When is shopping for spring sandals not good enough? When you stick to the same boring retailers and see the same names from season to season.

Cease and desist, we say. Here are 10 cute pairs of sandals, from 10 excellent Web sites that you may have never seen before. Some of them aren’t completely outside the box, but we bet you haven’t seen them all. (And if you’re a fashion blogger, you don’t count.)

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If you’re one of the beautiful people planning to attend a lavish, fancy, glittering New Year’s Eve gala, you may stop reading now (or quickly turn to our New Year’s Eve 101 class).

If, however, you are one of the many who have become very frugal of late, and are going to a simple, small party in a friend’s home, then read on.

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Everyone knows the best things come in small packages, e.g. diamonds and babies. (Well, except for a car, a house or a pony.) We’ve rounded up some penny-wise “little somethings” that may not be as exciting as a diamond, but they’re practical and shrunken for your amusement. 

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Please, do not even think about pulling out yet another of your old LBDs, and banish the thought of that awful Christmas sweater from a few years ago. 

In case you haven’t noticed, every celebrity worth her Prada pumps has been making the party rounds in sparkling, shimmering, bejeweled, crystal-encrusted and brightly beaded outfits. Designers’ runway offerings for the holiday season are shining like your new LED lights.         

So take a hint from Sarah Jessica Parker sporting a shimmering, gossamer-like blue Nina Ricci  and Ashley Olsen in a long vest-like Missoni that sparkles in gold with multicolor crystals shining through. 

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When we say experimental gifting, we’re not talking about dropping a hint with a DIY lip waxing kit for your boss, or testing your unrealized welding skills for the sake of winning the “Most Inventive Party Favor” award. (God forbid, you do something normal, like candy canes and snow globes.)

In this case, the experiment is the gift itself. Check out this trio of Urban Outfitters’ very cool, not to mention affordable, gifts with a scientific twist for your favorite quirky friend or relative ­(because we all have them). 

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Fall is such an uncomplicated season compared to the rest. Winter is all slush and muck, boots and coats. Summer oozes wet swimsuits, humidity and screen doors slamming. And don’t get us started on spring, what with all its fever and cleaning.

 But fall is a cup of tea, a chenille sweater, a break in the heat. And fall is layers and layers of red, orange and gold pillows falling into your living space, making it warmer and more inviting by the minute. First, stock up on the deals at Overstock.com, with the garnet, terra and brown channel quilted pillows (set of two, above left, $25) or the velvet throw pillows (set of two, $20) in burgundy, gold or chocolate. 

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