International Fluevog Day on Melrose!

Fluevog Los Angeles "Class Photo" 2013

It was a close call, but last Wednesday, May 15, I made it to the Melrose store in time for the International Fluevog Day class photo at 5:15 pm! They had an awesome professional photographer on site to take the class photo, and he also shot individual/group photos for those who wanted them. Then his assistant immediately printed the photos out for us. (He was a friend of dealer Alice, and once I get his name and website, I'll edit this post!)

I love how the photos turned out. It's amazing what great lighting and a wonderful photographer's eye can do. (These first three photos are scans of the printouts, by the way. The rest of the photos were taken with my iPhone.)

Me in my vintage Natalia maryjanes. Funny story: people kept having mishaps with this table since it was quite unstable. I almost fell off TWICE even though I was told multiple times to be careful, and I would have completely eaten it if it weren't for a wonderful fellow Voger I'd just met, Maggie. Thanks, Maggie, for saving me!

Dealer Kate and me. Sitting down, we managed to minimize the height difference between us. I'm so envious of how tall she is!

Here were some of the treats available, and I confess that I partook of the teal-tinted wine and mini-cupcake! Yum. It was a lovely sweet wine that wasn't very strong at all (good thing since I was driving), but I'm sure it and the little cupcake contributed to the happy vibes I was feeling the whole time. ;-)

The spread

Teal champagne/sparkling wine with cherries

Mini-cupcake with target

I loved seeing the dealers all together (except I didn't see Austyn), who all looked AMAZING, and even Keith who used to work there visited so he could be in the class pic! It was such a great bunch of fun, friendly, interesting Vogers there. We talked about our love for the shoes, commented and gave advice on the shoes we owned or had tried on, and asked what pairs we'd be going home with that day. There was Maggie who was wearing her black/beige Mini | Qtee heels, a gorgeous shoe that I also have in a different colorway. She wasn't sure yet what to get but had the Liz in black/pink as her first choice! There was Shannon, who had rainbow-colored long hair and wore her cheetah Arc | Rainbow boots with a pink, purple, and green outfit. She bought the fantastic purple-and-polka dot 7th Heaven | Derby Swirl boots that I took home last week. Then there was the couple who now have matching Radio | CBC oxfords (different colors), just like my husband and I do!

But aside from their obvious excellent taste in shoes, it was a blast to learn that a few of them were hardcore Doctor Who fans. Dealer Kate made sure I met these awesome ladies. They noticed my TARDIS-encased iPhone, and after a few minutes of conversation we were exchanging emails and cards. Haha! One woman, Maggie, had created a gorgeous, DW-character costume by hand for a DW-themed ball a few weeks ago, and another, Natasha, is actually friends with the current executive producer of the show, Steven Moffat. SAY WHAT?? She says she met him while he was just a writer for the 2005- reboot and was still going to the DW conventions in the U.S. (This is one super-talented writer. He's co-creator of another fantastic show, Sherlock, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman.)

Fluevog pink/grey on SALE | Amazon black and pink/grey colorways

Maggie and I were drooling over Natasha's sample-sale loot, the striking Memories Hi | Keepsake heels in dark-blue suede (or is it velvet?). Her skin isn't that bright white, by the way; the lighting was the only way I could photograph the suede, which unfortunately washed out her skin completely. Anyway, the blue shoes matched her blue floral dress perfectly ... then I realized she was wearing TARDIS-blue all over, including her eyeshadow and nails. I should have guessed she was a Whovian as well as a Voger!

Anyway, enough Doctor Who. This is about Fluevog shoes after all! I ended up re-trying some shoes to figure out which ones I'd take home. First up are better photos of the patent lilac and teal Integrity | Amie flats than I took last time. They're so gorgeous. I know the other MotleyFlue gals aren't big fans of these or any ballet flats, but like I said, I've been converted ... and the patent leather in these beeyootiful colors just grabs me.

Fluevog

Fluevog

And then here are the Big Presence | Faraday slingback oxford heels in the black/gold colorway. Reader Dany asked about these after I posted on the ivory/taupe colorway that amazed all of us a couple of posts ago:

Fluevog | Amazon SALE 32% off

I definitely think the other colorway fits my skin tone better. And yes, after some nudges from the MotleyFlue, I did decide to buy the ivory/taupe Faradays for International Fluevog Day at 15% off! Natasha, who looks great in darker colors, chose the black/gold colorway instead.

In case you were interested, here's a pic of my whole outfit that day. I went for comfort and quirk with my vintage maryjanes and funny illustrated shirt.

My whole outfit, iPhone photo courtesy of my mom.
Top: Fun 2 Fun via ModCloth | Capri jeans: Sonoma via Kohl's | Maryjanes: vintage Fluevog Natalia (Halo family)

To think, I almost didn't make it to the party...! I'd had a rough start to the day, but I'm so glad I was able to go. I missed Mae and Cheryl, both of whom at the last minute couldn't go for different reasons. But I'm glad I could represent the MotleyFlue down here in So Cal. I do love my Melrose peeps. And special shout-out to fantastic Fluevog guru Anthony for hooking me up with my layaways and getting a pair of long-wished-for shoes transferred to L.A. from Minneapolis. I'm crossing my fingers that it works out! I'll post here if/when it happens, so I don't jinx it. :-)

xo, Gladys