Dangerous Shoe Alert: Beware Balenciaga

Posted by jitterbugbaby in Balenciaga Shoes, Fall 2008 Shoes, Fashion Week

Based on observations of his Balenciaga show in Paris, I think we can safely say that Nicolas Ghesquière is going multipurpose with his shoes.

Some may be talking about weaponizing space, but Ghesquière is weaponizing shoes!

Balenciaga Paris fall rtw 1 Balenciaga Paris fall rtw 2 Balenciaga Paris fall rtw 3

I certainly wouldn’t want to be kicked in the shins by any of these sleek and deadly creations.

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Shoes of Project Runway 4.9

Posted by jitterbugbaby in Balenciaga Shoes, Christian Louboutin Shoes, Gucci Shoes, Shoes of Project Runway, Stuart Weitzman Shoes

Good riddance to Victorya, I say. Her designs were never all that unique, and if I had to hear her talk about how she’s a very competitive person anymore, bodily harm might have been involved.

Her design last night was fug in a big way, and completely uninspired/uninspiring. Plus, she used a nude version of these blah Dais pumps from Stuart Weitzman.

PR 4.9 Victorya Stuart Weitzman Dais pump

I’m glad we’re done with that.

In other PR shoe news, we saw yet another use of the Patron Shoe of Project Runway 4 (the asymmetrical Versace mary-jane, which now seems to be gone from Bluefly… perhaps sold out with the aid of repeat viewings on PR) with this trench from Jillian, which was almost great, but then lost something in the execution.

PR 4.9 Jillian Versace MJs

Chris used these Gucci Ebony gladiator sandals again (which he also used in the Hershey challenge a few weeks ago), which looked nice enough, but the dress was a bit underwhelming.

PR 4.9 ChrisGucci Ebony sandal

Ricky’s winning outfit (which wasn’t my fave, I must admit–nice, but nothing fantastic) made good use of these wicked and excellent boots, which from the red soles, would seem to be Louboutins, but are hiding out there somewhere. Kit used them for the Hershey challenge, too, with an outfit I loved.

PR 4.9 Ricky PR 4.6 Kit

Rami went for the clunky Balenciaga nude sandals that went with his and Sweet P’s ready-to-wear outfit from last week. I think the sandals looked much better with the rougher, brass-button-enhanced look of the denim than they did with the floaty dress from last week. I’ve got to say that this outfit was gorgeous, and for me, either this look or The Whiner’s motorcycle-style one would have been crowned winner.

PR 4.9 Rami Balenciaga sandal

Sweet P brought these jeweled t-strap sandals back, which we first saw way back in the first episode on Carmen’s model. But do they show up on Bluefly? Seemingly not. They’re jeweled enough to come from Guiseppe Zanotti, but who knows.

PR 4.9 Sweet P PR 4.1 Carmen

We’re getting down into the final stretch on PR here. To paraphrase Heidi Klum, “Remember, shoes, this is a competition for you as well. The shoe paired with the winning designer will win a spread in Elle magazine.” OK, well, maybe not. But certainly a lot of popularity. I’m betting on those Versace’s taking the prize.

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Shoes of Project Runway 4.8

Posted by jitterbugbaby in Balenciaga Shoes

Farewell, Kit. I will miss your edgy, fun style. I will miss that you were the first one this season to use the shoes that I now officially nominate as The Patron Shoe of Project Runway 4: these asymmetrical Versace pumps.

Versace MJs

They’ve been used 3 times now, that I can figure. First in Kit’s episode 1 outfit, then in Rami’s episode 6 outfit, and last night in Victorya and Jillian’s ready-to-wear look.

PR 4.01: Kit PR 4.6 Rami PR 4.08 Jillian/Victorya

Long live the asymmetrical Versace mary-jane.

And what did other designers use last night? Well, sadly, we can’t see much of the footwear for the avant-garde outfits, which is a shame, because I’d really like to know what shoes were chosen to go with this fabulous dress from Chris and Christian. I can’t stand the little whiner, but I can’t call this dress anything but incredible.

PR 4.8 Chris/Christian

Much as this dress is gorgeous and amazing and so well made, I have to say that I was partial to Victorya and Jillian’s look over this one. It was so beautifully made, so high fashion, and fitting into that English punk aesthetic that I love and adore.

PR 4.8 Victorya/Jillian

It reminded me a lot of one display from The Met’s Anglomania 2006 exhibition that looked at traditional English fashions (in this particular case, hunting clothes) and the way they were appropriated by more transgressive designers like Vivienne Westwood and John Galliano.

Anglomania hunting scene

Shoe-wise, those could be plenty of boots, but these Kenneth Cole “That’s the Point” boots are a good contender.

In other shoe news from last night’s ep, Sweet P and Rami may not have wowed the judges with their avant-garde look (which I agree was nice, but not out there enough), but their ready-to-wear dress was adorable. And these Balenciaga sandals (which look like they’re distant cousins to the Lego shoes), while not all that attractive in my opinion, tied the two outfits together well in terms of color.

PR 4.8 Sweet P/Rami rtw Balenciaga sandal

My favorite shoes were the ones that went along with Chris and Christian’s ready-to-wear outfit, but I can’t seem to find them on Bluefly. Anyone want to hunt them down?

PR 4.8 Chris/Christian rtw

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Spawn of the Lego Shoes

Posted by Shomore in Balenciaga Shoes, Fendi Shoes

Fans of the Balenciaga Lego pump can rejoice this Christmas season.  The lego shoe family has spawned.

Actually, there was a slight mutation in the reproduction process but don’t these rainbow colored shoes from the Fendi look like could be offshoots of the Balenciaga lego shoe?  I’m (somewhat) a bigger fan of the Fendi rainbow flats and sandals, but only because they look more practical.

The Fendi flat and sandal are available at Neiman Marcus for $520 and $385 respectively.

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Return of the Balenciaga Lego shoes

Posted by jitterbugbaby in Balenciaga Shoes, Celebrity Shoe Style, High heels, Walking Disasters

We’ve blogged about these shoes before. On several occasions.

ELLE August Balenciaga shoes

The folks at ELLE clearly agree with my assessment of the LEGO-like quality of these shoes.

I think they’re hideous.

Kanye West doesn’t.

And apparently Beyonce agrees with Kanye, rather than me, because she was sporting a pair at the American Music Awards last weekend.

Beyonce in Balenciaga

The jacket was designed by Tina Knowles (Beyonce’s mom), who, of course, designs a lot of the clothes Beyonce steps out in for events. Who knows if the jacket was designed to match the shoes, but match it does.

I’m as shocked as anyone to say this, because I a) hate those shoes and b) think Beyonce rarely wears clothes that are flattering, but… drumroll please…

I like this whole look. Yep. I love how the jacket and shoes match. I love the hair and makeup. I love the earrings (which are hard to see in this photo). I love how the jeans (J Brand, which I can personally state are awesome) fit her and make her look curvaceous and fab without looking like they’re a size too small.

I still think the shoes are severely fug, but Beyonce is proving very well that the right outfit can make pretty much anything work.

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