Call me trivial if you like, but the recent announcement that everyone in B.C. will be handed a hundred dollars in “climate action dividends” and the annual fuss over “budget” shoes made me think of, well, budget shoes. Specifically, footwear that comes in at around $100 pretax. (When will Canada follow the lead of more civilized countries and hide its taxes in the purchase price?) Since that $100 is intended to help you deepen your green way of life, it’s immoral to think of it as a 10 percent down payment on a pair of insanely expensive Pradas or Christian Louboutins. This is money to spend on footwear you can walk around in for hours, shoes that will make you give up your car and switch to riding the bus. Commuting on foot or walking five blocks instead of driving doesn’t have to be done in running or “walking” shoes. Go to any fashionable city outside North America and you’ll see women racing along the rues, stradas, and high streets in the same high-fashion shoes they wear to the office.

The big decision this spring is which trend to go with. I’m glad metallic shoes are back. I own two pairs, one bronzy green, one coppery brown, both flat and with hundreds of kilometres on their odometers. Denim skirt, black pants, black lace—these puppies go everywhere. You’ll see plenty of options out there spanning the whole spectrum of metalness, from the muted golds, silvers, bronzes, and coppers of tarnished coins to the bright gleam of new money. One mannequin in a downtown store window wears high-heeled gold pumps that, not too long ago, would have screamed cocktails, with skinny white pants and a casual green top, while her silent sister sports open-toe, buckled, high gold heels with wide-leg jeans and an empire-cut top.

Ballet flats are tailor-made for running around in. At Ronsons (various locations) and elsewhere, you’ll spot brands like Clarks and Aerosoles that make you think of your mom, but give them a second chance. This season, Clarks delivers a soft, gold punched-leather flat shoe with a bow at the front ($109.99) and a pearly-gold shoe with a gathered front ($109.99). Aerosoles has a similar style in a brighter gold with a buckle ($109.95). If the idea of “comfortable” shoes makes you cringe, check out Le Château, which carries flat metallic shoes that are similar, except for the label. I’m still of two minds about their suede-covered snub toes—are they really lame or incredibly funky?—but there’s no question that the shiniest shoes around are the Jessica Simpson mirrorlike silver flatties ($100) I found at the Bay downtown (674 Granville Street), so bright you could use them to check your lip gloss.

What’s interesting is how fashion and comfort, two words that never used to be twinned in terms of shoes, are coming closer together. (I covet the leopard-print Birkenstocks an English friend owns.) Once invariably linked to heavy muesli consumption, hairy legs, and worthiness, recently Birks have had their moments in the fashion arena, with Kate Moss seen wearing them and Heidi Klum creating a mini collection. The best entry-level pair for newbies is the single-strap Madrid style in silver or gold ($78) at Broadway Shoe Salon (2809 West Broadway).

It’s not all gleam and flatness out there. Combining three trends in one, a style at Aldo (various locations) hides its platform sole inside the shoe, making it easier to stride along on what appear to be very high heels. Then there’s the patent finish, a glossy holdover from last winter. The third bang for your buck is the ombré effect, where one colour gradually merges into another. Black at its heel and toe, this shoe fades to brown or grey at the sides ($110).

Whatever the heel height, vivid colour adds punch to shoe displays this spring. The first Vancouver outlet of Spanish-based fashion chain Mango may be inexplicably located in the international departures area at the airport, but we do have Zara (1056 Robson Street) to tap for mainstream European footwear. Springlike temperatures mean you can wear these open toes right now (try pairing them with same- or different-coloured opaque hose). A shamrock-green suede shoe with a three-inch heel has matching grosgrain-ribbon trim and bow ($79.90), or, for the same price, you can buy scarlet suede shoes with a slightly higher heel and a vamp made pretty with delicate cutouts. Naturalizer, another name normally associated with comfort, has dreamed up royal-blue patent peep-toes (how many trends can you count there) with a medium-height wedge heel ($110). Finally, irresistible yet well outside the budget at $275 are sunshine-yellow Mary Janes with an angled ankle strap, flower-pattern stitching on the toe, and an eight-centimetre brown heel. Find them at John Fluevog (837 Granville Street), the same place Carole Taylor’s “green” shoes originated.