Our weekends may still be taken up by poolside hangs, but fall is just around the corner—there, we said it!—which means it’s time to start planning our autumn wardrobes. And we’re starting from the ground up; after all, there’s nothing like a new pair of fall shoes to make the transition from summer to fall all the more bearable. We’re not quite in the ankle boot mentality just yet, so to kick up our seasonal shopping, we’re eyeing other on-trend silhouettes that are appropriate for colder temperatures. From slingbacks to square-toed flats, we round up 20 fall shoes worth adding to your wish list—sooner rather than later.
I ordered them quickly but skeptically. I definitely wanted comfortable heels for the wedding but will admit my decision to buy them was because of the way they looked. I wanted them because they were different and I figured they could set me apart while I stood alongside five other girls wearing the same dress as me.
When they arrived, I was on vacation, and the first time I wore them was on the actual wedding day. I took a leap of faith and was not disappointed. I can confirm that Isabelle is a black strappy heel that is different than the other heels that have betrayed me.
For one, they’re not as narrow with a square tip that gives my toes more room to breathe. The straps along the front and the side actually helped me keep my balance, and they kept my feet in position for dancing, church processions, and multiple return trips to the dessert table. The moment I realized they were truly a pair of comfortable heels, though, was when, halfway through the night, everyone was removing their heels and I had completely forgotten that mine were still on. I wore them for 12 hours straight without a single tear, blister, or complaint.
Now, while I may not exactly be ready to retire all my platform heels—they’ll forever be my preferred kind of shoe—I’ve definitely finally found a strappy heel that gives me the same kind of ease. And the next time someone tells me not to be too extra, I’ll know exactly what to wear.
Shop the Reformation heels and six more affordable options below.
Taylor Swift is very much back in the public eye—and from the looks of it, she’s having a blast. There is a literal countdown on her website to what many expect will be new music on April 26. She’s also working a new fashion aesthetic filled with pinks, purples, hearts, and flowers—which can also be seen in her recent Instagram posts.
Last night, she brought it all together at the Time 100 dinner in New York City where she was honored as one of the most influential people in the world, performed for the star-studded crowd, and met lots of other famous faces—all while wearing a pastel J. Mendel dress that was giving me seriously chic Ren Faire vibes.
Let’s start with her performance, where fans noticed that her the sparkly hearts on her guitar matched the background on her website. Also, note that she removed the puffy sleeves from her gown before hitting the stage.
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
She even ditched her shoes in the middle of her performance, which is definitely relatable. “Nobody look… it’s.. unladylike,” Swift joked.
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
Swift gave a little speech in between songs like “Style” and “Delicate,” referencing the famous Nora Ephron quote that “everything is copy.” “Everything that happened to her, she used on inspiration,” Swift said. “And I think that one of my favorite things about female writers, about writers in general, about people who take what happens to them and they process it and they put it out into the world, is if you write, you can turn your lessons into your legacy. And so, I’m just really happy to get to do this.”
The Rock was very into the set.
She got to meet and mingle with lots of other celebs—like Sandra Oh and Khalid. Any Taylor fan knows how much Grey’s Anatomy means to the singer, so we can only imagine how major it was to hang with the erstwhile Cristina Yang. “I know Sandra Oh is in the room which shakes me to my very core… That’s my whole life there,” she said while onstage. And yes, Swift even scored some time with the Mother of Dragons herself, Emilia Clarke, which you can check out here. Do you think she got any spoilers?
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Swift’s Instagram story with soccer star Alex Morgan also debuted a new 4.26 filter that is designed to match her whole new, sparky vibe.
But she also made time for fellow honorees like human rights defender, Radhya Almutawakel.
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Basically, her night at the Time 100 was pretty epic—and now we’ll just resume our countdown to 4.26.
Priyanka Chopra’s girl gang touched down in Amsterdam this weekend for the star’s bachelorette party, and suffice to say, it looks like they’re having a pretty good time. We’ve caught glimpses via Chopra’s and other guests’ Instagram Stories, and there’s a whole lot of gorgeous canals, delicious food, and cocktails happening.
Of course, Chopra isn’t the only one engaged to a Jonas brother at the moment. Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner also has a wedding coming up with Joe Jonas, Nick’s older brother. And it seems like Turner is getting a sneak peek at her bachelorette party to come: She’s in the Netherlands with the rest of Chopra’s squad. Just judging by the pics alone, it looks like she and Chopra are going to be fantastic sisters-in-law.
Take this great video, for example, that Chopra posted to her Instagram Stories. It captures the actress carrying Turner around piggy-back style—”in heels!” Chopra jokingly remarks. “Ugh—this is what you have to do for sister-in-laws these days,” she continued, also adding the delightful hashtag “#TheJSisters” to the clip.
Turner’s also posted a few other cute pics of Chopra to celebrate the bride-to-be.
Then there are these little clips, which includes the third feathery and bridal-y look we’ve seen on Chopra in about a week (something we’re guessing may just pop up on her wedding dress come December 2, when she and Nick are reportedly set to get married in Jodhpur, India).
They’ve stepped out in public together before—the two and their fiancés went on a double date to watch the champs at the U.S. Open earlier this year. But we have our fingers crossed for more of these sisters-in-law moments in 2019. If anything, imagine what the holidays will be like for the “J Sisters” this year. Epic.
Looks like Meghan Markle can now add “playing sports in stilettos” to the list of skills she’s picked up as a royal.
On Monday (September 24), she and Prince Harry visited Britain’s Loughborough University where they met with honorees from a program called Coach Core (which works to inspire the next generation of athletes and train them to become coaches, People reports). The couple hung out in the university gym, where they took part in a pickup game of net ball.
Dressed in a navy Oscar de la Renta blouse, black Altuzarra trousers and a pair of high-heeled boots, Markle held her own in a team drill. Somehow, she made it look effortless, despite the fact that she wasn’t wearing proper gym-class attire. After the game was over, Prince Harry adorably pulled her in for an impromptu hug.
According to People, Coach Core was started by the Royal Foundation (which is led by Prince Harry, Markle, Prince William, and Kate Middleton) after the London Olympics. The organization was recently awarded the $1.3 million National Lottery grant from Sport England and will add 10 new sites across England in the next three years.
PHOTO: Chris Jackson/Getty Images
PHOTO: Mark Cuthbert/Getty Images
Playing sports with the public has proven to be an important duty for this generation of royals. In the seven years since becoming a royal herself, Kate Middleton has been spotted taking part in everything from a cricket match in India to a volleyball game in East London. Like Markle, she tends to eschew sneakers for heels on such occasions.
While heels aren’t technically a wardrobe requirement for the royal women, there is one footwear rule they are expected to follow for official engagements: They must always wear closed-toe shoes. “Open-toed shoes are considered informal footwear,” etiquette expert William Hanson told Harper’s Bazaar, “and inappropriate for formal occasions.”
There are the practical heels you wear on the regular, and then there are those extra-pretty, extra-special ones you buy in the hope of breaking them out for a momentous occasion—a birthday, a wedding, a professional milestone. Maybe they’re a bit higher, more embellished, or less “sensible” than those everyday shoes. Maybe they’re all of the above. But they occupy a beloved space in your closet, one that simply brings you joy. So why have them sit in a box? In a post-street-style world, being overdressed is no longer considered a faux-pas—whether that translates to formal pajamas for brunch, daytime tulle, or yes, bedazzled stilettos with jeans just because. Ahead, we round up 25 of those very heels—the ones so good, you can’t let them sit in the box.
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