On wedding shoes...

Choosing a pair of shoes for my wedding has been one of the more difficult decisions I've made so far. Food, venue, reception location - those were all easy choices compared to this one. Even with an amazing pair of never-worn Dior heels in my closet, my mind isn't made up. They might - or might not - make it to the big day.

The choice has been harder because my dress is short and very non-traditional. (I can post this here because my fiance already knows I'm wearing something short, and I'm pretty sure he's not reading this anyway.) I'm accessorizing with a custom made belt and some bold jewelry. I haven't decided on a veil yet. But the whole reason for the short dress goes back to the shoes. I am all about the shoes. Always have been. (My favorite childhood movie wasn't "Cinderella" for nothing. Oh, to have my own pair of glass slippers!)

I've considered a number of shoes at Trocadero: Brian Atwood's "Dorian" still blows me away. Sadly, the purple is too bold for my look. (But wouldn't it be smashing for the bachelorette party?) Here its shown with some night on the town-ready accessories. I'm wearing a silver dress for the bachelorette; something dramatic like this would look amazing.

Trocadero has some more wedding-ready options. Brian's "Eta" and "Yasmine" which Alice has in a dusky grey suede and a dark grey satin, respectively, both have a lot going for them. Style, of course, but also comfortable heels, a bit of sparkle and a touch of glamorous old Hollywood that I just love. The "Yasmine" is pictured at left.

I spend a fair amount of time reading wedding-related blogs and Web sites and I've learned that traditional is definitely still the norm when it comes to most weddings. How a bride interprets "traditional," though, varies widely. For every bride I've seen in the long white dress with the cathedral length train, thre's a barefoot bride in a beachy sundress with flowers in her hair. For every Vera Wang and Manolo Blahnik-clad bride, there's a bride in a vintage lace dress wearing a simple ballet flat.

And another thing I've learned: I'm breaking some norms, but I'm nothing compared to the brides who do some serious tradition bucking. Brides in leopard? Check. Brides in black goth corsets with a groom in Marilyn Manson platform boots? Check. Brides in full on Renaissance-era regalia complete with sword-bearing groom and a white horse? Check.

It's fun - though sometimes overwhelming - to see what the thousands of other blogging brides did on their big days. What I'll end up wearing on my own wedding day remains to be seen. But whatever it turns out to be, I know it'll be perfect.