Teen Vogue has a slideshow on their site right now of “100 party-ready heels for prom.” Even though we’re well past our prom days, we still love a good pair of heels – whether we’re heading to a formal, going out, or just because. But after a few clicks, we discovered that Teen Vogue’s picks are way out of our price range. Miu Miu heels for $645?! Yeah, maybe when we win the lottery.

What high school girl buys $645 heels for prom? It seems ridiculous, especially when there are so many reasonable alternatives. Sure, Steve Madden is no Louboutin. But if you save a little money on your shoes, you’ll have the money you need to pay for other things. Like, you know, college. Check out the affordable alternatives we found to Teen Vogue’s pricey picks.

initiating the gallery...

Garnet is a student at Columbia University in New York City. She is “that person” who starts dancing at a party when everyone else is standing around, and if there were a Facebook stalking Olympics, she would be a gold medalist. She also loves cheesy 90s music, and almost died of happiness when Vanilla Ice retweeted her. Once. Follow her on Twitter @garnethenderson.

[Lead image via Kalim/Shutterstock]

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I stopped in last weekend, and was amazed at both how much cute stuff there was and the great prices. I had to restrain myself from buying everything, but I managed t snap up a few great pieces, including a cute party dress that I plan on wearing to a wedding later this summer. While my new dress wasn’t under $20, there are quite a few choices that are — including all of these!

During the summer, I live in my flip flops — they’re comfortable and they keep my feet cool. But while they’re great for the pool or beach or with shorts, flip flops don’t go with everything. In fact, they can look sloppy when worn with a dress or a dressier outfit. The solution?

Flat sandals!

They look like you actually put some thought into your outfit, instead of just throwing on whatever pair of flip-flops you had lying around, but they’re easier to wear (and a whole lot more comfortable) than heels or wedges.

Check out this collection of adorable flat sandals to find the perfect pair to take you through the summer months — but for just $20 or less, you can afford to grab a few different pairs! Now all you need is a pedicure and a cute sundress and you’re ready for summer!

Peppered throughout magazines and blog sites are optimistic articles about delicious summer activities and fashion trends to anticipate and enjoy. However, there is one thing about summer that is so heinous and disgusting that I feel I must warn the masses before it destroys them: flip-flops, fashion’s Anti-Christ.

I can hear the gasps and verbal WTF’s already. I know, I know, flip-flops are practically the poster children for summer fun. Calm yourselves, I have reasons.

1) They Make Any Outfit 1/4 As Cute: No matter how much effort you put into your ensemble this morning or how much you paid for that sundress, if you add flip-flops to the equation it will look instantly less cute. Much less cute. So much so that it defeats the purpose of even trying to make a cute outfit and you should have just worn sweats.

2) Your Feet Will Get Dirty: Want to know why outfits are less cute with flip flops? Perhaps it’s because dirty feet are not cute. On anyone. And dirty feet are inevitable when flip flops are involved. Your toes will turn brown, your heels will turn black and your calves will be covered in whatever crap that flop is flipping up. Seriously, no one wants to see your cracked and crusted feet stomping around in fluorescent rubber contraptions.

3) They Make Your Legs Look Fat: For some reason, colored slabs of rubber are not the most slimming choice for summer fashion. Optical illusion? Perhaps…At any rate, you spent all winter in the smelly gym to look like this, so don’t waste it on flip-flops!

4) Shoes Should Not Be Noisy: Sexy can be defined as the sound of stilettos clacking across a marble floor. The opposite is true for the sound of flip-flops slapping against your dirty feet.

5) They Aren’t Practical: Let’s face it – having half-an-inch of rubber barely attached to your foot is not the smartest choice available in footwear. They lack traction, stability, and could cause bodily harm (or at least a serious bruise to your ego). Who hasn’t flipped out of their flop before, or slipped on a little spilled beer?

6) There Are Cuter Options: This season it is almost a crime to opt for cheap-o flip-flops when there are gladiator sandals and adorable flats! Fringes, patent, and metalwork – oh my!

Now that I’ve stated my reasons, I would also like to point out that nothing beats a lazy day on the beach with nothing but a pair of flip flops and a good book to keep you company. For me, however, the beach is where my flip-flops will stay.

[This story was originally posted by Katie - Michigan State]

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[Welcome to Celebrity Chic on the Cheap, where our style guru takes a celebrity look and breaks it down for you, our poor college fashionista. What does that mean? It means that while the celebrities (like the latest style icon, Kelly Osbourne) are spending $5,000 and more on an ensemble, you an spend way less...and save the rest for Margarita Mondays.]

Cameron Diaz is usually not one that I look to for style inspiration. I mean, I love her as an actress and I totally respect her long-term commitment to environmental causes (she was going green far before it was the norm). As far as style goes though, I wasn’t exactly putting photos of her red carpet looks onto my inspiration board. Maybe it’s because she is so naturally gorg, and has this ridiculously lithe, statuesque body, she always seemed to go for really simple, unremarkable pieces so as to not detract from, well, her.

But perhaps the emergence of another blonde Amazonian goddess onto the scene has inspired Cameron to embrace her inner fashionista, because lately, she has been totally stepping up her game, going for a effortlessly sophisticated aesthetic that I loooove.

Shopping Info: Dress – Bebe, $34.95; Blazer – Kohl’s, $44; Belt – Forever 21, $8.80; Shoes – Endless.com, $45.

I love this lighter, spring-ier version of the boyfriend blazer; it’s structured and airy all at the same time. To up the sex appeal, Cameron paired it with a fierce one-shoulder black dress. I am so glad that the one shoulder look is back in season, because it adds the same amount of sass as a strapless number, but without all the awkward tugging and tape involved. A belt is always a great accessory to jazz up a simple outfit and draw attention to your fab figure. Throw on some strappy high heeled sandals to make your legs look almost as long as Cameron’s, and voila, you’ve got an easy, but alluring and mature outfit to add to your wardrobe.

Get more celebrity style for the poor college fashionista here.

Sun, sand, swimsuits and Spring Break.

Apart from an icy cocktail and a hot cabana boy, the final touches for your Spring Break packing is an assortment of practical (yet stylish) accessories. The first accessory: the perfect sunhat that is as  fabulous as it is functional. Not only will you look fierce on the beach, but it will also save your scalp and face from too much sun exposure. You’ll also need a great pair of sunglasses to shield you from the sun when you’re laying out… or struggling to stay outside after a late night out. (Sunnies are also great for discrete boy watching. Just sayin’.)

Now is also the time to start scoping out sandals if you need a new pair. Just be smart; Spring Break might not be the time to break in a pair of expensive sandals you love, in the off chance you lose one. Which, as anyone who’s ever been on Spring Break knows, is highly likely. And of course, you need a great beach bag to hold it all (and sunblock, magazines, a bottle of tequila…) that won’t get ruined when someone spills their margarita on it.

What’s that? You need some help picking out the goodies? Well lookie here – I’ve got 15 splendid Spring Break accessories ready and waiting for you. Bon Voyage!

Every year it boggles my mind when boots and wool sweaters start showing up in stores in mid July.
I mean honestly, people! Sweat is dripping down my back and I’m supposed to be shelling out dough on the over-the-knee leather boots and colorful wrap scarves? I think not.

But all these early fall shenanigans in the stores means one thing: they need to clear room.

Enter: the summer sale (!!!).

Pretty much every store you go to (or shop online at) is offering HUGE summer sale discounts. So this week, instead of putting looks together, I’m highlighting 10 of my favorite summer sale pieces. From shoes to vests to cute tops to totes… these are my favorite budget buys that will you can wear now.

Because even though the stores want you to think it… summer is FAR from over and you’ve still got plenty of time to look hot.

Product Information (Left to Right):
Top Row: Vest – JCrew; Boyfriend Jeans – Banana Republic; Tank – Ann Taylor; Ruffle Dress – Bloomingdales. Second Row: White Skinny Jeans – Ann Taylor; Tote Bag – Gap; Zipper Skirt – Bloomingdales; Ruffle Tank – JCrew. Bottom Row: Ring – Banana Republic; Sandals – Ann Taylor

Got something awesome everyone needs to know about? A really rad singer? A wicked new book? Places where peeps can get a deal, yo?? Email your “The Know” ideas to Jill@collegecandy.com or tweet me and I’ll pass them along to everyone right here, every week. Make your kindergarten teacher proud and share!

Here’s the cold hard truth: as cute as summer sandals are, the reality is that in most parts of the country, we wear them for a very short time. Even LA, land of the sunny with a chance of Heidi Montag, seems to rock boots more than sandals.

So why waste money that could be put towards margaritas by the pool when you can get shoes that are not only totally adorbs, but look expensive and are made by a hot designer (who normally charges around $200 a pair) all for less than the cost of a nice dinner?

Enter from stage left: Cynthia Vincent shoes for Target. The flats? $24.99. The heels? $29.99. The wedges that look almost like the exact same pair she made for bloomingdales that cost $350? $29.99.

Does it look like a $300 difference? I think not.

Balls. Of. Amazement.
And now you know, so get yourself a pair (or 4) and summer on, my friends, summer on.