I don’t know about you, Ped fans, but when the trees lose their leaves and the temperature drops, I need something special to put the zip back in my step. Fortunately, a big box of Trippen has just arrived at Ped central! Those award-winning designers in Berlin know just how to liven up grey days with fun and funky footwear! But Trippen’s shoes and boots go beyond edgy and artistic; they’re also supremely comfortable, and most are cut to accommodate cozy socks.

Our latest shipment includes both old favorites and new styles to brighten your fall and winter! Here are a few ways Trippen will have you skipping through the chilly days ahead:

If you’re looking for a boot that’s understated and versatile, but also a little different, Trippen’s wonderful new Nightingale is just the thing:

This boot’s deliciously soft nubuck is further textured by a few carefully placed folds sewn along a seam near the back. The wine color is rich, but the detail we love is the zingy red zipper running up the inside of the shaft! It’s just a little detail, but it brings so much to the party.

Like the Nightingale, the go-anywhere Apart Bootie is also built on Trippen’s super light “cups” rubber sole. (You have to wear it to believe how comfortable it is!)

Big bang for your boot buck, the oh-so-supple Apart offers several ways to wear it: pulled up, scrunched down, or folded over into a cuff!

Offering options in a different way is Trippen’s Bomb Bootie:

This little beauty comes with both brown AND black straps that let you cinch up the ankle just the way you like it. Change them out as your fancy strikes you—or go strapless! The Bomb comes in the great espresso brown pictured above, as well as in matte black! It is THE BOMB!

Another terrific black ankle boot is Trippen’s new Fox:

Such a cutie!!! This innovative style pays homage to the lace-up oxford but raises the style ante with a supple gaiter that forms a loose ruffle around the ankle. Both funky and feminine, the foxy Fox stands on Trippen’s comfortable t-shaped rubber wedge!

We’ve also brought back the boot that won everyone’s heart last year: the Holy!

Those swooping exposed seams and the way the ankle strap laces through and around the upper make us sigh with love! So funky yet utterly wearable!

For those of you who want a jolt of color, check out Trippen’s Blackbird (cousin of the Nightingale above):

How luscious is that blue? Note the folds in the supple nubuck that radiate from the top of the heel to the seam that sinuously curves from the inside ankle over the foot to the outside edge. Such artistry!

If you want something even bolder, Trippen has just the ticket: the Mild Bootie. It’s our favorite!

Red hot! Definitely more wild than mild, this boot will have everyone talking! Buckle up because you’ll be the center of attention everywhere you go! (We also have the Mild in black for you fans of all things noir.)

These are just the tip of the iceberg of Trippen styles that will have you looking both cooler than cool and hotter than hot, no matter how wintry the day!

(By the way, this week’s Sweet Treat is also a bonfire of hotness: Vialis’ Marguerita Boot! Simply click “be sweet to your feet” in the upper right corner of any Ped page to arrive at the Marguerita with the discount code that will bring 20% at checkout!)

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Wonderful Ped customer Patrice is so smitten with her Trippen Casanova that she confesses she rarely spends a day without “him.” Although she’s had many adventures with her Casanova, she recently wrote to tell us about a visit to the Seattle Art Museum:

Being of Spanish (Catalan) descent, when the Picasso (a Catalan) exhibit arrived at the SAM, we were ecstatic! My mom (the Catalan) actually scheduled her trip to Seattle so that she could see the show. As an artist myself, I’m often fascinated with the person behind the art. So, as we wandered through the crowded but luminous exhibit, I found myself gravitating to a hall where Picasso’s old black and white photos stood by themselves, revealing a small window into his personal life. In one particular photo, he stood proudly in front of his many canvases stacked carelessly against a wall, wearing his trademark striped boatneck fisherman’s shirt and short pants. As I got closer to examine every detail, my husband pointed to Picasso’s slipper shoes and said: “His shoes look almost like yours!”

I was wearing my Casanovas – which is fitting since Picasso himself was considered quite the Casanova!!

Patrice out for a stroll in her Trippen Casanova!

I don’t mind in the least that my shoes are reminiscent of an extraordinary male artist. It made me love them (and him) all the more. For me, I find romance in these shoes, hence my adoration—so befitting of the name.

Wonder if Picasso's shoes were as comfortable and loved as Patrice's Casanova?

Thanks, Patrice! We’re thrilled when Ped’s “works of art” go out and about in the art world! For letting us imagine Picasso wearing a pair of Trippen shoes, we’re delighted to give Patrice $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, there’s no Sweet Treat this week because we’re celebrating PED’S 18TH BIRTHDAY!!! Whoop it up with us by getting 20% off ANY full-price item when you enter “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” at checkout from October 19-24! PARTY ON, PED FANS!)

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Ped fans, I hope you’re enjoying drooling over all the new styles we’ve been adding to the site. We’re posting shoes and boots as fast as we can unpack the boxes pouring into the warehouse!

Of course, sometimes we have to stop and simply admire the gorgeousness of all the designs! The materials this season are to die for! We’re especially excited about the resurgence of suede! It’s so nice to reach down and feel its delicious softness on your feet.

Here are just a few of the wonderful suede styles that have us oohing and aahing (and petting the shoes!) at Ped HQ.

Since they’re French, it’s no surprise that Accessoire excels in creating chic designs out of luxurious suede. Case in point, the Okinawa:

Ooh la la—emerald green suede in a re-imagined mary jane accented by a fleurette on the toe? Color me love-struck! (Plus, the suede-covered platform sole is so modern!)

Another charmer from Accessoire is the versatile Odin:

We adore all the richly colored suede shoes and boots this season, but everybody needs a basic black shoe! And as the fun and feminine Odin proves, basic does not have to be boring!

On the other hand, when it’s time to step out and make a statement, you can always count on Chie Mihara to offer a sensational way to do it—this season in suede:

Oh my! We think you’ll agree Chie has really outdone herself with the drop-dead gorgeous Frunera heel! We are down for the count for this beauty in knockout red suede, but Ped also offers the Frunera in seductive navy suede.

If you’re looking for a great pair of suede boots, this is definitely your year! There are so many great ones from which to choose, like Chie’s Xolita:

We love everything about this lace-up, from the pinked edges of the placket to the combination of grommets and hooks to Chie’s famously comfortable anatomical footbed!

Coclico is another line that has the suede ankle boot down to a science! How beautifully designed is this Neale?

So sophisticated! Hidden elastic under the cuff makes for a glove-like fit, and the wooden sole is both modern and comfortable.

Another luscious suede number from Coclico is the Rilke:

Grey is the go-to neutral this season, and the Rilke’s particular shade is simply lovely. Plus, the feminine tie at the back of the ankle adds the perfect detail!

Of course, Fiorentini + Baker includes suede in its lineup of boots for fall. We are especially smitten with F+B’s suede version of the Ella Boot:

We love a boot that offers options, and the Ella gives you the choice of wearing it zipped up to mid-calf height or unzipped slightly and folded down to make a cuffed low boot! (The back zipper is so sexy!)

But for sheer beauty and turn-every-head impact, the clear winner in the suede boot category is Vic Matie’s Chloe:

WOW! This beautifully made boot makes us eager for chilly days because its faux fur lining is so inviting! We like how you can let it peek out at the top! Meanwhile the strap spiraling around your calf and ankle gives this boot unmistakable style. Truly a suede boot to treasure!

And there are many more touchable suede boots and shoes waiting to be admired at Ped’s main site! This season the cutting edge is oh so soft!

(Psst, this week’s Sweet Treat is Cydwoq’s all-occasion Textile flat! Click “be sweet to your feet” in the upper right corner of any Ped page to be transported to the Textile with the magic code that will get you a sweet 20% off at  checkout!)

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For the longest time, pointy toes, high heels, and frou-frou dominated the catwalk. Girly girls rejoiced, but the rest of us said, “So fussy…” and “Ow!” Happily, the pendulum is now swinging the other way—the classic oxford is the coolest shoe going (this year worn laceless if you’re on the cutting-edge), and a clear masculine influence is everywhere on the runway.

But the new menswear-inspired shoes go beyond just tomboy appeal—these designs are devoted to modern women who need to go, go, go but who want to look stylish getting from here to there. Here are a few of Ped’s latest ways to do just that:

Chie Mihara always excels at putting a feminine and modern spin on classic styles. Case in point: the Darrer, Chie’s contribution to the laceless look:

So fun and super chic! The boys may have inspired the oxford, but the metallic leather and heel are just for us gals! Think how great this laceless beauty would look with a pencil skirt!

We are always begging Rafi and Ari at Cydwoq to rework some of their men’s designs for women. When they indulge us, the results are predictably fantastic, as demonstrated by the Date:

I couldn’t resist this one and got it for myself! I’ve hardly taken it off since i first laced it up! I’m a skirt-wearing kind of gal, and the Date is so flirty with my knee-length, A-line numbers!

Meanwhile, Ped’s Laura has a big crush on the Cydwoq Collect:

What a fantastic shoe! The woven brown leather is eye-opening and will have everyone talking! And the western-style buckle provides the perfect accent, as well as a custom fit.

Speaking of fun details, take a look at Cydwoq’s new Legal:

J’adore! This knockout flat calls to mind a classic golf shoe, with its smashing front flap punctuated by a central rivet. But the Legal is so much cooler than anything that’s ever hit the links and features “aging” grey leather that darkens with wear.

Cydwoq also uses “aging” grey leather in the Recent, which offers a hep-cat take on the interplay of masculine and feminine:

We love the fluid insets on the heel and toe. Plus, this loafer-like flat is a cinch to slip on and off, thanks to the artistic elastic lacing!

It’s not only shoes that are benefitting from putting a little male in the mix—check out the fabulous Deform ankle boot from Cydwoq:

When you buckle up this bootie, you are instantly going to become the object of envy for everyone who sees you! Definitely badass in the best kind of way!

We love all the different ways the above designs put an infusion of femme into traditionally male shoes, but if you simply want a timeless oxford, Fiorentini + Baker’s Eliza is the straight-up, gold standard:

So gorgeous. So comfortable. So beautifully made! And it looks GREAT with everything!

Sure, menswear is the inspiration for this new crop of wonderful shoes, but it’s the feminine twist that makes them must-haves! Classic sophistication was never so much fun—or such a treat to wear!

(By the way, this week’s Sweet Treat is Trippen’s incredibly comfortable  Sioux. Simply click “be sweet to your feet” in the upper right corner of an Ped page to land at the Sioux with the discount code that will bring 20% off at checkout!)
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Yesterday I told you about the social side of my March trip to Paris and Milan. Today I’ll fill you in on the trends and style statements I saw at shoe shows in France and Italy. Ped fans, you have a lot to look forward to in the fall! But the GREAT news is Ped is on its game—much of what will be all the rage in a few months is already on the shelves at the Ped warehouse!

Perhaps the most noticeable trend was FUR! It was everywhere—on shoes, on boots, on vests, hanging off of bags, more than I’ve ever seen. Just to whet your appetite, I ordered a version of Cydwoq’s gorgeous Podium boot with fur panels.

That said, ankle boots will continue to hold court next season, so our current version of the Podium is also right on trend:

Cydwoq’s 2″ resin heel is perfect since flats and low heels are going to be in vogue.

If you want to get a jump on the flat bootie trend, consider Vic Matie’s Euro-chic Luisa:

Another trend with staying power is men’s oxfords for women, such as Fiorentini + Baker’s terrific Eliza Oxford:

People were not only wearing their oxfords without socks in Paris and Milan, but fashionistsas were also wearing oxfords and boots with laces and buckles completely undone. All the Japanese buyers were rocking the deconstructed laceless and unbuckled look! If you have a size 36 or 37 foot, you can get ahead of the curve with the Vialis Mila, which Ped currently has on sale. (Lucky you!)

Innovative leather treatments are also going to be a hallmark of next season. Get an eyeful of the variety Cydwoq had on offer to retailers:

Ped fans can also look forward to eye-popping patterned leathers from Chie Mihara and jewel-toned suedes from Accessoire.

Regarding color trends, the new black is definitely GREY, which was all over the place in Europe in all kinds of shades. You can show off your trend-setting savvy right now by stepping out in Vic Matie’s Allegra:

You’ll be doubly cutting-edge in this slate-grey beauty since wooden soles also hold sway next fall. Expect knockout wood-soled styles from Vialis and Ellen Verbeek, too.

Given the style forecast, if you’re fortunate enough to fit into one of our remaining pairs of Ellen Verbeek’s Elise Bootie (on sale!), you’ll be right on trend on three fronts simultaneously:

Simply remove the laces, and you’ll be ultra-chic with a laceless wood-soled bootie! What could be better? And everyone will admire you for being so in the know!

Of course, everyone at Ped Central is excited about the fantastic things I ordered for fall while in Paris and Milan. But I have to say we’re also feeling pretty sassy about having so many cutting-edge styles already in the house! Advantage: Ped fans!
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