(In Style Home, Spring 2006, I believe this is Mariah Carey’s closet)
Oh, according to my hubby, yes you can. But, at least I don’t have this many! 
Me and shoes go WAY back. My closet has always held its share of shoes, especially when I was younger. Now, I try to keep only the shoes that I know I will wear regularly and it’s still hard to pare them down. I have one of those shoe cubbies that holds 25 and it’s overflowing, so I really need to get in there and decide which ones to keep. I mean, how many pairs of black shoes do you need? Apparently, a lot. Casual, dressy, heels, flats, and everything in between.
So, I just added 3 more to the collection. A cute as a button pair of Cole Haan black and white flats. I wore flats years ago when they were really popular and now they are back again and looking really stylish, so I really needed a good pair (or 2) and with my love of all things black and white, these will be so versatile for the wardrobe. A TJ Maxx special, they were even on clearance for $25. You sure can’t beat that. 
Never one to like old lady shoes or those “comfort” shoes that so many older women wear, if a shoe looks strange on my foot, I am not gonna wear it. Pure and simple, I don’t care how comfortable it is, if it is clodhopper UGLY, there is no way in the world that I’m going to like myself in them. Are you like that too? Shoes can make or break an outfit. When I was in my 20’s, I couldn’t imagine ever wearing ugly shoes just for the sake of comfort, but now that I’m older, comfort has become more important with the bunions I’m now sporting (never thought that would happen either!). Even now, comfort does not totally override style and fashion. I still have to feel and look cute in them! Take for instance, the ever-popular Crocs. I think those are the ugliest shoes known to mankind. Now don’t take offense if you love them, that’s just my opinion.
This pair (above) I picked up at Rack Room and they are really comfortable. I’d never heard of the brand (Bjorndal), but they feel great on and they are just right for a casual look without looking old-lady. Perfect with jeans and I think they may become my favorite casual shoes. With socks in the winter, without in summer.
I couldn’t resist this pair of flat Aerosoles either, on clearance at TJ Maxx for $15. Whatta deal!
I’m not even going to count how many shoes I have, but it’s probably around 40 or so, counting the boots. I’m sure many of you have way more than that. Some of them have to go, my closet just isn’t big enough to keep hoarding them like I do, especially since I don’t wear them all.
So, do you love shoes too? Come on, fess up! Do you have a favorite brand of shoes (for comfort) and do you only wear shoes that you FEEL good in? How important are comfort AND looks? I’ve had great luck with Aerosoles for both style AND comfort and find them quite often at TJ Maxx.
So, go ahead and tell us how many pairs YOU have, while we’re talkin’! And excuse me, while I clean out my shoes to make room for 3 more.
Edited to add: Julia at Hooked on Houses is having her linky party today & since I seemed to be hooked on shoes, I’m adding this post. Go on over and take a look at all the other things people are hooked on!
I have tons of shoes. I’m like you though, and will probably never own a pair of crochs. The shoe can make or break an outfit and I’m all for looking good. I like comfort too but they have to be cute.
I love flip flops and I have them in all different colors. I do agree that it takes quite a few pairs of black shoes to be ready for any outfit! Love that closet!
-Kim
Love the peek inside your shoe closet, Rhoda. Does your post-title question even need to be asked??? Whatever it is that buying shoes satisfies in our female souls — Eternal optimism? Ability to buy something stylish and wonderful without having to stress over size? — we can’t get enough of it. Reminds me of the time I was driving home alone from Birmingham in a snowstorm and the thought of running off the icy road bothered me only because my husband would then discover the five boxes of new shoes in my trunk!
Your shoes are so cute! I love that second pair! 🙂
I love shoes, too! I am going to run out to my store to see if they have those Aerosoles! And my 9 y/o daughter had rather go down the shoe aisle than the toys:) It runs in the family!
Mariah’s shoe closet is bigger than my master bedroom. Can you imagine??
What a fun post, Rhoda. Thanks for linking up to my party today! 🙂
Rhoda,
My sentiments exactly – you can NEVER have too many shoes! Or bags! 😉 I adore your two-tone Cole Hann’s. So preppy! Looks so comfy.
Alisa
Shoes are good. Antiques are better! 🙂 I do love shoes, though.
XO,
Sheila
Hi Rhoda, Loved this post and I am a black and white shoe girl.My all time favorite shoe was a cute little white flat with the black patent toe.I wore that shoe with everything.It is long gone because of a lot of wear and I just went through the threshold where I won’t buy it if it is not comfy,at least for everyday. Now I will buy special occasion shoes that I call my walk-in and sit down shoes,you know the kind that look amazing but Lordy, Let me sit down,Please! As far as the numbers go I would venture to say it is somewhere in the middle of most of your readers but way more than hubby thinks I should have. Afterall I went to school in the 60s when our shoes matched our outfit and our purse matched our shoes,now that is when I had a lot of shoes but that was on Mom and Dads Dime.Oh those were the good old days! Kathysue, Miscasastyle.com
Hey Rhoda,
I too have lots of shoes. Here’s my dilemma. We are building a house right now. I am trying to decide the best way to organize my shoes. Do you have your shoes organized in your closet or are you like me and have them on shelves, on the floor and thrown everywhere? I want to get my shoes under control and I want to be able to see what I’m looking for instead of getting on my hands and knees and searching.
I think I will go and post about this. Thanks for the inspiration.
Deb
Love Cole-Haan’s — hand’s down, THE most comfortable shoes out there that still look cute!
You can never have enough shoes! I got some excellent pairs of Comfort Shoes from the Orthotic Shop.
I love shoes! The unfortunate thing is that my feet are small and I wear a children’s size. I just can’t find great styles.
I, too, am a shoe~a~holic. As a matter of fact, I post a shoe of the week on my blog. Believe it or not, one week, a croc made the cut! My favorite shoes (I own) are my Timberland boots. I wear them in any season.
Hi Rhoda,
I loved this post, and I love those Cole Haan shoes!
Here in Canada, we don’t have $25 pair Cole Haans, let me tell you. At the least, I’d be paying $100 for those at a chain called Winners – I don’t know if you have that store in the US, but it’s good for marked-down designer stuff.
Ciao for now,
Jo
I adore shoes. I have about 30 pairs. I’d probably have more if I had more storage space, but alas, sharing a tiny Brooklyn closet with my husband does not allow this. I actually just recently purged a few pairs I didn’t wear very often to make room for a few new ones.
In reality, I could probably make do with about 10 pairs (plus my running shoes), but what fun would that be? 🙂
— BrooklynChick