The holidays are here, and with this time of the year comes the inevitable endless stream of social events: office parties, family get-togethers, dinners out with friends, and perhaps a romantic date or two. These numerous functions mean that a girl’s got to put together a lot of great outfits — and this girl is especially concerned with what’s on her feet!

Shoes make or break an outfit and can make you feel more confident — as cheesy as it sounds, there’s just something about finding the right pair of shoes to go with an outfit that instantly lifts your mood. (Am I right, or am I right?)

I love shoes just as much as the next girl, and I blame part of this obsession on my heritage. I’m Filipino-American, and Former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos was reported by Time magazine to have owned 1,060 pairs of shoes — one of which was battery-powered and sparkled in the dark!

But really, who can blame her? There are flats, boots, sneakers, pumps, heels, sandals — and then there are the more specific categories: ballet flats, oxford pumps, this past summer’s gladiator sandals, peep-toe heels, etc. Of course, one of each type of shoe is never enough — and this can lead to a huge collection if you’re not careful!

Fortunately, shoes don’t have to be expensive in order to be stylish. As a financially challenged college student, I buy the majority of my shoes at Payless, Target, DSW, and the sale section of Nine West (which I highly recommend!). I love it when people on the street ask me where I got my shoes — and I can tell them I got them on sale at Target for under $20!

I’ll be blogging here on the Tastemaker Diaries as your resident Shoe Addict, bringing to you my favorites, both dressy and casual, from the ever-so-covetable high-end brands to the affordable and more attainable low-end brands. Just so you know: I don’t proclaim to be an uberfashionista. I’m just into having a collection of good quality, practical shoes that I can use year after year, as opposed to simply having a huge collection of shoes. I’ll be bringing that element into my blogs, as well as my love-them-at-the-moment obsessions.

I can’t wait to meet all of you and learn about your tastes in shoes! Until next time…what shoes are you obsessed with this holiday season?