Summer Shoes

Given the weather report, I think we're all going to catch a bit of spring fever up this weekend. Goodbye snow. Hello 60s!

I know I'll see shorts and sandals out and about, so I'll go ahead and give my summer shoe recommendation early. I give the thumbs up to Sanuk Sidewalk Surfers:



I saw these "sandal shoes" in a lot of Jersey Shore surf shops last summer, and even tried them on a few times. But I couldn't quite commit. They're weird -- a shoe with a sandal bottom. I'd walk around the store, stare in the mirror, walk some more, and put them back again. I wasn't quite sold, and they're not exactly cheap.

But when I was in St. Pete last month, I packed one Croc (no, I don't know what happened either). So I stopped at the Surf Shack, an awesome St. Pete surf store that I'd passed on my morning run. They had a wall of flip flops, but I'm over them -- they hurt my feet, are bad for my ankles, and I already have too many pairs. The other option? The sidewalk surfers. Sold -- I bought the "Scribble" model.

I'm now a big fan. I've even worn them outside already and braved the cold (which isn't such a big deal when all I did was walk from the door to the car). They've become my post-run shoe. Just slip them on and cool down -- socks or not. Well, I wouldn't recommend the socks if you're wearing them out and about, but post run? I'm already sweaty and gross, so who cares?

I hope to do another "shore fashion" post sometime this spring. Any suggestions -- other than the Cassette Bag?

What are you hoping to wear? Where are great places to score good deals? I bought a lot of summer clothes last year, not only because of it being summer but also because I had to do a lot of book promotion (TV, signings, etc). I didn't pay too much for it (Loehmann's had tons of jersey knit dresses on sale) I won't be doing as much shopping this year, so I'm looking to get the most bang for my buck. The only thing I've bought so far (aside from the Sidewalk Surfers of course), are these wedges from Target:



Not bad for $19.99, especially considering my old pair of wedges were purchased while I was a student at the University of Tampa. Target had a lot of sandals, of course, but most of them looked like copies of shoes found in my mother's closet from the 1970s and 1980s. Love ya mom, but I'll pass on those shoes and stick with the wedges.

Headed to AC this weekend? Then check out my NJMonthly.com column about the Tropicana's event on Saturday. I'm still trying to figure out if I should always point you guys in that direction when a column is posted. Thoughts?