shoe sadness

I so badly wanted to report to you all that I had found my dream boots to wear frolicking in the snow. But alas, both pairs arrived on Wednesday, and both pairs were shipped back today.



I ordered the Columbia boots ($84.95, right) first, also never having seen them or tried them on in person before. I just wanted a simple snow boot. But I kept thinking of these dream boots I tried on the year before (meaning, early winter 2007) that I was dying to have, but didn't get because they were too expensive. This year, I decided that no matter what, I would find the perfect waterproof snow boot no matter what the (under $200) cost. So I tracked down the Pajar Grip boots ($185, left) online and bought them immediately, despite the $185 price tag that was so forbidden last winter.

Both arrived only two days after ordering, what with Zappos shipping being so speedy and free, and they almost always upgrade it to overnight, and the Pajar boots coming from New Jersey. I was so excited when the UPS plopped them down outside my door, and I ripped the boxes open and had to jam. the boots. onto my feet. Both pairs were just a tad too small, and yet a size bigger in either would likely have been too large. That's the problem with having a tiny size 5-1/2 foot.

But that wasn't the major flaw. The problem was that neither pair really looked any good on me! The gorgeous Pajar boots were really made for some stick-thin, 6-foot-tall model, and alas I am neither stickly, nor tall. The look of my wide hips tapering down to ultra skinny calfs--because the shaft of the boots is just so slim--just wasn't right, even in leggings. And the Columbia boots didn't work either, with the top of the boot about two inches shorter than my Uggs, they were just too short.

So what do I do? I have combed Zappos many times over and I still can't find the perfect boot that I feel confident can stand up to galavanting in two feet of snow. I'm thinking about these from Patagonia, but they are crushed velvet, and I was hoping for that swishy waterproof texture. Ah, well, I'll keep looking and update you if I find anything suitable.