Recently, the Mouths of Mums team were very lucky to meet the Design and Management team from Naturalizer shoes.  We had a fabulous time viewing their upcoming Autumn/Winter range but also had the chance to hear about their Summer Shoes for 2011/2012.
Now we never knew this until recently but Naturalizer is the first U.S. fashion footwear brand that was created exclusively for women!  That’s right, no men and no kids allowed … only women.  The upshot of that is beautiful shoes purpose built for beautiful women the world over. In fact, they’ve been going strong across the World for 85 years.

While we were there, we asked their advice on matching shoes and clothing fashionably but also to make you look (and feel) your best.

Their feedback was fab – we also got the inside story on what’s hot right now if you’re thinking Australian Summer.

For Spring/Summer 2011, tribal and safari desert fashion from the 70’s is making a comeback with the return of browns, army green and splashes of yellow. This is complimented by the return of the wedge shoe and tarnished metal hardware on sandals and heels. These styles are perfect for pairing with light summer animal print scarves and dresses.

Spring-inspired prints, florals and paisley are also returning this season as seen on fashion catwalks around the world.

Romantic trends are also coming through in the warmer season’s footwear with lots of feminine details, bows, ruffles and sheer fabrics. Cosmetic tones are big this summer with lots of nude coloured heels (just ask Kate Middleton!) and wedges with a touch of metallic.
Colour blocking is everywhere this season with women making much bolder outfit combinations and looking to accessories such as shoes, bags and scarves to make their look pop. Shoes that combine multiple colour pallets are big this season and really complement bursts of primary coloured apparel such as red, blue and yellow.

Top tips for matching your outfits with your shoes …

• Low wedges are great with wide legged pants.
• Strappy sandals and heels are best with short dresses and skirts
• Match floral patterns with nude and pastel shoes
• Straw wedges and kitten heels shorten the legs a bit so try to match with a shorter skirt or shorts this summer
• Brown and neutral coloured shoes are great to add with a bright colour top or dress, perfect for colour-blocking
• Flats and ballet slippers are great with jeans, genie pants and cargo pants.

This information in this post was provided courtesy of Naturalizer Shoes – natural, comfortable, beautiful shoes. Discover the full range of Naturalizer shoes at www.naturalizer.com.au

What’s your favourite fashion trend this Summer … and what’s your favourite shoe?!

Much MoM Love,

Nikki

This post written by Nikki Hills, Mum of 4 and Founder of Mouths of Mums®. Nikki has worked in marketing, advertising and communications for close to 20 years and created Mouths of Mums® to give real mums a space to connect and trial and review products for free. Mouths of Mums® was also founded to give brands the opportunity to connect with real mums and truly understand what they need to do in order to deliver products that meet mums’ needs and will therefore be embraced by real mums.

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