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For anyone who's ever said you can't have enough of one type of shoe, meet Bonnie Stein.
The Redington Shores woman has 50 pairs of athletic shoes and 50 pairs of black shoes.
The sneakers are for her work as a racewalk trainer, walking 6 to 15 miles a day with clients. The black shoes are purely for play.
Stein makes a decent argument for the athletic shoes: "Don't most women match their work clothes and work shoes?''
And the black shoes? Well, that's less a case of need and more about want, especially when she comes across a great deal.
Stein's closet is a smorgasbord of shoes sizes 7 to 8 1/2. (She buys athletic shoes big to accommodate a sole insert and thicker socks for racewalking.)
She gravitates to Brighton, Nine West, Onex and other brands she stumbles across in Stein Mart, Macy's and Dillard's. Her athletic shoes — Asics, Brooks, New Balance and Saucony — come from Feet First and American Running Co. in Dunedin, stores that know how to fit walking shoes, she says.
Stein, 54, wears two or three pairs of athletic shoes a day, depending on how many classes she teaches. Orange ones go with the orange workout outfit. Blue ones go with the blue outfit, etc. She doesn't have a favorite and rarely wears one pair more than once or twice a month.
It's a different story with her black shoes, which come in low, middle and high heels for all kinds of occasions. Her favorite is a pair of open-toed leather shoes by Onex. They have big crystal buttons and a Lucite heel and cost $118.
"I paid regular price for them, which I never do,'' she said. "But I loved them.''
Stein buys primarily for fit but admits a shoe that's good for walking to a restaurant and sitting isn't always good for walking around town all night.
Her rule of thumb is that for every new pair she gets, she donates an old pair. Otherwise, she'd never be able to get into her closet.
Stein stashes shoes on shelves and nooks throughout her house. Sneakers and black shoes account for about half of her collection. The rest are an eclectic mix of colors and styles.
How often does she shop?
"My husband would say too often,'' she says with a laugh.
Shoe lovers like herself would say not often enough.
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