Sparkling Slipper - Cinderella

Sparkling Slipper - Silver

Well here we are at Disney launch number three, (well five if you count double Star Wars and Alice). This time we are talking about the much anticipated Cinderella collection. This blog will be one in a series of four focusing on Cinders so I hope you enjoy.

Normally I try and book time off work for big launches so I will be having a stress free and relaxing time trying to decide if I need to eat for the rest of the month when overspending. This time was very different, at the stroke of 12pm my flight from Berlin was taking off and I thought I had missed out on all the beautiful shoes. As silly as it sounds I was actually really worried and upset about missing out on a 'must have' pair. I know its only shoes but I was on edge all day thinking about it, hoping someone would have them for sale early all this kind of thing.

In the end I have ended up with four pairs, (one of them being a pre-order) and I can't thank the amazing independent stockists enough for allowing me to find pairs I was after. If it was just down to the Irregular Choice website I would have ended up with none. I must especially thank Denise from Labyrinth who went above and beyond to make sure I was getting a pair. Infact I actually don't know which pair is winging their was to me! But more on that another time.

Onto the collection, this time the shoes were split pretty evenly between flats and heels with there being 7 pairs of flat shoes and 8 pairs of heels. I know alot of people struggle with heels so its nice to see such a balance, and the fact that personally I prefer heels so it saves me some pennies along the way. This time and for the first time there was a distinct lack of character heels in the collection which will have disappointing many. I am a character heel girl through and through and the thought of not having any in a collection did disappoint me, I feel like they made up for that with the Glissade pairs but it would have been nice to have a few thrown in.

As far as the whole collection goes it is very beautiful, with a real classic elegant feel which maybe was the though process in not having characters as heels. I feel there is great continuity with this collection and that it does really look like each piece is supposed to be viewed next to one another with none looking out of place.

Now the pair I am going to talk about today are called 'Sparkling Slipper' and are more than true to their name. The came in three different colours Gold, Silver and Black and made a similar appearance in the collection as flat shoes. These are Irregular Choice's version of the famous Glass Slipper from the films and they don't disappoint. Lets face it, it wouldn't be a Cinderella collection without a nod to the glass slippers.

There was no question about which colourway was my favourite, it had to be the silver. Not only because they are more true to the look of the glass slipper but IC don't tend to use silver as much in their designs so it was a very welcome treat for me.

I was so excited for these to arrive, curtain twitching all day, when they finally arrived I practically ripped open the wrapping. This is also the first time we are getting to see the new Cinderella soles and box. The box is so classically Disney with the full front and back cover being the classic scene from the animated movie. There is only a small nod to Irregular Choice on the box and would love to have seen more.

The tissue paper inside is also very Disney, you will remember from both Star Wars and Alice how amazing the paper was for both of those, and although its lovely I would have liked to have seen a little more uniqueness to it like we have seen before.

For some reason we didn't have photographs of the soles on the website so I didn't know what to expect apart from following previous releases in regards to it being a classic scene from the films. Like previous shoes we have a different photograph on each shoe with I still love and on these particular ones it shows the exact shame photos that are used on the box for each of the soles.

Overall the uppers of the shoe are a very simple design with a stunning glitter fabric covering the majority of the shoe. At the back of the shoe there is a classic oversized bow beaming with even more glitter, this time in a lighter, whiter shade. We are treated to a splash of colour form the heel itself which is in a pastel blue covered in embroidery in the form of magical stars.

I must say that the stock photos do these shoes no justice at all and it was only when I was seeing peoples own photos that I decided that I had to have them. The glitter is much more detailed and multicoloured than you would imagine and I have tried my best to show that on my photos.

This is all well and good but I have forgotten to mention THE most important part of the shoes, and no doubt the reason that so many people rushed to secure their pair. THEY LIGHT UP. Yep you heard correctly, they flash and sparkle when you walk in them. This is the first time we have had light up shoes in heels and this sets the standard.

Irregular Choice are no stranger to light up shoes with many of their trainers having light up soles but this is the first time we have seen it in more dainty and less cumbersome shoes. This is great, it opens a whole new though process of whats possible in the shoes. I know light up shoes are not for everyone and personally while I love them I won't be too sad if the battery runs out. If they had an on and off switch I would be more inclined to leave them off, that's not to say that I don't still love them.

There also seems to be two different activation points for the lights, before I had even taken them out of the box I could see the bow flashing wildly. So depending on how you walk sometimes only part of the shoe lights up which is quite nice. I have done a video stomping around in these which you can see: HERE. Also you do need to use quite a bit of force to activate the lights which I do approve of, it means when you are walking along you can almost choose if you want to have them flash or not which is good if you don't want to make a bold entrance.

As for the specifics, the heel on these in a modest 3.5 Inches (9cm) which is the normal heel height for most of IC's shoes such as Mal E Bow's or Washington's which these heels are loosely based upon. These feel comfy and normal to walk in. I was a little concerned about the pointed toe and I know this has caused many discomfort before but it feels totally fine on these.

There was alot of talk on the forums about sizing down in these, with alot saying size down and a few saying true to size but like me most had ordered online and were awaiting delivery. As always I have ordered my normal size UK 6.5 (EU 40) and thank goodness they fit, there is no way I would have been able to get away with the smaller size without killing my toes. I find my normal size fits perfectly without any gaping at the heel.

In summary you need a pair, whatever colour takes your fancy you will not be disappointed they are everything they claim to be and more. They really are princess shoes and if you are like me and could take or leave the light up feature you will be pleased to see how they work and look in real life.

Thanks so much for reading through this, and I hope you are as excited as me about the next couple of features. As always I love reading your experiences so please keep in touch.