I love shoes.

Nothing unusual there. Most women I know share this obsession in varying degrees.

The more obsessed of us probably count Sex and the City as one of our all-time favourite TV shows.

And if you asked us shoeistas (my new word for fashionistas who love shoes – do you think it will catch on?) to engage in a word association game, we’d probably mention SATC’s lead character Carrie Bradshaw in the same breath as Manolo Blahnik shoes.

Manolos featured heavily in Carrie’s shoe collection. They weren’t the only shoes she wore but they definitely were some of her faves.

When she was ordered to remove her Sederaby satin and jewelled peep-toes at the door of a friend’s baby shower, we all felt her pain when they simply weren’t there at the end of the party.

In another episode, as she was about to be mugged, Carrie begged the thief to help themselves to her purse, but “hands off the Manolos”.

Her passion for these classic designer shoes was something I had to take Miss Bradshaw’s word for … until last Friday.

At noon on November 16 I found myself staring face to shoe at the very objects of Carrie’s baby shower loss.

Three gorgeous pairs of Sederabys sitting in a row – red, black and champagne.

I picked them up, carefully holding their gorgeous lightness in my hand before turning them over and gulping.

Yep, for a mere $1215 dollars they could have been mine.

I had clearly walked into the shop that would be my first shopping destination when those elusive Lotto numbers come up.

Jean Brown in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley Emporium precinct is the type of store at which Carrie would have had many, many customer loyalty points.

It’s filled with exquisite designer accessories from some of the world’s best fashion designers … the kind that are frequently photographed on some of the world’s biggest-name celebs.

Boutique directors Amber and Matthew Long opened the doors to the exclusive boutique in May and its subsequent following is proof that south-east Queensland is ready for such lofty, fashion heights.

On this day, I was surrounded by a handful of fashion media – and a larger crowd of VIP customers, and you know what? They were buying. (Not the media, silly. The VIPs.)

In between sipping on French bubbles and nibbling on Peking duck pancakes, the VIPs were slipping on Manolos in their size, swiping credit cards and smiling widely.

I watched on, mystified.

Even at $975 for the patent pink Mary Janes, I could not imagine heading home to break the news to my husband that, “Sorry, we won’t be eating or drinking for the next three weeks but, hey, don’t my shoes look pretty?”

The beauty of Manolo Blahnik shoes cannot be questioned – and their surprisingly short heel height would allow you to wear them on a daily basis without requiring life-long podiatric treatment – but justifying such a purchase to a member of the opposite sex would be difficult at best and downright dangerous at worst.

So, to stop myself from staring in envy at these new Manolo owners, wondering if they would be rushing home to hide their purchases before their husbands got home from work (and, if they were going to do that … did they have any tips for not getting caught out?), I concentrated hard on what shoes I’d buy should I ever be in a position to do so.

Would I succumb to Manolo’s classic styling, or would I be seduced by the less girly but uber-sexy Yves Saint Laurent wooden-heeled Charlotte pumps in glossy black leather … or like Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Aniston, would I fall for handcrafted patent, metallic leather heels from Giuseppe Zanotti Designs … or Pierre Hardy’s silver baubled wedges?

Decisions, decisions …

What do think? Is $1000 too much to pay for a pair of shoes? Would you do it if money were no object?

Jean Brown is located at Shop 62 Emporium, 1000 Ann St Fortitude Valley. www.jeanbrown.com.au