August’s winning Tale of the Sole is a story we’ve heard many times, but we never ever get tired of hearing it! With each retelling, the details and locations change, but the happy ending stays the same. In this version, the cast of characters includes longtime Seattle Ped customer—and all-around great gal—Liesbeth R. and Fiorentini + Baker’s Paula boot. Here is what Liesbeth wrote us:

I ordered on Monday, and the shoes were here by Wednesday. Unbelievable! The boots smelled gorgeous opening the box. Outstanding! Amazing color and perfect fit. I can’t stand it!  This is one my all-time favorite shoe moments I have had and I, like your other fans, have had many shoe moments.

Liesbeth rocking the F+B Paula against the Seattle skyline!

I’ve been a customer since you opened the Seattle store, and I believe all of my treasured purchases from Ped are still happily in my wardrobe rotation, although my other shoes might be eclipsed by these awesome F&B’s. I’ve been looking for my perfect short boots for a few years and finally found them from Ped! Seattle summers as you remember are short and sweet, but I always get over the short part because when the cool marine air returns, out come all the boots. 🙂

Liesbeth looking smashing in her Paula boots, as photographed by her 12-year-old niece, Andrea (who clearly has a career in fashion photography)!

Thank you so, so, so much for giving me some Fiorentini & Baker insanity this week. I am one happy, rockstar boot-wearing customer. Thanks for all the shoe love!

You are more than welcome, Liesbeth. The feeling is mutual! F+B’s Paula may have made Liesbeth’sweek, but her story made our whole month!  To thank her, we’re giving her $100 in Ped credit!

Do you have a Tale of the Sole? Tell us—and show us (we LOVE pictures!!!)—what happened to you while wearing a Ped item, and you, too, might be the recipient of $100 in Ped credit. Each month we pick the most sole-ful tale to share on the blog. So, let us know what in the world you’ve been doing in your Ped!

(By the way, the “Sweet Treat” this week is Cydwoq’s wonderful Tourist! Get 20% off this easygoing sweetheart by clicking “be sweet to your feet” in the top right corner of any Ped page, which will magically take you to the Tourist, where you will find the discount code! So, save a little money, lace up the Tourist, go off on an adventure, and then tell us all about it!)

No sooner did I finish writing about all the beautiful booties in the Ped warehouse than a shipment from Trippen arrived! Inside? Even more hip low boots to make your autumn bootie-licious! Of course, Berlin-based Trippen brings unmistakable Euro funk to their designs! Not only do Trippen’s shoes and boots look and feel fantastic, they’re also the product of a socially responsible company that’s committed to sound environmental practices and paying employees a living wage!

But let’s get on with the latest! Here’s a sampling of what those German design geniuses have bestowed upon us this season:

A new low boot that really packs a “wow” is Trippen’s Taurus!

Trippen artfully places a structural coil on each side of the ankle, so they resemble the horns of a prize bull! Ped’s Laura has been counting the days, waiting to get this badass boot in-house.  Now she (and you!) can wear it out and about—so fab with jeans or a knee-length skirt!

Who can resist a red boot? Not us!

Between the wrap-around strap, the exposed seaming, and the lightweight “penna” rubber sole, we don’t know what we like best about the wild Mild Boot. Each of the parts is fantastic, but the sum is out of this world!

Another great boot, with added versatility, is Trippen’s Bomb:

What’s cool about this super-comfortable number is it comes with both brown and black removable straps, so you can pick and choose—or go without—depending on your mood. Plus, the leather is so soft you can scrunch it down, wear it pulled up, or fold it over.

You know with me, there will be green on the scene. For this season, it’s Trippen’s Posh:

This cute boot, with its lacing around leather buttons, stands on Trippen’s ultra-comfortable t-shaped wedge. We love. We love.

In fact, we found the Posh’s button detailing so charming, we fell headlong for the Button:

The blue of this shootie is deliciously saturated and juicy! Plus, we love how simple and wearable it is, built on Trippen’s super-light “cups” rubber sole!

Ah, Trippen, you always make our hearts beat a little faster! So fun AND functional! And, as always, there’s even more Trippen goodness to savor at Ped’s main site!

So many beautiful fall styles are arriving in the Ped warehouse that we hardly know what to show you first, Ped fans! One definite go-to look this season is ankle boots worn with anything and everything. From shooties that hit right at the ankle to short boots that don’t quite reach the calf, there’s a bootie in the house for everybody’s style, from girly-girl to badass to fairly straight-laced (Ped never quite makes it all the way there, as you know).

Here are a few of the latest lovelies to inspire low-boot lust.

Topping the list, Fiorentini + Baker’s new Paula:

Wow, there is nothing like Italian ingenuity when it comes to craftsmanship and get-out-of-town style! With ruching down the front and a zipper up the back, this boot rocks out on a chunky 3″ heel! We love the deep blue color with contrasting off-white top stitching, but the Paula also comes in pure black. Every season, Ped’s Laura gets a mad crush on one style (remember, it was Accessoire’s Island this past summer?), and for fall, the Paula is IT!

Another F+B winner is the new Mix!

This gorgeous low boot is the love child of the Eli and the Mike; it’s got the Eli’s popular 6″ shaft height and single buckle strap and the Mike’s chunky, take-no-prisoners heel! What a kickass combination!!! Plus, we love, love, love F+B’s new rabbit grey color, which is a soft dark grey tinged with brown. But if you’re like me and can’t get enough green, the Mix also comes in lush forest green.

Speaking of green, if you’re looking for a flat, knock-around-town bootie, check out Cydwoq’s Tourist:

Cydwoq’s Rafi has passed on his design know-how to his son, Ari, who has been refining this style for a few seasons, tweaking this and that detail, all leading to the Tourist! The pebbled leather is luscious, and the exposed seams around the rounded toe are just the right detail. And if green doesn’t float your boat (how can that be?), this comfortable shootie also comes in royal blue.

Lacing is also used to good effect in Argila’s Olivia:

You can’t imagine how wonderfully soft this boot’s caramel suede  is! Talk about buttery! And the cuff at the top lets you unfold it for a little extra height, if you like. The crowning touch (well, soleful touch) is the chunky but lightweight wooden heel!

“That’s all very well and good,” you may be thinking, “but what about something sweet and girly?” As usual, Chie Mihara has your back, er, foot:

So chic, Chie’s new Crusade is a taller, flirtier version of last year’s Piet . A few gathers on the toe and a bow at the ankle are all you need to be a femme fatale!

Perhaps, though, you want  your ankle boot to make a bold, art-a-liscious statement. Look no further than Trippen’s Fence, now available in metallic steel leather!

So urban and edgy, this boot does the talking and the walking! As if its stylish good looks weren’t enough (did you notice it laces up the back?), the Fence stands on Trippen’s famously comfortable t-shaped wedge that let’s you walk all day, turning heads everywhere you go! (And, yes, it also comes in black.)

Those are only the beginning of the ankle boot options that abound over at Ped’s main site. (There are scads more!) So, this fall take it low, and you’re good to go!

(Although not an ankle boot, this week’s “Sweet Treat” is still super cute: Cydwoq’s emerald green Forbid. Look like a million bucks for 20% off by clicking “be sweet to your feet” in the upper corner of any Ped page to reach the magic discount code.)

Get ready for a fun fall, Ped fans! On my European buying trip last spring, I found several new lines to add to the Ped family, all absolutely beautiful! The first to arrive in the warehouse: Couple Of!

Based in Tel Aviv, Israel, Couple Of is the creative collaboration of designers Shelly and Elon, who are not only work partners but also life partners (given Terry’s and my relationship, I love that). They decided to call their company “Couple Of” as a play on the term “one-off,” which indicates a unique work of uncommon beauty.

Unique and uncommonly beautiful? Couple Of’s shoes definitely are! Using exquisite leathers, Shelly and Elon attend to every detail of their shoe designs, committed to crafting thoroughly wearable works of art. Their styles have an eye-opening irreverence that never goes too far—just enough to have every eye on the street glued to your feet with envy!

See for yourself! Here’s the Couple Of shoe that first caught my attention:

Where did I see it? On Shelly’s feet when I walked into Couple Of’s booth at the shoe show! Aptly called the Shelly Oxford, it blew my mind (and as someone who sees a lot of shoes, that’s no easy feat)! Couple Of has taken a beautifully made, classic lace-up and cut around the natural leather outsole to create an arc over the toe and a slight dip behind the heel. SO COOL!!!! I was sold!

Did you also notice the red insole? Couple Of has a particular way with red! Often their designs have a carmine lining, but now and then they take it outside, as with the stunning Lily Slip On:

We adore a red heel, but this one goes above and beyond with its perfectly placed three-dimensional petals! So flirty!

Another great thing about Couple Of is how they pay attention not only to giving the toe some sass but also the heel! In their shoes, you give your fans something to look at coming and going. Case in point: The Ava Oxford.

How cool is the minutely folded leather on the toe? Well, it also accents the 2.25″ heel! Such unusual detailing is what sets this brown lace-up apart from every other oxford on the street!

For another example of how Couple Of makes the most of well-edited accents, get an eyeful of the Derbi Oxford:

Couple Of has created a wonderful interpretation of the traditional menswear oxford and punched it up by adding a simple strap over the toe—stitched at the center for added interest—and a slightly flared heel piece (notice how those upward lines at the heel reflect the downward lines at the base of the toe strap). Suddenly, this shoe is something to talk about! Plus, the Derbi’s red lining flashes at the edges in the most eye-catching way.

Couple Of has also put their unique stamp on the ankle boot/shootie trend that’s all the rage this season:

The Hannah Shootie is ultra-modern and über-sexy. We love how the masculine black straps cinch in the super-soft feminine taupe leather! As usual, Couple Of’s clean design aesthetic is the key to this knockout toe-bearing and heel-flashing style.

Ped is the first U.S. boutique to carry Couple Of’s fabulous designs, so when you slip on any of these comfortable stunners, you’re guaranteed to be a one-off in your style!

(Psst, if you haven’t checked it out, the “sweet treat” this week is Chie Mihara’s gorgeous Rocosa heeled sandal. You still have a couple days left to snag it at 20% off by clicking “be sweet to your feet” in the upper corner of any Ped page to reach the magic discount code.)

It seems like yesterday we were dancing through March and April, trying on all the new sandals in the Ped warehouse. Now we’re already in the second week of August? How did that happen??? We’re sad to see the long days of summer grow short, but one consolation to their coming to an end is the arrival of fall’s beautiful shoes and boots!

Want more good news? You don’t have to wait until the leaves start to turn to wear them! Ankle boots and heeled oxfords look terrific and utterly modern with flirty summer skirts!

Here’s a taste, fresh out of the boxes arriving daily at Ped HQ, to whet your appetite:

Who can resist the charms of Chie Mihara’s Vaive?

Yes, we’ve had this wonderful, rosette-embellished oxford before, but not in VIOLET!!! What a fabulous, head-turning color to take you through the rest of summer and right into fall!

Another old favorite that’s just arrived in a new color scheme is Giraudon’s Plug Loafer:

The latte-colored toe really calls attention to the wonderful perforated leather in Giraudon’s design. So cute!! We love the idea of pairing this play on men’s wear with a flouncy, girly dress!

Another colorful new style for transitioning from summer into fall is the Cydwoq Buckle:

The Italian leather in this über-modern flat is the most wonderful blend of wine and black. The zig-zag strap and square buckle also offer a refreshing break from all the lace-ups that are everywhere this season (not that we don’t adore lace-ups—we definitely do!).

We’re excited about all the new styles at Ped, but we confess one little boot has us in a particular tizzy: Cydwoq’s Iota!

We’ve loved a lot of lace-up ankle boots in the past, but, without a doubt, the Iota is our favorite engineer boot EVER! The way the leather comes together is wonderful, but what we like best is how the leather is an “aging” black, which means over time it acquires a brownish patina. So cool! In Japan, they have a special term, sabi, for the beauty that comes with time and wear!

Needless to say, there are more new designs to ooh and aah over at Ped’s main site, with still more on the way! Stay tuned, Ped fans because the sun may be setting on summer, but this fall promises to be spectacular!