Of course, I'd always go outside in the spring and summer first, very early (I used to be a child who woke up at 6:30 am on the dot every morning, no matter what...of course, I also couldn't stay awake past 10 pm. Made New Year's Eve my least favorite holiday). I wanted to see what had come up in the garden overnight, and take a quiet moment to wander around barefoot in the grass and take in my share of sunlight and green for the day. I thrive on green-- when I don't get enough of it, like visiting New Mexico or something (no offense New Mexico!) I get literally depressed and weary.
And yes, I'd be barefoot. My mother used to despair of keeping me in shoes. She still scolds me when I try to go outside barefoot in the winter. Ah well. Some things don't change. I did tell you the story of when I feel asleep reading outdoors tucked in a wheelbarrow, yes? I swear I'm part gnome. Or hobbit.
But I do like shoes. I don't own fifty million pairs of them, mostly because, when I buy a pair of shoes, I expect them to last a long time. I'm also pretty thrifty. I won't spend a lot of money (like, more than $10) on shoes unless I think they're really and truly worth it. My hand-made leather boots that I wear when I'm working at Renaissance Festivals (do you know what a Renaissance Festival is? If you've never been, you have to visit one! All my Atlantians here are within 40 minutes of the Georgia Faire, fondly known as GARF, which opens in mid-April) were nearly $200 (which is a steal for hand-made leather boots!). They've got a 20 year guarantee on them, if you take care of them. And they're invaluable to me as working shoes. These things are stylish and epic and comfortable for staying on your feet for 10 hours at a time. They're also heavy duty-- once you've got them on your feet, they're not coming off until you take them off!
Another brand of leather moccasin that I dream of in the Ren-Faire circuit would cost me $1,200 to get my custom designed dream pair. I'll wait till I win the lottery for those.
But I recently discovered a type of leather boot-moccasin that wouldn't cost me both legs to purchase a pair (which would rather defeat the purpose, wouldn't it?). This maker, Gipsy Dharma, creates hand-crafted leather shoes with hand-dyed leather, should you care for leopard print or 'galaxy' designed boots. And they are beautiful! I fell in love just by seeing an add for them on Facebook and have been pouring through the catalog ever since. Tons of laces and leather, ankle, knee-high, over-the-knee (which is my favorite, personally). Colors from staid tan and black to hot pink and mauve! And they're all priced between $200 and $400. For hand-made leather boots, as I said-- that's really not unreasonable. My twin sister has worked selling hand-crafted leather shoes at the Georgia Renaissance Festival for many years, so I've seen styles and quality come and go. Besides, some designer boots come with a fourth of this material and cost twice as much. Enough said.
I must have a pair of these shoes. I mean, look at these things!! (The Black Over-the-Knee is my personal favorite...I bet they'd look epic with a set of teal or maroon laces!!) But what's really cool about these boots is that you don't have to do those laces every time you put them on. They have a cleverly hidden zipper. Functional and epic!
You should check out her website or her Facebook Page. She's always got something new going on, whether it be giveaways or new designs or reviews. Me, I'm sold already. I don't need any more advertising or persuasion. You've got me!
In a pair of these, I will gladly let my wild feet be shod!
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