If I close my eyes and think really hard I can remember being a small girl playing in my mother’s closet trying to walk around in her way too big for me high heels.  Fast forward a few years and I was getting a pair of my own high heels.  They were not as tall as my mother’s but to me they were fabulous nonetheless.  I wore them all over the place and any event that I could.  As I got into my teens my closet was full of heels.  Of course they were not practical to wear to school, but on the weekends I was rocking my heels.  Today, I am still all about some gorgeous shoes.  Nothing makes legs look longer, makes you stand straighter, and gives you more confidence than a pair of high heel shoes.   

Shoes in summer can include flip-flops, canvass slide-ons and sneakers, and sandals. It almost doesn’t matter how you interchange these styles, as long as whatever you pick out goes along with your job’s dress code. In summer, if work is not an issue, then just wear whatever you feel like wearing as long as the shoes are nice a cool. Flip-flops are my favorite summer shoes because they come in a wide variety of fun styles and can be bought very inexpensively. I often have as many as six pairs of flip-flops because of their versatility and the range of available colors.

Looking for another reason to go quit buying overly processed or poorly manufactured shoes and other goods? Try this: the apple and grape juice American kids are drinking may have high enough arsenic to significantly raise their risk of cancer and other chronic diseases, according to a study published by Consumer Reports. In the study, a full 10 percent of the juices people commonly shop for that were tested by the consumer advocacy magazine contained arsenic levels higher than what is allowed in water by the Food and Drug Administration.

It’s about to get colder in the US, according to many long range weather forecast computer models, and that means fashion minded people all over the country will have to put the peep-toe pumps, sandals, and ballet flats away until warmer weather returns. You really need a nice, warm pair of boots, but they should be flexible enough to wear with your office attire and should not have tons of fur sticking out of them, or too many gaudy buckles, studs, or other elaborate decorations. Better yet, why not just buy two or three pairs of boots, then you could indulge your desire for big furry boots without wearing them to work. You could wear some nice, conservative leather boots with a heel to the office, then whip out your big furry boots when you get to your car at five and be loaded for bear, as the saying goes.

Put on your shopping shoes and get ready to get healthy! Organic foods are touted as being far healthier alternatives to the kinds of foods you regularly encounter in typical grocery stores, but what are the real benefits of choosing organic over ordinary? To start with, buying organic food helps foster a less toxic environment for all living things in the world. It is estimated that only 0.5 percent of pasture and crop land is used in organic farming. This means that the rest of the nation’s farmland is subject to contamination by toxic chemicals, pesticides, and other undesirable substances. This can get onto your expensive, designer shoes or boots and spread to other parts of the world where you walk. Imagine how much better the nation’s food supply would be if more of the croplands were dedicated to organic farming.

Everyone knows that organic food is better for health, better for a greener earth, and unfortunately hard on most peoples’ budgets. Just go into any organic market or the organic clothing and shoe section of a green market and you will soon see that organic anything can cost nearly twice as much as non-organic. This is particularly true of shoes, but also applies to canned and frozen goods made from organic vegetables and fruits. Eating healthy is generally more expensive than eating poor quality food. For instance, you can go to any fast food restaurant or grocery store and find highly processed food items containing high levels of sugar and sodium, and unpronounceable chemical additives and preservatives at very low cost. You might get away from the McDonald’s drive thru with a gigantic and unhealthy meal for less than $4, depending on what you select. On the other hand, when you decide to buy organic groceries to make your own healthy foods, or even buy organic entrees, you will be hard pressed to find a meal for under $10. So, is there any way to save money while wearing the most earth friendly shoes you can find?