My perfect summer sandals

Since the end of last week when the BlOGGER login issues forced me to use Firefox which proved somewhat painful, I've been totally lazing off the blog over the last few days and I feel guilty for it. Truth is I'm a lazy person by nature (guilty as charged) and it's no good for me to take a break from something that is not my job (as in smth I'm being paid for) since it does no good for my motivation. But again - it's all BLOGGER's fault!

Anyways, now that I'm officially back into action, I will try to make extra effort bringing in some cool content and I'll start by showing off my new shoes! I've been looking for new sandals for some time now, and when I stumbled upon this pair at OYSHO last week at ATHENS MALL - it was love at first sight.

Here are several reasons why the shoes are perfect: they are wedges (exactly what I wanted), they are also clogs (which I also wanted), they are very medium height - which means I don't need to calculate exactly how much time I plan to spend on foot before putting them on, end - they were only 40 Euros, which means I can still get a new pair of flat sandals that I also really want without feeling like I'm spending too much.

To be honest I'm lusting over some block-color wedges too - I'm totally loving this trend, and who knows, I might just give in to it. But the classic brown leather goes with pretty much everything and until I can afford a giant wardrobe that some lucky ladies have - I'm gonna stick with practical approach to fashion.

Honesty in online shopping

I fell in love with those FREE PEOPLE wedges the moment I saw them. I'm currently looking for a pair of wedges anyway, and those were some of the coolest sandals are saw so far, plus the price, Euro 62.35 fit in my price range just fine. And I might have already gone ahead and ordered them had I not spotted the "Reviews & Fitting" section, containing 2 comments. The first review was mild, though not especially favorable; the second was quite negative, criticizing a number of QUALITY aspects, and both ended with the authors claiming they'd be returning the shoes.

Naturally that cooled down my excitement, especially considering that I'm generally cautious about buying SHOES online - it's so unpredictable when it comes to feet! But at the same time I couldn't help thinking how thankful I was to Free People for not only allowing comments on their product pages, but also NOT deleting the negative ones! ONLINE shopping is a tricky world, full of possible mishaps, and it's nice when someone gives you a warning.

Of course there is every possibility that the 2 commentators were not truly honest, just feisty or annoyed with the store for whatever reason. But if they were right, they possibly saved me time and disappointment since I'm not a big fan of returning goods do the store, especially by mail and especially in Greece were the post office is only open 5 days a week till 2 p.m. I wish more ONLINE SHOPS where like Free People, but not likely - who wants bad publicity?

STYLE OBSESSION: Allegiance to the flag

In general, wearing a country's flag should be seen as an indication of the person's patriotism, however it's been long since American and British flags have become a symbol of the free-spirited, rebellious styles that were born in those countries and then spread across the globe. Flag prints seem especially hot this season - even Balmain included a number of American flag-printed tops into its wild spring collection. So I believe a printed-top such as the one from Zara or ASOS, shorts from Topshop and a pair of American flag Converse could fit in my casual summer wardrobe just fine!

ZARA

TOPSHOP

ASOS

CONVERSE

DR. MARTENS

BALMAIN

BLANCO

TOPSHOP

SASS&BIDE

May rains in Athens...

This quick creation was inspired by a heavy downpour that hit Athens late morning today. Spring rains are tricky - they often come unannounced and get you soaked before you know what's going on and then, just as suddenly, the sun is back on - as if nothing had happened. So, specially for such weather, I'd get armed with a hooded rain jacket, classic wellies and an umbrella - and once the rain is over - the floral dress is there to take in the sun.

May rain in Athens by AlexMatoshko featuring a bubble dome umbrella

Samos Diary: Day 2

Our Monday in SAMOS started with a traditionally late coffee drinking at our favorite cafe, followed by a short ride to a quiet and deserted spot by the sea, and then - by a very enjoyable meal at a taverna on the Samos seafront. The late lunch featured lots of Ouzo (traditional Greek anise-based alcohol drink, served with ice and cold water) - hence some of the crazier pics you may see below :)

My spring shoe cravings: Aldo, Zara and Manolos

Here I posted a number of shoes I'm craving after this spring - and hopefully one or two pairs of those will actually end up in my collection sometime soon. As you can see this spring I'm mostly after clogs and wedges, including wedge shoes which I never found attractive before, but Aldo made me change my mind.

So let's start will ALDO:

Now, some ZARA:

And finally, a few MANOLO BLAHNIKs as pure springy ice candy:

Aldo spring 2011 shoes & accessories lookbook

I already once mentioned how I miss ALDO shops - they have them in Kyiv, where I used to live, but not in Greece where I am now. I know I can still shop online, but it's not the same. I like to try things on - especially when it comes to shoes, and most of all I just like being at an Aldo store - especially a big one, where you can find dozens of delicious-looking pairs -from latest arrivals to last season's leftovers with great deals on them plus bags, purses, sunglasses etc. For the time being, however, all I can do is enjoy those pics from the latest ad campaign for ALDO's spring/summer 2011 collection of shoes and accessories: adore those crazy platforms and colourful clutches.