These are the Bottega Veneta Strut Grid picks worth your time, chosen on construction rather than on how often they appear online. A stacked heel walks better than a block of the same height. Measure your calf before buying anything with a shaft above the ankle. The groups below run from the decision that matters most to the ones you make afterwards.

What decides this is shaft height, calf width and sole grip. Everything else is preference. Two from the first group show the range: otteny.com's Chunky Sole Leather Boots at $685, and anndemeulemeester.com's Kasi Ankle Boots at $570. The first is the considered buy; the second is the one to start with. A stacked heel walks better than a block of the same height. Measure your calf before buying anything with a shaft above the ankle. A higher price mostly buys materials and finishing, and occasionally it buys nothing at all.

Boots want either a skimming trouser or nothing below the knee at all. From the second group, us.isabelmarant.com's HAVAIANAS IKAT PRINT SANDALS ($120) is the one that earns its place, because it works in more than one context without being restyled. The third group is smaller and deliberately narrower, sneakers, for the decisions you make after the main one. None of this needs the whole group. One piece from each is usually enough.

There are 20 pieces here from 16 brands, $44.97 to $795, all in stock when this was written. We would not buy all of them, and neither should you. ALDO Shoes's Chicsneaker at $44.97 is the low-risk way in, and joseph-fashion.com's Jolie Woven Leather Knee High Heeled Boots at $795 only makes sense if this is a category you already use constantly. Read as a set, they get you close to Bottega Veneta Strut Grid without any single purchase being compulsory. Nothing here is included because it is famous, and price is not used as a proxy for quality anywhere on this page. If you take one thing away: pay for the thing that touches your body and economise on the thing that sits on top of it.