Spring 2012 Fashion Week Footwear: More Updates from the Runways

Of the most recent crop of runway shoes out there, I was smitten by… wait, no.  I’ll save the smitten-making shoes til the end.  What I’ll start with instead is another trend I’ve been seeing a fair bit of: transparency.

Like these from three from Marchesa.  The collection was floaty and ethereal and romantic, and the transparent shoes matched that with some gorgeous graceful lines.

Oscar de la Renta also showed us some transparent shoes, though in that show there was quite a bit of playing with colors and socks underneath to make the transparency show up very differently (god, I just typed that “shoe up very differently” at first… guess what I’ve been thinking about this week).  I dig the oxford inspiration and the buckles and the ankle straps… but you’re probably getting tired of me mentioning those things this week.

The next triad here is three shoes from three shows that I loved.  Left to right we have Narciso Rodriguez’s take on a super high class Ace bandage, Sophie Theallet’s spectator-inspired pump that looks like murder to wear but is so damn adorable (plus double buckles!), and one more by Oscar de la Renta that was a mule so beautifully embellished and so reminiscent of something Marie-Antoinette might have slipped on that I couldn’t pass it up.

But the shoes that had me smitten (you’ve been patient until now, after all) were the shoes that out Lepore’d Nanette Lepore for quirky feminine… Tory Burch.  I was hella surprised, I must admit, because usually I find Tory Burch shoes insipid and ubiquitous, and Nanette Lepore usually does the quirky feminine to a T.  But first, look at the Nanette Lepore offering, of which I only present one to save your retinas some serious searing.

You can click on that image and enlarge it, but you might want to put some sunglasses on first.

OK, back with me?  Sunspots cleared from your vision?  Well if you want to cool things down a little, then check out the adorableness (and look! some low heels!) of Tory Burch’s offerings and coo in delight that these may be coming to a store near you in a matter of months.

Shoes of Project Runway 5.8

Stella, I’m sorry to see you go.  You brought some attitude and edge to Project Runway along with a New York accent that won’t quit.

And honestly, I didn’t hate your outfit this week.  OK, so the tailoring wasn’t good, and the vest didn’t come out real sharp, and after being in the bottom two a few times, I get why they sent you home.

But your look was much more creative and cohesive than some of the others.  And it was indeed staying true to your own design vision and making it work for a 1940s internationally-traveling spy by way of Diane von Furstenberg.  Plus, you used those same bronze ankle booties that you’ve used for just about every challenge (see the Olympic challenge outfit for a good view).

I like those booties.  A lot.  And I can never seem to find them on Bluefly, though these Nanette Lepore Bewitching booties in gold come pretty close.

My much-beloved Leanne won her second challenge in a row (immunity be damned!) with this beautiful and beautifully-tailored gown and fun little jacket.

Who knows what shoes she has under there, though.

But, much as I like these two pieces, I don’t think they work well together at all.  And in addition, neither of them (the dress especially) seems particularly Diane von Furstenberg to me.

For that, you’d have to go to Korto’s dress-and-jacket pair.  Both pieces seem to work with each other and individually as DVF styles.  The patent leather peep-toes could be many shoes, but I’ll point to these Prada ones, which are sleek and chic.

Blayne went with a knickerlicious pant and top, much like his Lipstick Jungle outfit, and while I don’t love it (except that jacket, which I covet), I also weirdly don’t hate it.  Do you think he gets extra credit for using shoes by Michael Kors (the Bradford pump)?

Terri gave us this week’s pant-and-jacket combo (and how frightening that she herself can fit into the same size pants as her model) and this week’s wearing of the Patron Shoe of Project Runway 5.8 (yes, I’m coming straight out and declaring it officially): the Gucci Eva wingtip (though this could be the maryjane, too… can’t quite tell).

My boy Jerell went with some nondescript t-straps.  Joe looks like he used a shoe with a Chinese-inspired knot to add one more over-the-top-Shanghai element to his already-over-the-top-Shanghai outfit.  Suede could have buried any sort of wackadoodle shoe under his sack of a dress.

But the best shoes by far this week were with Kenley’s dress.  Look how cute those little floral sandals are.  I mean, the girl may drive me nuts with her whining and her vocal tone, but she does make a damn good dress, and she does pick some damn good shoes to go with it.  Sadly, though they seem Nanette Lepore-ish with the girly chic thing going on, I don’t seem to see them on Bluefly.

Ah well.  Better shoe-finding luck next time, I suppose.

[ETA: Sorry, dear readers.  This post seems to have been partially eaten at some point during the day.  It's back up now.]

Shoes of Project Runway 5.5

Lipstick Jungle, huh?

Yep, that was the challenge for Project Runway designers last night: design an outfit for Brooke Shields’s character, Wendy, to wear on Lipstick Jungle.  I think it’s quite possible that every designer was also required to say the name of the show in every single soundbite, too.  Shill, much?

Anyway, the description that was given for the character was that she came from a bohemian background, but is now a high-powered executive, and this was supposed to be a day-to-night outfit.

What did these teams of two do?  More importantly (as far as we’re concerned here, that is), what shoes did they use?

The look I’d have handed the win to is the one Heidi loved most: Jerell and Stella’s.  And it’s also by far the one with the best shoes.  The Nanette Lepore Dotty Dame pumps are ADORABLE and have a perfect balance between grown-up and girly, as expected from the designer.

Who actually got the win?  Keith and Kenley, who, admittedly, also made a beautiful dress there.  It’s pretty primetime ready.  And so are its shoes, the Stuart Weitzman Expump (here in black patent, but also available in black leather).

Middle of the pack were Korto and Joe with their interesting “ethnic” blouse and poorly-fitted strapless dress.  And Terri and Suede, with this outfit that, to me, didn’t seem quite right for the office OR for evening.  And same goes for the shoe choice, the Charles by Charles David Savior mule that we saw way back in the first episode with Daniel’s plastic-cup dress.

And then we had the travesty that was Kelli and Daniel’s hoochie-mama outfit.  Leopard and lace and lingerie are NOT good looks for a classy, sophisticated type.  It looks like they used the Charles David Catch sandal, which is nice enough, I suppose.  But really, I don’t think there was a way to save that outfit.

If you want to check out other options for “dressing the businesswoman,” Bluefly is doing a spotlight on the peep-toe this week from their Project Runway accessories selection.  Ironically, the only one of the above shoes that shoes up on that page is the Nanette Lepore pump, and that one in a different color.

From Seattle, with love

I’m just back from a long-ish trip to the lovely city of Seattle, and what can I say–I’m in love! I’m an East Coast gal, through and through, but seeing Seattle made me doubt my allegiance. True enough, I was lucky enough to get some freaky weather, where by “freaky” I of course mean “sunny”–a rare occurrence, I was assured, in the life of the otherwise easy-going Seattlites.

Seattle ranked high also according to another measurement in my book–one you won’t likely find in Zagat or Michelin, but one you deeply, deelpy care about: it scored really well on my Shoe-O-Meter™–the scale according to which I measure cities as shoe-friendly, or rather, shoe-lover – friendly. On that scale, consider New York a five-shoe-star city, with its abundant offerings; Philadelphia, where I live right now, probably ranks an aspiring three on that scale (barely there, if you ask me). But Seattle? Oh Seattle approached four, I would say. Not only is Seattle the home of the Giant Shoe Museum (which you’ll find deep in the belly of Pike Place Market), but also the place where an intrepid young John W. Nordstrom, fresh off the boat from Sweden, eventually set up a famous shoe store which bloomed into the multi-billion retail giant that we all know and love today. I scoured the sales racks both at Nordstrom and at Nordstrom Rack (oh! many hours of delicious fondling, gazing, trying, handling, sizing, and otherwise drooling over some of the choice selections). I almost wanted to make out with this shoe, ironically entitled ‘Bad Girl’:

Ok, and maybe I licked it, a little (well, I wanted to, anyway)–but I remembered I can’t honestly walk in those heels and regretfully bid adieu to my plush rosy-cheeked paramour.

Apart from Nordstrom, Seattle’s shoe-star rating is maintained by a large supply of walk-friendly shoe-stores, a variety of choice upscale boutiques, some other large department stores such as Macy’s, the Shoefly Guy chain. A most excellent selection that did my heart good.

I returned to my two-and-a-half shoe-star city with renewed energies and revitalized shoe lust. Philly may not compare to NY or Seattle in terms of footwear retail, but by golly, I’m going to make the best of it. And if all else fails, I’ll always have the Internets!

(Btw, the Nanette Lepore ‘Bad Girl’ Sandal is currently on sale for $203, 40% off, at Nordstrom).