Bells and Becks

This past Thursday night, I was a contestant (and winner) on the hit zoom game show, “Who Knows One.” This is a Jewish game show, in which you are given the name of a person, their age, and birthplace, and then try to contact them through people that you think might know them. The reason I bring this up is that if Tamar (Bruckel) Miller, founder of Bells and Becks, had been the “chosen one,” I would have found her in a minute, given the following facts: Tamar was born and raised in Los Angeles, a block away from where I live now. She is an alumna of Sinai Akiba Academy, the school from which Yale and Serena graduated, and sends her children to Camp Ramah in California, where both Yale and Serena attended as campers and counselors and for which I am a member of the Board of Directors. This is what you call Jewish Geography at its best. I know that many of you reading this jaw-dropping information, have huge smiles on your faces and are pleasantly shocked by these details, but I couldn’t have made this up if I tried. Tamar and I know many of the same people in Los Angeles, proving that the world is indeed very small.

Tamar Miller has been in the footwear business for over two decades and is a shoe aficionado. As she says, “I can spot a gem in a crowded marketplace or an off-the-beaten-path shop.” After years at Piperlime, an online retail business, Tamar felt confident about going out on her own. After all, she knows her way around the shoe industry, and shoes are her passion. As Tamar described to me yesterday on our zoom call, she had a closet full of heels but could only admire them from a distance. At every glance, her feet automatically winced. Tamar knew that there was a niche in the footwear arena that needed to be filled and so she created Bells and Becks (named for her two children), a luxury shoe line whose highest heel is 2 1/4 inches. I was extremely excited when she told me to go on her website and choose a shoe. I had trouble narrowing it down; I could have chosen all of them and in every color. These shoes spoke to me; chic and stylish, with a throwback to my favorite fashion era, the ’60s. Overwhelmed by the fabulous selection, I scrolled through beautiful flats and slingbacks with unique heels and flaps; these shoes are classics with a twist of modernity. In the end, I decided to choose according to what was lacking in my shoe collection, (if there can be such a thing), and the winner ended up being these beautiful gold flats, called The Lia.

Tamar sourced out two of the finest factories in Italy to produce her shoes. She works closely with the “Shoe Doctor,” who she says arrives in a white lab coat…which is not surprising since shoes are scientific both in their design and fit! She describes her visits to these factories as inspiring and thrilling. I was listening intently, perched on the edge of my seat, wishing she would take me along with her on her next visit. Tamar’s years of online retail prepared her well for Bells and Becks, which is sole, (you should pardon the pun), sold online. Ironically, the pandemic has been good for her business, since it has forced everyone to purchase online. The Bells and Becks website is easy to navigate and the company offers free returns and delivery. Tamar, herself, is ready to answer any fit questions you may have. She considers herself to be an expert in this area, as she puts it, “I can look at a person’s feet and know which shoe will work and which will not.” I ordered my size (8 1/2) and the shoe fit me perfectly.

Tamar tells me that she comes from a long line of stylish women with good taste, women who put a great deal of thought and detail into their everyday lives from what they wear to what they gift to others, to how they set a table. And that attention to detail certainly found its way to Tamar, who has designed and curated sophisticated stylish shoes.

These shoes could be styled with anything from trousers to dresses. I decided to style it with this flowy pleated skirt by Reiss and top by Tibi, which I also wore in this post. I think they compliment the outfit perfectly. I know I will be ordering more of this style in different colors…they are that comfy…. and the little round heel affords extra comfort. Bells and Becks also has a fantastic Mother’s Day sale page, that I just perused, and I recommend it for anyone you are shopping for, including and especially, yourself.

Head over to the Bells and Becks website now, and choose the pair that speaks to you. Then please tell me which pair you chose! If you have any questions about fit, just ask Tamar in the chatbox. She will answer you immediately! And don’t forget to mention that Lesley sent you. Who knows, maybe you will know someone in common!

Bells and Becks Shoes: Use my discount code Lesley10