Buying Shoes in Argentina

Last night at tango, I was asked where to buy shoes in Buenos Aires. I could never tell another person where to purchase shoes. Shoes are an expression of self, and very personal. And yes, this comes from a woman who until recently only owned two pairs of shoes. But no fear, I've rectified the situation and have been making up for lost time at an alarming rate!

I went to Buenos Aires to do three things. Shop for shoes, take lessons and dance my little heart out. Shop for shoes I did. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to hit all the shoe stores. There were a few that in my wanderings I couldn't find and some that I didn't have time to connect with. Aurora Lubiz operates out of her apartment and is only available two days a week, so never managed to see her shoes, even though she was only a block away from Lina’s.

The choices in Buenos Aires are overwhelming. I bought eight pairs of shoes for myself, one pair for my daughter and three pairs for my granddaughter. And I could easily have purchased more. But my suitcase (that would be the one I purchased while there) was only so big. Note to self: take an empty suitcase for shoes next time!

Best buying experience: Comme Il Faut. They have a glass case on the wall with maybe 12 pairs of shoes on display, but this is no where near what they actually have. Comme Il Faut has no web site so you can't preview anything. They receive new stock regularly, so more than one visit will net you multiple buying experiences. I was a good girl and only went once as I knew I would succumb to the magic of the experience. Where else can you have someone bring boxes and boxes of shoes for you to try on.

Least expensive shoes: Lolo Gerard. When I was there, there were shoes ranging in price from 80 pesos to 109 pesos in a sale area. She has a wonderful selection of beautiful shoes that were only 190 pesos, so a bit less than other stores.

Several stores are located in the same area: Madreselva, Susan Villarroel, Lolo Gerrard and Tango 8 are all located within a one block radius of Abasto Shopping centre. Flabella, Darcos, Suipcacha 256 are all located side by side on Suipacha near Confiteria Ideal.

The hardest thing when it comes to shoes is what a person is looking for. From serviceable to so damn sexy they hurt, Buenos Aires has it all. I am already dreaming of the next pair. I saw some at Susan Villarroel that I didn't buy because I was on a mission for teal shoes by then and these were red. But I can't stop thinking about them. I dreamt of Buenos Aires last night. Must be all the talk about shoes.