Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

Wednesday I was informed that I have been accepted to study naturopathic medicine. I do have at least one quandary unrelated to how on earth I will afford the tuition: I want to rock the scrubs I will wear with some killer shoes. These shoes must be pretty and practical, comfortable and able to withstand a dissection lab, but also inexpensive enough for my now-medical-student budget. What do you suggest?

Sarah

Manolo says, what does the Manolo suggest to the new medical student who wishes to remain sartorially splendid while cutting into the corpses?

Frankly, this is the sort of question that has never crossed the mind of the Manolo, what does one wear to the dissection laboratory? Celine? Gucci? If one wishes to be outrageously lighthearted, maybe the JC de Castelbajac? Although perhaps the best choice would be the Gareth Pugh, if only for the effect it will produce in the other anatomy students.

Of the course, this point is moot, because aspiring doctors no longer wear decent clothing underneath their lab coats, but rather choose to dress themselves in the wholly functional, wholly drab, wholly shapeless scrubs, the sort of pajama-looking thingy favored by mental patients everywhere. And yet, as the Manolo’s friend has rightly noted, there is still room for expression below the ankles, in the choice of shoes.

Here is the Callie from Hive & Honey, the reasonably priced boot that will look great under the scrubs, or the jeans after class is over. Just what the fashion doctor, ordered.

Manolo says, once again, science proves that which we already knew to be true, that shoes tell us much about the person who is wearing them.

Researchers at the University of Kansas found that people were able to correctly judge a stranger’s age, gender, income, political affiliation, emotional and other important personality traits just by looking at the person’s shoes.

Lead researcher Omri Gillath found that by examining the style, cost, color of condition of the shoe, participants were able to guess about 90 percent of the of the owner’s personal characteristics.

And, we are supposed to be surprised by this? Seven years ago, our friend, the Miss Meghan published the very amusing book, The Perfect Fit; What Your Shoes Say About You that said exactly the same thing.

But, we must let the scientistic peoples have their say.

The 63 observers were then asked to look at each pair and guess the gender, age, social status and different personality traits of the owner, like whether the owner was an extrovert or introvert, liberal or conservative and the degree of their emotional stability, agreeableness, conscientiousness and openness.

Researchers found that observers did well in guessing characteristics of the volunteers in almost all categories, and concluded that people do wear shoes that reveal their personality, whether they intend to or not.

Expensive shoes belonged to high earners, flashy and colorful footwear belonged to extroverts and shoes that were not new but appeared to be spotless belonged to conscientious types.

Science!

While some of the clues like the ones already described were obvious, other clues were more surprising.

Practical and functional shoes generally belong to agreeable people, ankle boots fit with more aggressive personalities and uncomfortable looking shoes were worn by calm personalities.

Participants were able to most accurately judge a person’s age, gender and income followed by their emotional stability and agreeableness.

In psychology, emotional stability is an umbrella term that includes a person’s fear of abandonment, rejection issues and the ability to handle different kinds of relationships.

People with “attachment anxiety” or people that were most worried about their relationships generally had brand new and well-kept shoes. Researchers suggest that this may be because they worry so much about their appearance and what others may think of them.

Not surprisingly, liberal thinkers, who many think of as flip-flop wearing hippies, wear shabbier and less expensive shoes.

And now the drum roll, please, for the grande finale conclusion….

“Shoes convey a thin but useful slice of information about their wearers,” the authors wrote. “Shoes serve a practical purpose, and also serve as nonverbal cues with symbolic messages. People tend to pay attention to the shoes they and others wear.”

Ta-Da!! “People pay attention to the shoes they and others wear!”

Scientia omnia vincit!

And, now, the Manolo challenges you, using your newly discovered scientific super powers, tell the Manolo what sort of person would wear each of these three shoes…

Number 1:

The E20274 Platform Sandal from Giuseppe Zanotti, retail price $1,150!

Number 2:

The Birki’s Super Birki White Flower Clogs, with the retail price of $79.95

Number 3:

The Ronnie Men’s Boot from Jeffery-West, selling for the $545.

Tomorrow, the Manolo will tell you correct answers to the question, what do these shoes say about their wearers.

Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

In mid-May I’m heading off to Montana to attend the wedding of my niece. Although the ceremony will be at a church, the reception is being billed as a “barn dance”. Should I show up in western wear, such as denim skirts
and boots? Please advise.

Marielle

Manolo says, sadlly, the Manolo usually only gets invited to the stuffy formal weddings with the fifteen pink bridesmaids, accompanying the bridezilla in the poofy giant dress with the thirty feet long train.

How much more fun it would be to go the Country of the Big Sky for the cowboy wedding. How much better to see the groom ride up on his old horse Leroy, hop off and swagger into the church, to await the arrival of his
betrothed, delivered to the altar in the chuck wagon, driven by her “pa”, Snuffy.

Weddings are to be the joyous occasions, why should they not also be the little bit entertaining? And what could be more entertaining than barn dance reception? And if you are attending, why not get into the spirit of
the occasion by dressing, at least the little bit, for the part. This does not mean that you have to buckle on the six guns, nor wear the Hoss Cartwright ten-gallon hat, just the smidgen of Santa Fe is more than
enough to honor the moment.

Manolo says, every girl needs the pair of cowboy boots, and not just for the Montana wedding. Here is the N9290 from Lucchese, the traditional pair of tall boots that are handsome without being too costumey.

Manolo says, today is the fith day of March? Why it is the Doc Marten Day! The holiday the Manolo has just invented to celebrate the iconic British waffle-stomper.

Time to put away your furry Ugg boots, and your refined Hunter wellies and pick up your Dr. Martens.

Choose one, please, from the Column A.

Iconic!

Doc Martens 8418 Union Jack Boot

Vintage!

Doc Martens Triumph Shearling Boot

Doc Martens Triumph Shearling Boot

Sophisticated!

Dr Martens Original Chelsea Boot.

If the Dr Martens are cool enough for the Clash, they are certainly cool enough for you, home girl.

Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

Colleen

Manolo says, ayyyy! To think, it is now 2012 and we are living in the future, which, strangely seems not all the different from the past, except that all of our best friends live in something called “cyberspace”, and all the teenagers communicate entirely with their thumbs.

But otherwise, everything seems familiar, as we still live in houses made of wood and brick (instead of moon rocks and plastic), and the Rolling Stones are still the touring band (although Mick Jagger now looks like the folk art dried apple doll).

Happily, despite this being the future, many smart young women wear beautiful vintage clothing in inventive and stylish ways, and thus require shoes that complement such creations without seeming costumey. For the example, pairing the 1950s dress with the 2010s booties, the practice which has much to recommend it.

Here is the Chaps from the Elizabeth and James, the stacked heel bootie that would complement the full skirts in the most non-dowdy manner possible.

Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

I walk at least 1 mile (sometimes 2) every day between buses and Metro stations. When it snows my flats aren’t good enough, but snow boots are often too much. What sort of shoes can I wear to and from work that are stylish and lightweight but will help me safely navigate snow and ice patches?

Cristina

Manolo says, the Manolo can never remember, is the Washington, D.C., supposed to be the Southern city that thinks it is Northern, or the Northern city that thinks it is Southern? Or should we simply say, “Mid-Atlantic”, which makes it sound as if it were located somewhere near the Azores Islands.

Either way, the Washington weather is always the topic of amusement and astonishment. Yes, the autumns are gorgeous, the springs sublime, and the summers unbearably hot and humid.

But it is the winters — often clement, frequently rainy, and occasionally snowpocalypsy – with their extreme variability that makes it difficult to find the single pair of winter shoes suitable for all occasions. One minute it is the balmy stroll to the bus stop, and the next you are like Yukon Cornelius wrestling with the Abominable Snow Monster in the peppermint mines of the North Pole.

Here is the Bardot from Munro American, the sharp-looking, water-resistant ankle boot for those days when the snow is melting away.

Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

For Christmas, I’d like to buy my little sister, who’s a first year student at a university in the upper Midwest, a new pair of winter boots. Can you recommend something warm and stylish that won’t break my bank?

Chloe

Manolo says, each year when the weather turns chilly, the Mediterranean Manolo begins to look for the handsome fur coat. Sadly, the two most readily available styles for the men are best described as the “Yukon Prospector” and the “Euro-Pimp Ski Trash”, neither of which suits nor excites the Manolo.

And thus you now understand why the Manolo prefers to live in the place where the temperatures rarely drop below the 60 degrees of Fahrenheit, because he is allergic to the way Gore-tex looks.

But there are many other peoples who love the frosty mornings, when the skin on their faces freezes to zippers of their puffy, down-filled plastic coats. Still, winter is not without its pleasures, chiefly among which are the joys of wearing furry boots while imagining that you are Julie Christie waiting for Dr. Omar Zhivago to arrive at your secret winter dacha.

Here is the Cate the Great from the Sorel. Not exactly Dr. Zhivago-ish, but still cute, fun, and extremely practical for dealing with the frigid Midwestern winters.

Manolo says, it is Tuesday, only the second week of November, and already you feel as if you have been sucked into the annual holiday season whirlpool; swirling, swirling, swirling around the giant vortex of seasonal merriment and angst. Any second, you will be dragged down below the surface of normality by the combined forces of heirloom turkeys, two kinds of stuffing, homemade pies, Black Friday shopping, nativity pageants at the church, and the Santy Claus.

You will struggle valiantly against it, but it is inevitable. Your holiday fate is sealed.

One minute all will be normal, and the next, as sanity leaves your body, you will be frantically searching for the silver nonpareils to adorn the twenty dozen Xmas-tree-shaped cookies you have vowed to bake for the firemen who extinguished Gary’s Camero last year.

No, you do not need to bake these cookies. Undoubtedly, the fireman at the station are still enjoying some of the 20 dozen cookies you delivered last year.

“But, it’s now a tradition,” you say to no one in particular, “every year since 2010 we’ve baked cookies for the firemen.”

And, this is the strongest evidence that you are in the center of the holiday vortex, when time and space warp. Things that appear insane to those standing outside the vortex, seem perfectly normal to those aswirl in the center.

“I think I’ll volunteer to make all the costumes for the Nativity pageant,” you announce to the candy novelties in the baking aisle as the supermarket, “I know where to find real goose feathers for the angel wings.”

No. You do not know where to find real goose feathers for the angel wings. And it is utter madness to think that you do.

“Wouldn’t it be great if the whole family dressed in the same pajamas on Christmas morning,” you say to the steering wheel, “I bet I can find something on sale at the Big Lots.”

Ayyyyy!

Look, in your final moments of sanity… gorgeous boots!

The Ferruccia Suede Knee High Boots from the B. Brian Atwood. Gorgeous and not at all insane.

Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

This past weekend’s early snowstorm has made me realize that I need to get going on my winter wardrobe. Specifically, I need some new winter boots, preferably not black. I find that when I dress in dark colors, I’m more depressed. Please help.

Megan

Manolo says, yes, it is true, unless you are the tuxedo-wearing bandleader, the brooding French grandee, or the vampire, newly wakened from the grave, somber black is not always the most flattering color.

Ayyyy! The Manolo has just had the perfect idea for the hit movie: the undead, aristocratic French vampire, who falls in love with the big band music! Think of it as the Count of Monte Cristo meets the Count of Dracula meets the Count of Basie!

Scene: Midight. Alleyway behind the Transylvania Club:

Count Dantes, the brooding and conflicted vampire, having just finished leading his group through the smoking set of big band standards, strides through the rain-slick alley dressed in the black overcoat, the black jeans, and the black cowboy boots. Next to him is Megan Star, the beautiful mortal he has recently hired to be his torch singer. Our heroine is dressed in the fawn-colored clothing, covered by the long shearling coat.

It is the study in contrasts. He, the loping black wolf. She, the innocent, possible prey. And yet, it is clear that the romantic attraction is growing between them.

Look! Here is the Frye Campus 14G Shearling boot, the perfect thing for dealing with possibly bad weather and possibly bad men.

Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

I am planning on showing solidarity with Occupy Wall Street this weekend and I am looking for a shoe that shows I am “of” the 99%, yet is stylish to be worn later in the evening to a casual cocktail party. What could you recommend?

Briana

Manolo says, ayyyy! This is the sort of question the Manolo dreads, in which the petitioner hopes to find the single pair of the shoes suitable for wearing to the two wildly different events.

For the example, “Dear Manolo, my new boyfriend, Clem, has finally agreed to go to see La Traviata, on the condition that we stop by his father’s shack on the way to the opera house to witness a traditional rural event known as a “hog killin’”. What would you recommend?”

The Manolo would recommend the new boyfriend, but, if such is not possible, then he would recommend packing your good clothing and nice shoes in the double-thickness plastic bags and changing into them later in the Stop-n-Go restroom.

In this case, however, given the reports of the poor sanitation at the OWS encampments and the possibility of rioting, the Manolo would recommend the wearing of the sturdy, thick-soled boots, but since his friend is going to the cocktail party afterward, she will have to take your chances with something slightly more refined. Here is the Nalanni from Ted Baker, the platform lace-up bootie that will keep you both radically chic and out of the muck.

Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

In mid-November, I’m attending a wedding in Montreal. I’ve already got my shoes for the ceremony and the reception picked out, however, I need something both stylish and warm to wear around town, while I’m there. What do you suggest?

Meryl

Manolo says, the last time the Manolo visited Quebec, it was the few years ago, in the February, when the weather was clear, beautiful and freezingly cold, with the outside temperature hovering somewhere around seven thousand degrees below zero.

Of the course, this did not dissuade the Quebecois from racing their mobiles of snow through the woods at all hours of the day, wide-open throttle in one hand, semi-frozen Molsen beer in the other.

But such hardy outdoor pastimes are not for the Manolo. who, like the iguana, is the warm weather creature, one which prefers basking himself on the rock in the sun to having parts of his nose fall off from the icy bite of Señor Jack Frost.

But, to each his own, eh? Far be it from the Manolo to suggest that people who race snowmobiles and voluntarily eat the cheese-curd-gravy-and-french-fried dish known as poutine may in some way be slightly off.

Here is the Aprelle from Ugg, the wedge-heeled shearling boot that will keep you looking good and feeling warm until spring.

Manolo says, from Aquinas:

Pulchritudo non habet rationem appetibilis nisi inquantum induit rationem boni: Sic enim et verum appetibile est: Sed secundum rationem propriam habet claritatem

Our friend Eco says that this is Aquinas’s proof that beauty, goodness, and truth are “equivalent and convertible”.

But, the Manolo does not need the Aquinas, nor the Eco, to know this.

All the humble shoeblogger must do to understand that truth and beauty and goodness are the same is gaze upon this…

The pointy-toed suede snkle boot from the Maestro Manolo Blahnik.