There’s a spring shoe trend afoot (ha!) that includes beaded, patterned styles fit for Pocahontas. Balmain’s spring repertoire includes a thick strapped, beaded flat sandal that could have been made at summer camp, while Nicole Richie’s House of Harlowjust released a pair of destroyed suede, beaded moccasins that look like they walked off a reservation.
These shoes are all good and fine. But the imitation pieces don’t hold a candle to actual Native American footwear from the late 1800s, as we recently discovered while flipping through the amazing bookNative American Clothing: An Illustrated History by Theodore Brassler during a recent visit to the Hennessey + Ingalls bookstore at Space15Twenty in Hollywood.
The Sioux had some of the most gorgeous, elaborately beaded designs with colors of mint green, cobalt blue and vibrant yellow dotting both the tops and soles of their shoes. Moccasins with beaded bottoms were worn by wealthy horse owners to show that they didn’t need to walk. Teenage girls also made them for the boys they were crushin’ on and sometimes the favored child in a family would be the lucky wearer of the lavishly adorned footcandy. Guess Christian Louboutin’s red soles don’t seem that innovative after all.
While Richie’s design is cute and Balmain’s sandals are quite fun, they look weak next to the real deal — which will set you back upwards of $1,200 if you can find a pair at auction or at a Native American artifact gallery. And truth be told, neither modern day pair looks worth their price tag. The House of Harlow version is $225 and, though not yet in stores, it’s a safe bet that Balmain’s flats will be, uh, more than that. We expect many Steve Madden-esque versions to appear at the mall as the weather heats up, too.
We’re gonna pass on the beaded shoes thing for now. Thankfully we still have our old beaded necklaces from camp.
Photos clockwise from top: House of Harlow moccasins, Sioux moccasins circa 1885 and Balmain’s spring 2010 beaded sandal.
For two long years, I’ve wanted a pair of Top-Siders. And for no reason besides pure laziness I have yet to make my purchase. But after a friend pointed out these understated metallic suckers on JCrew.com and said that they “seemed like me,” I’ve decided to finally take the plunge. I can already envision a sun-filled spring day with a biography I’ve been meaning to read (also for two long years), my favorite seersucker chiffon sundress and these Sperry’s glistening on my feet. A more realistic scenario probably involves my new shoes getting stepped on while rushing through the aisles at Ralph’s. But hey, a girl has to have her day dreams.
“It’s a gift to support these dogs and keep me out of the doghouse,” said one happy Jimmy Choo customer, carrying a bag of the brand’s luscious foot candy that would soon be a gift for his wife. Choo hosted an in-store soiree last night for the Brittany Foundation, a SoCal-based dog rescue, and to celebrate Choo 24:7, the London-based cobbler’s latest collection.
The line is comprised of basic, wardrobe staple styles in varying heel heights, colors and materials, and is designed to transcend trends (and recessions). Styles including round toe, patent leather pumps and square toe flats come in nude and black patent leather, black satin and even animal prints. Though most of the shoes are nothing new to the Choo empire, a slightly Prom-ish pair of platform slingbacks have been introduced for the collection and will probably appeal to those who wish for Giselle-like height upon waking up in the morning.
This seems like a fantastic way to remind women about the fashion items actually worth buying during troubled times (if our personal times were slightly less troubled, we’d be buying a pair of nude patent pumps from the collection ASAP). But by the looks of the happy shoppers making their way through the store last night, business must be booming somewhere.
Few style choices are more enduringly precious than a pair of Toms. Unlike other hideous footwear that won’t go away in L.A., I hope they become the Lacoste of shoes (”the gator never goes out of style,” or so we’ve been told for years).
But I hadn’t thought of gifting the charity line until I saw founder Blake Mycoskie’s holiday video. (For those who don’t know, Toms gives a pair of shoes to a needy child in Argentina or Ethiopia for each pair of Toms purchased. How great is that?)
Gift cards can be sent online if you’re not up-to-date on the shoe sizes of your loved ones. — Krista Jennings
California cobbler George Esquivel, known for his handcrafted foot candy and recent CFDA nod, is hosting a sample sale as part of tonight’s annual West Third Street Holiday Party. Find a selection of shoes (mostly men’s styles with a few looks for the ladies scattered throughout) starting as low as $150 with the majority of pairs topping out at $350. According to our peeps on the inside, these suckers are “priced to move.”
George Esquivel Sample Sale tonight, Thursday December 10. 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Esquivel House, 8309 W. Third St., Los Angeles. Enter through alleyway courtyard on Sweetzer or Flores.
img class=”alignleft size-full wp-image-3071″ title=”tps3″ src=”http://www.stylesectionla.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/tps3.jpg” alt=”tps3″ width=”412″ height=”560″ />What: Limited edition sneaker collab by Apliiq and The People’s Shoe.
Why (if you’re nice): Pure local love–Apliiq is based in downtown L.A. and The People’s Shoe was founded by Laguna Beach native Anton Brandt. Granted the $64 kicks are made slightly outside L.A. in a Chinese factory (with very high quality of life standards in place, we might add), but they’re shipped in reusable canvas totes (no cardboard boxes or polluting plastic baggies necessary) and a percentage of profits go to the Los Angeles Mission on Skid Row, very local indeed.
Say what you will about Lady GaGa, but the girl can turn out a music video. And beyond the anodyne pop lyrics and jerky choreography for “Bad Romance,” the singer may have proven whatassorted British Vogue staff recently intimated was impossible: Walking in Alexander McQueen’s python shoes with 10-inch heels, previously thought to be only possible by the extraterrestrial model-creatures in the Brit designer’s spring 2010 runway show (Gaga debuted the single on the delicious final walk, shown below, along with the new video). — Krista Jennings
It isn’t often that I dream of living in Seattle. Anytime I’m up there I feel like I’m caught in a squall without a trenchcoat—literally, and sometimes metaphorically. Say what you will about L.A., but our non-existent rates of Season Affectivity Disorder are nothing to sneeze at. But the men’s fashion does transcend a post-grunge “nod to the crispy Seattle weather,” as Cher Horowitz once said. As independent men’s stores go, Blackbird in Seattle’s seaside Ballard neighborhood is tough to beat, and worth a visit when you’re in the Pac NW.
Barring that, owner Nicole Miller’s online shop has consistent prime finds—most recently a collaboration with Alden for a stunning wingtip blucher ($470), made of “100% calf leather blucher style wingtip with Goodyear welt construction in dark burgundy.”
The store’s own product shots always give between-the-lines styling advice as well—skinny, dark-rinse jeans w/ a single cuff work so well with these beauties, it’s practically a fashion symbiosis equivalent of the shark and remora.
Drool Nation. A friend just forwarded me the website to Luxury Jones, an indie clothing brand based in Portland, Ore., designed by ex-Echo Park denizen, Nikki Eatman (who is rumored to be moving back to L.A. soon).
The clothes are good, but the boots ($240 to $340) are divine. She takes used cowboy boots, folds over [...]
There’s a spring shoe trend afoot (ha!) that includes beaded, patterned styles fit for Pocahontas. Balmain’s spring repertoire includes a thick strapped, beaded flat sandal that could have been made at summer camp, while Nicole Richie’s House of Harlow just released a pair of destroyed suede, beaded moccasins that look like they walked off a reservation.
they were crushin’ on and sometimes the favored child in a family would be the lucky wearer of the lavishly adorned footcandy. Guess Christian Louboutin’s red soles don’t seem that innovative after all.
For two long years, I’ve wanted a pair of Top-Siders. And for no reason besides pure laziness I have yet to make my purchase. But after a friend pointed out these understated metallic suckers on 
“It’s a gift to support these dogs and keep me out of the doghouse,” said one happy Jimmy Choo customer, carrying a bag of the brand’s luscious foot candy that would soon be a gift for his wife. Choo hosted an in-store soiree last night for the 
It isn’t often that I dream of living in Seattle. Anytime I’m up there I feel like I’m caught in a squall without a trenchcoat—literally, and sometimes metaphorically. Say what you will about L.A., but our non-existent rates of Season Affectivity Disorder are nothing to sneeze at. But the men’s fashion does transcend a post-grunge “nod to the crispy Seattle weather,” as Cher Horowitz once said. As independent men’s stores go, 
