Surviving fashion – comfortably, decently, beautifully

Fashion is a lot of fun, but it also compromises a lot of things, like form, function, and comfort. Pumps can beautifully pull a look together but they can pinch your feet and create all those ugly bumps and calluses. Stilettos can make any woman look and walk sexy, but they also torture the balls of your feet, your legs, your back. There are shoes so comfortable you can actually run and walk in them the whole day with nary a pinched look on your face, and your feet will thank you for it. But that often happens only with sneakers, and we all know they do not go with your little black dress. Some shoes can look utterly hideous but are extremely comfortable. Would it be a pair you would risk being caught dead wearing?

Your hair can be neatly pulled back, but this requires at least two dozen hair pins saying hello here and there. A bun can be neat but boring and so plain that it looks like it belongs only in a conference room.

A piece of clothing can be exquisitely beautiful, but ceases to be so when it is gaping, falling here and there and becomes so uncomfortable.

Skinny jeans are back, but must they be so uncomfortably tight?

Can a girl not have it all?

Enter these wonderful products…

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FOOT PETALS – a shoe fiend’s best friend. They do not just look pretty, they also make walking in those sexy killer stilettos more fun than it actually is. Founded by Tina Aldatz in 2002, Foot Petals is made of PORONr4000, a shock-absorbing material that also repels moisture, bacteria and odor. Although she survived wearing her fashionable but uncomfortable shoes by buying bulky orthopedic insoles from drugstores, cutting and pasting them to fit into her shoes, they were far from looking pretty enough to be seen. So not glam, killer shoes but with hideous characters stuck all over them. Necessity is indeed the mother of invention and she developed a product that combined both function and form. The Foot Petals product range include the following:

Tip Toes, P359.75 – positioned on the insole where the ball of the foot hits the shoe. This is the part that feels the most pressure when in a high heel and using this adds much-desired comfort. Tip Toes also stops the feet from sliding forward thus preventing ugly overhang and toe scrunch.

Sole Stopperz, P359.75 – for fashionable traction. It protects the outer soles but its most significant function is that it prevents you from slipping.

Heavenly Heelz, P359.75 – a multi-function cushion that helps prevent blisters on your heels, which consequently leads to unsightly calloused and discolored heels. It eases friction on the inside top of a mule or slide and also helps with sizing problems.

Haute Heelz, P359.75 – soothing heel cushions that help absorb shock to legs, heels, and lower back. Some of my friends say you can also try them on the inside top of closed shoes to add comfort and protect your pretty pedicured toenails.

Strappy Strips, P359.75 – thin straps that add comfort to your strappy shoes and slingbacks. They are meant to prevent straps from cutting into the skin of your feet, consequently preventing blisters and ugly red marks.

Killer Kushionz – Tip Toes that go the extra mile, if I may say so. It is a fashionable full insole, pretty enough that it can be worn in open toe shoes and sandals. It functions like Tip Toes but with a little extra to boot – a full arch and heel support.

Foot Petals is available in a wide range of colors such as black iris, silver rose, rose, buttercup, and white lily. You can be sure there is a Foot Petal to match every shoe in your closet. Available at Beauty Bar, Rustan’s, Watson’s, and PCX Rockwell.

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HOLLYWOOD TAPE, P499.75 – this is my absolute must-have product. No kikay trousseau is ever complete without it. These double-sided adhesive strips make sure every part of every piece of clothing stays where it should be. Deep necklines are secure, there are no unsightly gaps that peek out, straps stay in place. Works like magic. All you have to make sure of is that your skin is clean and dry (no oils, lotions, or shimmer powder on the areas where you need to use these strips).

Available at Beauty Bar, Chocolate Clothing Company, Hotwind, Rustan’s Essenses.

EVITA PERONI – the prettiest thing to happen to hair accessories! I first came across this girly shop in Malaysia and was totally smitten. When I realized just how well they worked for me (and I’m sure for you, too) I wish I had bought more. Thankfully, they are available in Manila at Rockwell Power Plant Mall. The whole ritual of keeping your hair off your face becomes such a pretty little thing to do because these accessories are just so lovely. Yes, they do not exactly come cheap but each item really works the way it was meant to, without compromising how adorable it looks. My favorites include the double comb, the beaded sticks for the chignon, the Stretchy, and the Twist. They also have the nicest headbands.

HAVAIANNAS – they really do feel different. Some cynics will say that they are nothing more than your regular rubber slippers, just made more fashionable and marketed more stylishly and aggressively. But Havaiannas really do live up to all the hype – they are comfortable, extremely durable, and are as beautiful as rubber slippers can get. They are to your feet what your bed is to your body. With Havaiannas, your feet are finally home. I get my supply from Celio and All FlipFlops at Glorietta.

BENCH SILICONE NIPPLE TAPE, P129.75 – now you don’t have to worry about having to find the right bra for that dress with the low, low back, or the strapless one, or the one that crisscrosses in front or plunges way below the bra line. Thanks to these sweethearts, going braless has never looked so decent. There are no valid excuses to make your nipples show suggestively in public through your clothing, and Bench Silicone Nipples makes sure they do not. You can now say goodbye to those nipple tapes that, although they succeeded in making you look decent, called attention to themselves because they did not disappear seamlessly.

Made of thin silicone material, the Bench Silicone Nipple Tape allows full concealment while the unique shape contours to the breast (it amazingly looks and feels like an extension of your boob, a little cuchinta a girl cannot do without a female friend of mine says). The best thing about it? It is a steal for its price, plus it’s washable with mild soap and warm water after every use. When dry, the adhesive will regenerate itself. Self-adhesive, washable, and reusable – can it get any better than that? The Bench Silicone Nipple Tape is available at all Bench stores and at First Aid in Greenbelt.

GRAB – I dreaded the day that skinny jeans came back until I tried the ones from Grab. They hug very well, especially on the behind and the stretch material makes for a very comfortable fit. Contrary to popular belief, the skinny can make you look leaner depending on what shoes and top you wear it with. When I buy I do not cut the length anymore so I have the choice of folding the hem inward ankle-length (secured with Hollywood Tape) or I can also choose to fold it twice over up my leg to make them look like cuffed clam-diggers.

If you are not totally sold on the super skinny style just yet, you can choose from Grab’s others cuts. They have some pairs that are cut slim but do not necessarily cling to the leg like second skin.

Grab is available at Chocolate Clothing Co.