Redemption!!!

Hello Honeeyz! I am happy to announce that after a certain someone (Benjamin Fitzgerald Hamilton) decided to snack on a certain favorite pair of shoes (see pics included herein)  and do a certain amount of damage (I talked about it at length here), I was able to have my shoes repaired to almost as good as new!! And to think, I was a little discouraged after a few people told me they didn't think there was much of anything that could be done to fix them and I was considering just giving up and letting it go.  However, my favorite shoe repair shop, Fast Feet Shoes, in the Concord Mall in Wilmington, DE welcomed the challenge and looked at the shoe for a second and said, "yea, we can fix it but it won't be ready til next week" without even blinking.  With that said, I paid the bill (which was super duper cheap by the way) and walked off expecting nothing particularly special in return.  I basically would've been happy if they could just even up the chew mark so that I could maybe wear them with long pants and not feel self conscious. Obviously, the shoe isn't perfect but its darn near close, considering the damage that crazy dog did and I'm more than happy!  I can wear them and unless you are some psycho weirdo all up in my business around my ankles (or a Honeey who knows this story b/c they follow my blog) you'd never know the history of this shoe.

The moral MILK of the story is: don't ever give up on something or someone that has a little damage without at least trying to repair it; and don't ever underestimate the potential for redemption! :-)

While we can clearly see where the repair was made (mostly b/c we just know), who the heck cares! Anything looks better than the prior damaged state (see below for a revisit of the trauma)! 

BEFORE- The Tragedy

AFTER- Redemption

When Tragedy Strikes

Super cute, lovable and innocent right? Well think again....

You honeeyz may have gathered from previous posts that I have a younger son, a 3.5-year-old shih tzu named Benjamin Fitzgerald Hamilton (yes, very regal and presidential).  He is as cute as a button and frequently poses in pics with me.  However, he recently committed the ultimate crime and I'm having a very difficult time forgiving him and moving past his most recent transgression... 

The Tragedy

A few days ago I discovered him in the living room chowing down on a pair of shoes I paid several hundred dollars for and  that I have come to love.  Why he decided to do this when he has rarely ever chewed on anything in the past 3.5 years he's been in our household is beyond me.  In any event, my shoes are just about ruined and my  relationship with Benji seems irreparable (I have not had the desire to even look his way). I'm planning to send my shoes out to this awesome cobbler/shoe repair phenomenon in New York City, Mina's, who has previously restored a pair of shoes I nearly destroyed back to better than brand new.  

The biggest issue here is leather and pony hair has been chewed away so I don't know if it's even possible to make them wearable again with missing material.  My thoughts are if I can find someone who can even out the edges, add the black piping to seal the edges that they could be better again but in that case it won't be identical to the other shoe bc the edges will be shorter than the unscathed shoe.  Or maybe I just give up and start over...who doesn't need an excuse to purchase a replacement shoe? But the thing is I don't think I can "replace" this particular shoe. I can find an animal print pony hair shoe, yes but I liked this shoe for so many reasons...the print is not a traditional leopard, it's giraffe, the shape isn't a round toe, point toe or traditional square toe, it sort of has a shape of it's own.  It's a unique shoe in many ways but a the same time very much a staple (animal print and pony hair will never leave us) and very much classic that I could've had forever.  Or maybe I just put Benji's destructive @ss on craigslist!!! Sigghhhhhhh..... What do you honeeyz suggest? Check out the damage below and let me know...

The culprit

The end result... salvageable???

He's sorry (I don't care)

Looks perfectly fine from the top front... shouldn't give up right??

A hot mess from the back side with an entire chunk missing...what to do???

Brand New Vintage

Surprisingly, I haven’t yet hopped on the thrifting trend that everyone has been going crazy over.   I say surprisingly b/c I do love a lot of retro and vintage designs... the details, fabrics, bells and whistles can be so beautiful and intricately done.  I have a lot of pieces in my wardrobe that is very reminiscent of decades ago in terms of the colors, structure, patterns, and materials (to hammer this point home, I typically dream of everything Diana Ross is wearing in "Mahogany" and "Lady Sings the Blues").   I probably haven't completely jumped on the boat mostly because I’m so darn impatient.  I don’t like combing through racks and examining things in that kind of way that makes an official and effective thrifter.  I did give it a go a time or two… well sort of.  One time my BFF, Shan, and I made it to a consignment shop but I left with a pair of Rock and Republic jeans and a very current Covet dress…totally modern, totally nowhere near thrifting or vintage hunting, totally missed the point.  LOL.  Anyways, I’ll give it another go one day soon but for now I love finding retro pieces from today that remind me of the good old days of yesteryears, even though it's brand spanking new and made within the most recent season.  

In this look, I did exactly that (I also did it HERE too), I wore current items that are an ode to back in the day.  This dress is from the Isaac Mizrahi for Target line and it was originally priced at $70 and I got it for….drum rolls please.... $7!! That’s right!!  It was stuck on a clearance rack somewhere and I stumbled on it by accident, and aside from the fact that it cost only $7, I was immediately attracted to the fabric, the way the dress moved, the pleating, tie waisted detail, the color, and the length (all of which screams Diana Ross as Billie Holiday).  Only issue is that it's actually too big. It's a medium and I really need a small but again, it cost $7 so I was not walking away from that thing!  Never mind the fact that I was likely in Target for laundry detergent, soap and lotion and managed to leave with a bunch of crap, including a cart full of clothes...does anyone ever make it out of Target with just the necessities? I never do.  Anyways, I figured with the tie waist and buttons down the middle I could manipulate it down to my size. This go around I paired the dress with giraffe print pony hair booties (animal print and pony hair is very vintage inspired).  Those shoes give the look that edge and kick I’m always needing.  And to go totally eclectic retro (and to keep warm), I added the navy blue polka dot and print scarf and a blazer, both from H&M.  The scarf is screaming vintage Hermes or Etro, except it cost me $10 and I bought it this past summer rather than in the 60's. LOL. The blazer helps to streamline the dress considering it's still really too big for me. What do you honeeyz think?  What tips do you honeeyz have for a modern chick trying to experience some thrifting bonuses?? What do you honeeyz gravitate to when you are trying to get an eclectic or retro look popping off?

Giraffe Print Pony Hair Booties, Luxury Rebel; Sunglasses, Christian Dior; Watch, Marc by Marc Jacobs; Rosegold Bracelet, BCBGeneration; Necklace, Tilly's; Leather Wallet, Mac and Jac ($20 at TJ Maxx);