When Bad Things Happen To Good Shoes

Once upon a time a designer shoe loving, single gal, purchased a gorgeous pair of Dolce & Gabbana sandals for her wedding day. They were a beautiful eggplant colour, with a triple layer bow on the toes, dainty with a 5 inch skinny heel and an ankle strap, and most importantly they were velvet. They would walk her down the aisle and carry her from single-dom into married life; and they would be glorious. 

My shoes before they were brutally attacked by wet grass

Okay, enough of the story telling, that girl was me and those were my shoes. I first spotted them in Dubai 1 full year prior to my wedding day. I tried them on and instantly fell in love. Upon my return back to T Dot I couldn't stop thinking of them and after much consideration (that's a lie, I didn't think twice) I purchased them from my favourite on-line store Net-a-porter .  Usually I wait until the end of every season to buy my designers shoes; I literally wait until the "low stock" sign is flashing in my face and they are 70% off, but I couldn't risk it with these babies. The shoes then sat in my closet in their box for 11 months until my wedding day when, just like a proud mother on her child's first day of school I photographed them from every angle before I walked out of the house. They were in pristine condition, and had I known what was about to happen to them I would have spent more time with them, held them close and told them I loved them a few more times before venturing into my parents backyard. The grass was wet! 

If you haven't already guessed it based on the title of this blog post, my precious shoes were destroyed that day! See pictorial evidence below. Inset sad face. 

For several months my shoes remained in this state, I was too upset to confront them, I even abandoned them at my parents when I moved out; the wound was just too fresh. Recently I was visiting my parents and my mother asked me if I was ever going to take my shoes home. So I finally made the decision to begin looking into my options here. You see the heel is completely shredded  it was damp and peeled off about half an inch. 

So here I am present day, my shoes in ruins and I have no clue if they will ever recover. Does anyone out there, ANYONE, have any tip, tricks, DIY or advice for something like this? Or even better does anyone in Toronto know of a kick-ass shoe repair? Someone once told me about 
an elusive magical man located on Yorkville who would replace Louboutin red soles and if he really is as good as they say he is then he may be my man...if I can find out who he is. 

I'm up for any suggestions so please comment with anything you've got that may help my poor innocent shoes make a full recovery. 

Photos by Laura May Photography