The women, aged 29 and 25, made a film of their “animal crushing” exploits, having been promised a considerable amount of money for the video by an unnamed man. The women not only stepped on mice, but also two lizards and three geckos, and ran over 12 mice in a car on the video. They also filmed themselves burning mice with lit cigarettes.

The 29 year old woman was sentenced to a suspended sentence of nine months, and told to pay €500 to an animal protection organization. Her 25 year old friend is missing and could not be sentenced. No information is available about the man who was paying the two women to make the video as he is facing charges in a different case. The 29 year old claims that she did not torture the animals for fun, rather that she needed the money that she had been promised in order to move to the US and study business. Her dreams have been shattered as she is no longer allowed to enter the US.

We have heard of many strange ways drug traffickers try to smuggle drugs into other countries, but just recently we read a story of one using high heels!

A four month investigation revealed that a 34-year-old man and his 24-year-old wife, both Colombian, headed up a ring of six members who were smuggling cocaine from Colombia to Spain in the form of fake Manolo heels. They molded paste-like cocaine into the shape of a shoe and slapped it with the designer Manolo Blahnik’s label. When the sexy stilettos arrived in Spain, the paste shoe would be returned to white powder form and sold for a street value of around $69,000 per pair. A total of $630,000 worth of cocaine was ceased from this ring.
Two of the smugglers attempted to get away and were apprehended after a high-speed car chase.

In the past, Spanish police have discovered cocaine shipments disguised as replica sculptures, a plaster cast protecting a man’s broken leg, and even a 42-piece tea set.

We would also like to apologize for the lack of recent posts. We have been busy updating our inventory and adding many new styles to our store. We have added many new high heel shoes and boots from several manufacturers, including many styles from the Betty Page collection. As we continue to add new product to our store, it is our goal to resume posting discussions to our blog that we think you may find of interest.

Will women wearing high heels in Moscow, Russia become a thing of the past? In an effort to "Europeanize" Moscow, they have begun to rip up and replace the sidewalks in the city center. This may not be too handicapped friendly either.

“The saddest thing of all is that spike heels, which Moscow women wore in any weather, will most likely disappear into history,” wrote Nikolai Uskov, the editor of the Russian edition of GQ magazine, in a blog post last week.
Young women left to swelter in sticky Moscow had suddenly taken to flats or wedges that better negotiated the gaps around the bricks. Although this is much more recommended footwear for traveling to work or other places by foot, it does create hassle for those who just can bear to go out without putting on a pair of high heels!
Many citizens agree that the tile looks more attractive than asphalt, but it is forcing many of the rollerskaters from the sidewalks to the streets. This is good news for many pedestrians.
62% of Muscovites are in favor of the new tile sidewalks.

A court ruling today refused to grant a preliminary injunction requested by Christian Louboutin against Yves Saint Laurent alleging trademark infringement on shoes that featured red soles suspiciously similar to those of Louboutin’s. The decision not only cleared the way for YSL to continue producing its shoes, but also seemed to give coverage to other shoe manufacturers who may want to add a scarlet underpinning to their own future models.

The federal judge ruled that the trademark Louboutin obtained in 2008 for its “lacquered red soles” was “overly broad” and likely not protectable. The court ruled that allowing Louboutin to claim that scarlet sole as solely its own would have been like enjoining Monet from using a specific shade of blue in his Water Lilies series because Picasso had gotten there first with the paintings in his Blue Period. The parties have been ordered back to court next week.

We will continue to track this story and give updates on the outcome.

French footwear designer Christian Louboutin has filed a lawsuit against rival Yves Saint Laurent, a subsidiary of the Gucci Group, over the use of the color red on shoe soles. Louboutin launched his line of high-end women’s shoes in France in 1991. Since 1992, his designs have incorporated the shiny, red-lacquered soles that have  

become his signature. Since January 2011, Louboutin has requested YSL to stop selling red-soled shoes in the same boutiques in Manhattan as he does. He claims that as it is virtually identical to Louboutin’s use of the red-sole, it is likely to cause and is causing confusion, mistake and deception among the relevant purchasing public.

In 1992, Christian began incorporating the red sole into the design of all his footwear. Since then he has trademark the idea. To the right is displayed just one of Louboutin’s popular red lacquered high heel pumps. Styles such as these can fetch more than $1000 a pair!

To the left is a pair of Yves Saint Laurent red soled high heel pumps. Although the soles are red, they don’t appear to be much of a match of Louboutin’s use of red lacquer. It appears that YSL is actually matching the sole color to the shoe color on many styles, and not trying to impersonate or cause confusion. There are three styles in question — the Tribute, Palais and Woodstock. These styles also come in green and purple, with green and purple matching soles, respectively.

The law suit asks for a U.S. judge to impose $1 million in damages and order YSL to stop manufacturing similar designs.

Prepare to see alot of pink in 2011! "Honeysuckle" is the color of 2011. This was chosen by Pantone Color Institute, the company that largely sets color standards for the fashion and home industries.

A dynamic reddish pink, Honeysuckle is "encouraging and uplifting. It elevates our psyche beyond escape, instilling the confidence, courage and spirit to meet the exhaustive challenges that have become part of everyday life".

So if you are still looking for a last minute idea for Christmas, keep in mind that turquoise is out and honeysuckle is hot!  

The night of November 1, 2010, a Lancaster, PA man grabbed a pair of women’s high-heel shoes, put them on and walked out of a Park City Center store, police allege.

Eckman, 22, picked out a pair of Elle heels — which cost $69.99 — in the Kohl’s store, then he took them inside a men’s fitting room in the shoe department, where he put them on, city police said.

He then put the shoe box in a shopping bag and left the store. He was stopped outside Kohl’s wearing the size 10 heels. His own shoes were in the shoe box inside his shopping bag, police said.

Because he has two prior retail theft convictions, Eckman was charged with felony retail theft, police said. He also was charged with giving police a false name. He was arraigned and sent to Lancaster County Prison in lieu of $50,000 cash bail.

Did he not think he would draw attention wearing heels to begin with? And to try to get away running in heels? No offense intended, but yet another dumb criminal to go on the list.

As of Friday, October 1, 2010, New Yorkers can expect to pay higher prices at the register on clothing and footwear. A 4.375 percent tax is now being charged on these items that cost less than $110. This was put in place as an attempt to collect more revenue to help offset the state’s projected $8.2 billion deficit. For the next six months, all clothing and footwear purchased in the city will be charged the four-percent New York State sales and use tax, as well as an additional 3/8 percent Metropolitan Commuter Transportation District tax to benefit the MTA.

The exemption will return in April of 2011 through March of 2012, but only on clothing and footwear purchases less than $55. Unless another change to the law is passed, the under $110 exemption will be back for good on April 1, 2012.

They come in a variety of designs to cover the wide range of activities you would rather do barefoot — everything from fitness training and yoga, to running and trekking, to kayaking and sailing. In 2007, Time magazine named the shoe one of the year’s best health inventions. This year, a study by Harvard evolutionary biologists published in the journal Nature concluding that barefoot runners land on the balls of their feet, rather than on their heels,

ultimately creating less joint stress and reducing injuries. Customers are hooked. The shoes sell for $75 to $125, and have started showing up on runners at elite events such as the Boston Marathon. Revenue for FiveFingers shoes jumped to $11 million last year, up from $430,000 in 2006.

Podiatrists caution that FiveFingers aren’t for everyone. People who don’t normally run, who are obese, or who have serious foot problems or diabetes should be especially cautious. There are also trace amounts of latex used in manufacturing, so latex allergic / sensitive consumers should steer clear.