.... Shhh… It’s about Shhhoes !!

** WARNING:
1. This one will give you lots of knowledge and insight into the Shoe World
2. It has lovely pictorial illustrations
3. Admit it, most of you guys and tom-boyish girlfriends of mine will squirm and make faces, but reading it will be fun… ;)

Here we go!! xxx

My mom says I always loved shoes, even as a little mad girl with two plaits. I began realizing the intensity of this love when I waited to get to my 13^th birthday, the year I was promised I would be allowed to walk in heels. I wore some really ugly platform sandals, and fell at a cross junction while walking, but boy-oh-boy, didn’t I love feeling so high!! Never looked back, and never lost an opportunity to wear heels since.

Black Beauties and my perpetual back-up shoes for work

Custom-made for my feet!! My sister gifted me these super high and exxxtremely comfortable lovelies for my Birthday :)

The only Wedge Heels I own.... 

Sheer, Sky-High & unbelievably Comfortable. I've danced in these!!

Two of my prettiest pairs! Love Royal Blue and lourrrve Leopard Prints!

My flat loafers! For the "field days" at work

Feeling Blue?!

With my tiny frame of 5’3.5”, I really need heels to elevate my look, and sometimes add a very important dimension to my personality. They are such up-lifters (pun unintended :P) I tell you.

Adore these Leopard Printed 4.5" heels from Zara! Guaranteed spunk for every outfit!

The reliable Charles & Keith that make me tall and happy!

I LOVE THIS ONE! Dull Gold, Beautiful, and Soft!

Very few people who know me would know that for a while I seriously thought of learning the art of shoe-making, to create the perfect heel. I did a lot of research then and was introduced to (GOD) Manolo Blahnik much before the SATC craze caught up. I realized how tough it was to make shoes as a hobby while one was working full time and teaching kids on weekends. Gave up that idea soon enough. Then, when I began watching SATC, and witnessed Carrie’s love for Manolos, I knew I wasn’t crack – there were many more like me out there!!

Elegant statements! And HIGH of-course ;)

The colors...... Vibrant and fun! 

I call this... The Circle of Excellence

Manolo’s story touched a deep chord in my heart, and sort of helped me appreciate and seek perfection in work. Set out to become a stage set designer, this miracle-maker was suggested by Vogue’s then editor-in-chief, Diana Vreeland, to instead concentrate on making shoes. Manolo got obsessed with creating perfect shoes, and began paying closer attention to balance and craft. Manolo till date carves out each heel with his own hands.

This achievement is all the more remarkable given that Blahnik is solely responsible for the design and prototype of every shoe that bears his name. Working alone without apprentices or assistants, he sketches his shoes, chisels the wooden lasts on which they are moulded and sculpts the heels. He then supervises their production and even sketches the illustrations for his advertising campaigns. He has achieved all this without any formal training in shoe-making. “I didn’t need it,” Blahnik told his friend Michael Roberts only half-jokingly in the late 1970s, “because I’ve got the best taste in the world.”

I’ve read almost all his interviews and and here are my favourite lines from this man who spares no detail:
“I have the advantage of study. I’ve been studying the art of the shoe… for over twenty years. I know every process. I know how to cut and cut away here (the side of the shoe) and still make it so that it stays on the foot. And the secret of toe cleavage, a very important part of the sexuality of the shoe. You must only show the first two cracks. And the heel. Even if it’s twelve centimetres high it still has to feel secure – and that’s a question of balance. That’s why I carve each heel personally myself – on the machine and then by hand with a chisel and file, until it’s exactly right.”

How can one not fall in love… with the man… and his creations!

FYI…… I haven’t yet purchased a single pair of Manolos or Louboutins (another of my favourites) yet. The reason behind it is very emotional and strong. These brands motivate me to be able to afford lots of the best. They define luxury, heights, passion, souls (some red soles), moments, occasions, power, success,

and love. The stories of the men behind these makes me want to learn and create the best. And, although I can afford select pieces of the beauties these Gentlemen craft, I don’t want to buy them today coz I’ll end up worshipping the shoes instead of enjoying them. Hence, my aspiration is to have a closet full of these lovelies. Pray I get there soon :)