Sunday, May 10, 2009

J.Crew: Jenna's Picks - Bamboo Tassel Ballet Flats

The first of Jenna's Picks that is up for discussion are the Bamboo-Tassel Ballet Flats (item #15444), which retail for $158.  They are catalog and website only.

The perfect pair to add a little extra pep to your step in pretty new prints, just in time for summer. Silk (sweet papaya), cotton (papaya) or linen (navy) upper with grosgrain trim and a bamboo toggle bead. Twill lining. Leather footbed and sole. Made in Italy. Catalog/jcrew.com only.
This shoe comes in three different colors: sweet papaya, navy, and papaya (left to right), and each color is made out of a different fabric..  I have only ever ordered one pair of J.Crew ballet flats, and either I accidentally ordered the wrong size, or they sent me the wrong size (I think the former), and I'm on the fence about them.

It's really hard for me to make any kind of judgment on size, since mine are the wrong size, but my issue with the flats is that they are a little too unstructured for me.  My flats are a fabric flat, and I the footbed is a little narrower than I like.  That doesn't mean that the shoe itself is too narrow, but I don't feel like the footbed supports your entire foot (if that makes sense).  I'm not sure if having them in the right size would make a huge difference, but I prefer my flats to have a bit more support in them.

That said, I think the pattern is really cute, although I'm not the biggest fan of the papaya color.  I do like the other two colors, though.  My biggest issue with these flats is the price - I think $158 is a lot of money to spend on a pair of flats, especially because these seem almost too cute to wear.  I know that I would not get as much use out of these as I would like for a $158 pair of flats.

What do you think?  Do you like these flats?  What do you think of J.Crew's flats in general?  How much would you spend on a pair of flats?

Posted by JTS at 15:37  

Labels: , , ,

6 comments:

Julia May 10, 2009 at 3:39 PM  

Oh, I like the papaya ones the best! But not enough to spend $158 on flimsy fabric shoes...if they were like coated canvas or something I'd consider it. I feel like they'd get dirty within 10 seconds of wearing them outside!

toast May 10, 2009 at 3:54 PM  

$158 is a lot for fabric shoes, especially ones that look pretty delicate as it is. I'd be afraid that they'd stain and smell after a day out and about. I own a pair of the J.Crew's leather Liv flats, and those are super comfy. I wear them everywhere!

GingerSnap May 10, 2009 at 4:41 PM  

I tend to steer away from fabric / satin shoes. They just get too dirty, at any price.

Unknown May 10, 2009 at 5:07 PM  

I love Jenna's pick. Too bad there is an issue w/fit as fabric flats are often unstructured.

Petunia May 10, 2009 at 8:06 PM  

I think they are very pretty, but agree that the price is too steep for fabric. Maybe at half price?? ;-)

JTS May 14, 2009 at 9:57 PM  

@Julia - I would love flats like this in coated canvas - and the dirt factor was also another reason I wouldn't pick these up!

@toast - What are the Liv flats? I hardly ever wear shoes without some kind of sock or liner, (hence staying away from flats a lot), but I bet they would get kinda of smelly, like you said, especially in the summer!

@GingerSnap - I do, too - I only get satin shoes for formal occasions, and most of them are slightly stained, too :(

@Gigi - I agree - that's why I usually stay away from flats in general!

@Petunia - Yes, at least half the price! I would love to see Payless make a copy of these shoes, then they would be like 1/10 of the price :)

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)