Cinderella never had problems...

...finding the right shoe. She had a fairy Godmother who knew her size and the perfect glass slippers for her ball. You might argue to say she did spent years tending to her ugly stepsisters and stepmother after her Pa passed on but considering that she managed to land Prince Charming, I figure it wasn't such a bad deal.

Uhh..right where was I? Shoes. More specifically - how do I find a pair of shoes that not only complement my Wedding Dress but are beautiful to look at, are high enough to give the illusion of supermodel legs (awww...I know it isn't possible but a girl can try!) and are comfortable enough that I can dance the night (okay, maybe just stand) away in them?

I started trawling through my bridal magazines...before this, I hardly looked at pictures of shoes, but all of a sudden, I became obsessed with what every single person was wearing on their feet. First was of course, how high I wanted to go with heels...I decided, heck, it's my wedding, I want to pretend I have long legs...so as high as I can possibly go without limping! Then, there was the decision of whether I wanted bridal shoes (i.e. shoes that matched the dress) or non-bridal shoes which I could wear again. I came to the conclusion that it really depended how much I would spend on the shoes. If I was going to spend a good sum on it, I had better be able to wear it again and again and again. So that meant I had to either get coloured shoes (some brides have a pop of colour on their feet to go with their theme), metallic shoes (silver or gold) or blingy shoes (Swarowski crystals or rhinestones). Next, strappy, court or peep toe? The options were endless!

My first stop on the Internet was Rainbow Club as it had very affordable (the Rainbow Club line was all priced below £70, Rainbow Couture line was a bit more expensive but not beyond £150) and quite pretty bridal shoes. What really amazed me was also the fact that Rainbow Club provided a colour dyeing service so you can actually dye your shoes to match any swatch of material. Pretty handy when you're trying to match the colour of your bridesmaids dresses to their shoes. Here are some bridal pairs which I thought were quite pretty.

Rainbow Couture, Tesi RRP £125. Uncomfortable as shoes padding was non-existent.

Diane Hassal, RRP £225. Didn't get to try this pair. Love the simple detail.

After having an initial look, I decided I quite like peep toed shoes. Didn't really fancy the court shoes as they seemed a little formal. Thought strappy shoes were a little too informal...something in between seemed like a good idea! I decided to take a look at some Jimmy Choos and Christian Louboutins as I figured, I would never spend that sort of money on shoes normally, what better time to start than on your wedding day?

Jimmy Choo has a bridal collection, and I sauntered over to their flagship store on Sloane Street to shimmy in some bridal Choos. After all, Mr Choo is a Malaysian designer! Yes, I know he sold of his brand but still....I remember my excitement when slipping on the first pair...and then proceeding to take a walk in them. I was promptly disappointed! Choos are not as comfortable as I had imagine them to be. Beautiful shoes but I was wincing as I gingerly walked (ok tippy-toed) around the shop. Maybe it was because the shoes were too narrow for my wide size 3 to 3.5 feet. Maybe it was because the heel was at least 3 inches high. Either way, I slipped off the Choos and thought, there is no way I'd pay £500 for a pair of shoes that would make me weep all the way to the altar. Having said that, there were some shoes that were lovely thought not quite pretty enough for me to part with my moolah. Plus, service was relatively crap. Did it have something to do with the fact that I was wearing jeans and a t-shirt and NOT carrying a branded hand bag? Perhaps.

Jimmy Choo, RRP £495. Delicate satin peep-toes with exquisite vintage lace and silver thread detail. Bridal range was quite limited though.

I quite fancied some Choos that were not from their bridal range, here was a pair that was fairly comfortable and quite blingy.

Jimmy Choos, Glitter Silver Sandals, RRP £400. Too narrow for my feet!

My shoe adventure continued with Christian Louboutin. I went to several outlets in London; Mount Street, Harvey Nichols and Selfridges. I have definitely fallen in love with Louboutins. They are amazingly beautiful shoes and once you've slipped one of them on, you feel like a celebrity (maybe because only celebs can afford these babies!). I must say the shoes felt so much better than the Choos (sorry!) and I much prefer the workmanship as well. Having said that, there is a limited number of sizes for each shoe and Louboutins are expensive. It would be good to go to all their branches as each store stocks different lines. Here are some that I tried on and really liked:

Christian Louboutin, Canonita RRP £1,295. My favourite and possible dream shoes. So comfortable, a great complement to my dress. But really £1,295?!! Practicality won over desire. Thanks goodness.

Christian Louboutin, Fifi, RRP approximately £2,000. Has any shoe glittered as much in such an understated way? No. Has any other shoe made me openly gasp and go WOW? No. I comforted myself by reminding me that I wanted peep toes (and of course there's no way I would pay £2,000 for a pair of shoes, are you insane?!). 

I brought myself back down to earth and considered my other more affordable and realistic options. (Just yesterday my good friend corrected my pronounciation of Louboutins...surely I don't deserve to own Louboutins if I'm not eloquent enough to say the name!) I read about an Italian designer for bridal shoes, Aruna Seth and saw a picture of these lovely ivory peep toes in a magazine. I thought they would be a good bet but when I actually went to Brown's Bride to try them on, I realised they didn't look as good on my feet in real life. Very comfortable though!

Aruna Seth, Farfalla Ivory Satin, RRP £470. Not as pretty in real life!

To be honest, from the very start, I found a pair of shoes that were reasonably priced and felt rather comfortable (it's so hard to tell if you have them on for just ten minutes!) when I went to Bridal Rogue Gallery on Chiltern Street to look at some Rainbow Couture shoes. They were a pair of Benjamin Adams shoes that I thought, wow these are rather affordable, pretty and comfortable peep toes! As a result, after my adventure with the other brands, I came back to Bridal Rouge Gallery for the fourth time to look at the shoes again and finally decided to buy them...

Benjamin Adams, Astor. No no, didn't buy this one but quite liked these too!

Benjamin Adams, Charlize (after the actress?) - Ta-da! My Wedding Shoes!!!

Funnily enough, the very first pair I tried on. Definitely blingy enough to set my simple dress off. Have bought them online as I found a website that was selling them for 10% off! Haven't arrived though, and I'm feeling a little worried as they have taken the money from my credit card. The hidden platform really makes me a lot taller and feels (for ten minutes anyway) very comfortable. Best part is I can wear these again when I go out! I think definitely great value for money and maybe one day...I will own a pair of Louboutins! So dear Reader, I have found my wedding day shoes! Fingers crossed they arrive soon...