was so happy to have the new shoes. I don't remember ever actually wearing them out in public, but I would definitely parade around the house, very proud of my grown up shoes!

One of the shoe memories that stands out the most was when I was learning to tie my laces. I'm not sure how old most kids are when they master the art of tying their shoes, but I have a feeling it took me longer than most kids. I remember wearing a pair of black patent leather shoes with blue laces to school. I was going to school in Providence, RI at the time- we had recently moved from London, I was around 6 years old. We had to change into sneakers for gym class and I was terrified because that meant that I had to retie my shoe laces when I put my black shoes back on. I tried to take my shoes off without untying my laces, but that didn't work. I remember sitting on a bench, struggling to tie my shoe laces. I was getting upset and probably mortified that I couldn't tie them properly, when all of a sudden a teacher came over and knelt down in front of me and tied my shoes for me. I remember her saying how I needed to learn to tie them myself, she said it in a nice way though. I was so grateful for her help. I probably did learn to tie my shoes soon after that. I'll always remember sitting on the bench, leaning over, trying to get them tied and help miraculously arriving- I can still remember the relief I felt, all these years later.

Well, this is the start of my shoe stories. I want to start hearing your stories too! We are going to have a section on our website where people can share. I think it would be wonderful to hear about women and their shoes! Until next time..

Busy Days

It has been an exciting month! Our new logo is done and our new website is up and running! A friend of mine designed the logo and another friend, Gina Roberts designed our website for us. They both did awesome jobs. I love our new logo and our web site is great. Check them out at www.smilingstiletto.com

I've even been learning how to do some of the basic updates myself. I have been using Constant Contact's new event marketing service and that has been great for sending out event invitations and also creating a stand-alone event details page which can be linked from any website. We are having a fashion show at the Copley Place Mall on September 22, tonight I created the event details page, it also has a link for people to purchase tickets. The proceeds of the event are going to Project Smile, the non profit organization that I run. A portion is also going to the Simon Youth Foundation.

We had a great event at Splash last month. We had an awesome turnout and we had a DJ there who did a really great job, particularly when the ladies were walking on the pink carpet. The energy level was so high. We had complimentary appetizers and complimentary Stoli cocktails. My friend Michelle also debuted her new cupcake business at the event and provided samples.

Well, there is lots more to talk about, but it is after midnight and I'm getting tired. I will update much sooner than I did last time!

Welcome!

Welcome to the Smiling Stiletto Blog! We are starting a new phase and I wanted to share our stories here. Smiling Stiletto is a relaunch of an organization that was founded in 2004 by Melissa O'Shea- the Hello Stiletto Shoe Club. Hello Stiletto was a social organization for women who love shoes. The organization grew over the years to over 10,000 members with local chapters across the country. In Boston, we have almost 3,000 members alone. I joined Hello Stiletto in 2007 after reading an article in the Boston Globe. Over the years, I went to many great events and met a lot of wonderful people, including one of my closest friends. Melissa moved to Atlanta last year and in January I took over planning events in Boston for Hello Stiletto. I wanted to keep the group going- it was too much fun to let it disappear.

Melissa decided to reduce her role and step back from running Hello Stiletto except for the Atlanta Chapter. We decided in May to rebrand the group and that's where things stand now. I'm in the middle of a rebranding. Hello Stiletto is becoming Smiling Stiletto. I registered our new domain name. My website host who runs my work website, Project Smile, created a Smiling Stiletto email address for me. I have a friend who is working on our new logo and another friend is designing a free website for us. I started a new Smiling Stiletto Facebook page a couple of weeks ago. I already started using the new Constant Contact event marketing service to promote our Shoe Club parties- the response has been great. We haven't officially informed our members of the rebranding yet, but I'm gradually incorporating some of the changes. I'm waiting until our new website and logo is ready before we send out the official email announcing the change. I'm still planning the same fun events that we always used to do, so that isn't changing at all.

Well, that's it for now. I will be posting again soon!