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I think it's the combination spat-saddle shoe feel that attracted me to the Ganache Pumps ($98). I watched in horror as these sold out in about 2 weeks, though now a week after that they're back. The temporary inventory displacement plus the help of a comment from Jessebel led me to purchase these from Endless.com, where they're called the Apple A Day pumps. For $10 less and free overnight shipping I was in.
The shoes are by Seychelles in case you can't tell. They have a rubber sole and a wood stacked heel. They clop a bit as I walk but are not super loud. To me, the white color reads as ivory. The suede and stud accents on the vamp and heel seem to be solidly affixed.
Based on the reviews on Anthro's site I ordered both an 8.5 and a 9. I did not find these to run large at all -- I plan to keep my true size 9 and return the 8.5s. The toebox is pretty small but my toes are short so this isn't an issue for me. There is almost no toe cleavage. Comfort-wise they're OK, not stellar. There's not a lot of arch support. My guess is I'll need to break these in with one or two office wears before I can go all day in these.
The heel is 3.5 inches so this is not a shoe for the casual heel wearer. It is very stable though which is a plus for my commute over cobblestones and uneven Soho sidewalks. To me these are worth full price at the Endless or Anthro price. I know I'll get plenty of wears out of these.
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Biviel's Wandering Platforms ($158) are such a beautiful shade of toffee. This is another pair I managed to find cheaper elsewhere -- they're on sale for $100 on Piperlime as the Biviel BVC053 in limited sizes.
These have a .5 inch rubber platform sole. It's great for being a silent assassin; they make almost no noise as I'm clomping along. I initially ordered the 39s (9s) but they were far too small in the toebox for me. My foot looked like it was too big to slip into that dainty glass slipper. So I reordered them in the 40s (10s) and they fit much better. I should have known. I have a pair of Biviel sandals from over the summer in the 39s and they are pretty tight across my feet.
The heel is no less significant than that of the Ganache Pumps but they are positioned further forward on the foot. As a result some people may feel unsteady on these. Your weight is tipped slightly forward or back as you walk. I love the scalloped detail but as you'll see in the shot below the right heel scallops have already started to peel away a bit. Not great on a $100 shoe. Some airplane glue will fix that right up but why should I have to fix a brand new pair of shoes??
At 4 inches, the heel is no joke. The platform helps it feel more like 3.5 inches but either way it's another serious heel. Be prepared to tower over everyone. (I kind of like it.) Other than the scallop detail issue these shoes seem very well made and I expect them to last at least a year. Time will tell.
