Gigi by Sam Edelman

Spend the Weekend with Your Uncle Sam: Sam Edelman's Gigi kicks off summer.

Memorial Day. One of two cherished, three-day weekends. The day when your friends inevitably plan their wedding. Their destination wedding. We cherish Memorial Day. We honor those who have served our country. We allow ourselves to wear white ... but let's propose an amendment to that. The Gigi comes in everything but: black, citrine (shown), turquoise, silver and cork. With a sandal this easy, ou won't miss it. This weekend, don some nonwhite and BBQ with your Uncle Sam.

Sam Edelman has always been a favorite of Lori's. Gigi makes the love understandable. This simple thong sandal has a subtle reptile print on both upper and sole. The texture and rich color pick up where the materials end. An ankle buckle adjusts the fit. This is an everything sandal made from practically nothing. There's not much in the summer months that you can't wear with it. And Gigi is a cheap date: $48. With so many colors, buying a couple colors is an easy way to extend your range of outfits.

This Memorial Day, relax and remember that summer is here. Kick off the last of spring and winter wardrobes and don a shoe as light and fun and bright as a sunny free Monday at the beach.

Chainge by Steve Madden

The Times They Are A-Chaingin': Steve Madden puts a new twist on the sandal.

The Chainge by Steve Madden can only be taken literally if you are into fussy, overly complex footwear that fits poorly. Otherwise, the Chainge is a welcome update on a straightforward and easy sandal. We are not (OK, we try not to be) overly complex people. We like the Chainge for summer. perhaps it reminds us of the kind of easy-breezy lifestyle we want to live.

Based on a man-made sole with a modest heel wedge for a slightly forward pitch, a leather upper twists over the toes into a braid. This travels up the foot before unspiraling into twin ankle straps that meet at a full heel cup (zipper entry). Nestled in the leather is sparkling gold chain that winks and flashes in the horizontal light of sunrises and sunsets, making this the perfect Going Out/Walk of Shame shoe. (We know, we don't do that either.)

Chainge is a versatile city sandal. (Just look how well it works against a crumbling concrete wall!) The balance of natural leather and glittering metal let it work with several types of outfits. Dress it up with more formal attire and work back to the gold chain in your accessories or dress it down with boyfriend shorts or damaged denim and a draping tee. And at $68, this is one sandal that will – oh, we can't resist – spare you some change!

Petalx by Jon Josef

The Natural: Jon Josef's Petalx is a soft and easy wedge for summer outfits.

We're excited to bring Jon Josef into the mix here at Lori's Shoes. This Spanish-born designer has a real knack for adding detail in unconventional ways. The Petalx exemplifies this with it's toe-flower embellishment. It's not just any old fabric flower, but burlap, the rough, scratchy stuff of hundred-pound coffee sacks, topped with a leather bud. This is mounted on a fine-weave denim upper in a soft red or quiet blue. Things change up again: the wedge is wrapped in braided jute rope. Burlap, leather, denim, jute. We can't quite think of another shoe that runs so well with so much in the natural materials trend.

But this shoe ain't no granola. Have you ever seen the video for Take on Me by A-Ha? Yes, you have. So imagine that instead of getting sucked into a comic about homicidal motocross racers, you pick up the latest Anthropologie catalog and – zoom! – you dive right into Anthropologieland! Everything is golden sun, soft focus and a picnic by the pond. And you look down and you are wearing these shoes! That's this look.

The Petalx presence is less serene. A five-inch heel is far from willowy. This is an aggressive espadrille that can more than keep up with a summer in the city. (A one-and-one-quarter-inch platform adds stability.) We'd like to think you'd wear these down to the beach and kick them off when you hit the sand, donning them in time to go dancing at Ñ.

We think you will find Petalx a versatile and accommodating wedge. The natural materials will work back to the all-denim trend that's ramping up as well as easy, casual outfits like summer dresses – everything from maxi dresses to tennis skirts. You know what might be interesting? Pairing this with some really hard metal jewelry. Not like spikes and studs, but something sleeker and polished and gleaming. Maybe the contrast would work, maybe not, but a shoe like the Petalx makes us want to try. Go ahead and push the boundaries. See what the response is. Our bet is the look will come off naturally.

Daria by Sam Edelman

Rock and Roll Lifestyle: Sam Edelman's Daria begs for a bad attitude.

Daria's that shy, quiet girl in grade school that went Goth in high school – black nail polish, black, well, everything, smoking cigarettes, secretly getting straight As – dropped off at some small college and discovered fashion sans angst, emerging fifteen years later as a society mover and shaker – a gallery director, a savvy marketing exec for an internationally known vodka label or a senior art director at a powerful ad agency. She wears Ann Klein; she has leather pants. She occasionally smokes weed; she can twist into bakasana crow pose like it's nothing. She reads Vogue, New Yorker, Le Monde, and Us Weekly. Cubs, not Sox. And Sam Edelman in the summertime. All the time.

Daria's a badass, but it's not a posture, it's just experience. Attitude is just there like ballast lending gravity to her look. We dress her up young because we're all young at heart. Black, weathered jeans, oversize print tee, cropped leather jacket, clashing polish (why not?), preferably a healthy dose of fuck-you attitude to keep the weirdos away.

That's summer here in Chicago, our urbs in horto, our city in a garden: It's beautiful, it's dirty. It's a crushed can of PBR in a bed of tulips outside Wrigley. Daria gleams with a crust of cut-glass gems on a diamond-shaped upper. The look is beefy gladiator, able to withstand the fast-paced city scene. We especially love the double cuff around the ankle that lets you get away with something like a cropped jean or graphic skirt. She comes in natural or mineral blue. Both are a hot look for nights out with your girls – perhaps a drinks at The Wit or a shot-and-a-beer in Palookavi-, erm, Wrigleyville. Daria commands respect wherever she goes. Dress appropriately.