Ask the ShoeBlogger: Who designed Anne Hathaway’s Shoe

Shoe reader Alexandra wrote us asking:

…I was hoping you could clear something up for me. I love Anne Hathaway and I’ve always wondered who designed the shoes she is wearing in this picture.  It is from the 2008 Venice Film Festival, if that helps.

Thank you!

-Alexandra

Dearest Alexandra:

I was completely oohhing and awwing when I saw this dress on Anne Hathaway last year (the dress is by Versace if anyone is interested).  For such a stunning dress, I was happy that the shoes were so classy and understated.  They did not distract from the dress and all it’s beauty.

Unfortunately, I was unable to identify the exact shoe for you.  By now there is a high likelihood that the style has been discontinued by whoever the designer is too.  But, since I love solved mysteries, if there are any shoe readers out there who have better id’ing skills, please leave us a comment.  First person to correctly id the shoe gets a small prize from us. 

However, I’d like to recommend an alternative shoe for you.   They are the Via Spaga Lulus.  Although these Via Spiga sandals are not nearly as high or strappy as Anne’s, I can personally vouch for these shoes.  I wore them during my wedding photos since they were more comfortable than my ceremony/reception shoes and they are a good price for well constructed shoes from Italy.  The gold tone has also served me well – I’ve since worn the shoes on several occasions, pairing the shoes with a red dress, black gown, etc.

Via Spiga Lulu for $97 at 6pm.com or $110 at Overstock.

Dana Davis Does it Right

One of the things that has sadly been lost a bit in the madness of the recent ready-to-wear season is one of things I like to do most here at Shoeblog.  Namely, ferreting out shoe lines that mesh both chic and comfort.  Much as I might love to drool over John Galliano and Viktor & Rolf and all the other beautiful footwear on display on the catwalks, there’s no way in hell I’d ever actually put my body through the pain of wearing those shoes.

So, in this season of particularly painfully high heels that no woman should have to wear to feel sexy and confident, I’m going to turn to Dana Davis to save me from the agony and bone-damage.

Who is Dana Davis, you might ask?

She’s a woman who, after spending much of her life as a Type 1 diabetic and dealing with multiple resulting foot surgeries, finally decided to take matters into her own hands and started a shoe line intended to offer women stylish, sleek shoe options that wouldn’t send them hobbling to the hospital after a night out.

She’s worked orthopaedic technology into her collection, which includes both flats and heels (up to about 3 1/2″), and she hasn’t sacrificed the style.  In fact, she’s hitting the classic vintage 1940s-inspired look really well with some of her shoes.

For example, the Volterra, which may look familiar to those of you who (like me) found your eyes caught on Anne Hathaway’s feet during her Frost/Nixon-aping performance with Hugh Jackman during this year’s Oscar ceremony opening number.

You can snap up your own pair of Volterras in several colors, but my favorite is this beautiful pink textured leather with chocolate accents.

The Campania in matte gold and metallic bronze will add some sizzle to your spring/summer wardrobe.

Or if you’re after a walkable sandal that’ll be low-profile in the way of sleek styling but high-profile in the way of fashionability, either the Elba or the Veneto will keep you (and your feet, of course) taken care of.

There are some pretty jewel tones coming for the fall 2009 collection, so keep an eye out.  But in the meanwhile, as the weather in some parts of the world starts to warm up, here are some ways to be well-shod for the upcoming season without killing yourself with blisters in the process.  OK, so they’re not cheap (they run in the $400-500 range).  But that’s what many designer label shoes cost, and I’d have a hard time buying a justification that dropping that kind of dough is worth it for a certain brand name but not for a shoe that’ll actually keep your feet supported and well cared for.

Shoes on the 81st Annual Oscar Red Carpet

Cursed the long gowns! Not that they aren’t utterly fabulous and TDF, but it makes spotting shoes that much more difficult.  Anyways, here are the shoes on the red carpet we’ve compiled thus far and we’ll be sure to keep you posted if we find others.

First up is Mamma Mia’s Amanda Seyfreid in a ill fitting Valentino Couture dress.  The dress looked infinitely better on the runway without the straps and is a size too large on Amanda’s petite frame.  Even her gray Jimmy Choo ‘Night’ sandals weren’t a top pick for me.

Alicia Keys, on the other hand, was stunning in this Armani Prive lavendar gown.  Her shoe of choice?  It’s the Jimmy Choo ‘Lance’ sandal, which is available in gold at Saks for $695.

One pair of shoes we didn’t get to see were these custom Casadei 1616 shoes.  They were worn by the lovely Anne Hathaway and matched her Armani Prive dress perfectly.  While she didn’t win Best Actress, she was one of the best dressed on the red carpet for me.

Sources: Celebutopia, Just Jared

Sisterhood of the Pants Suit

Although the black tuxedo pant suit seen on Anne Hathaway for the Bride Wars premiere and on Katherine Heighl at the People’s Choice Awards was heavily derided by fashionistas, I must confess that I didn’t mind the look.

Here’s why:

Argument #1)  Black is a great way to make things pop.   Black is a very conservative color so the rest of the outfit is left to shine.  There is no denying that my attention was instantly drawn to  Anne’s Christian Louboutin Mirrored Very Galaxy Platform pump ($1295 at Saks) and Katherine Heighl’s pumps (anyone know who the designer is btw?) .

It was also equally hard to miss the mega-watt smiles, hair, and jewelry on these starlets.

Argument #2: Black goes with everything. Similar to argument #1 where your accessories get to pop, imagine the fun, colorful shoes, handbags, and accessories you’ll get to wear like the Kate Spade Hart in Multi Colored Python ($166 at Zappos.

Argument #3: Black is a slimming color.  Coming off the holidays, it is no wonder that Anne and Katherine both chose to wear this look in January.  What a great way to look fab and hide the holiday flab.

Argument #4: Stay warm but formal.   Unless your dress is layered or the flash of the lighbulbs is warming, it must be quite chilly to wear a strapless dress.  It doesn’t make sense that men get to stay warm in their suits but women cannot.

Argument #5: I can see the shoes! Being that this is a shoe blog, of course I want to see the shoes.  When long beautiful formal dresses are on display, one can only hope for an occassional flash.

Argument #6: Black transcends time and occassion. It’s an easy way to go from office attire, cocktail, or formal and the look works for women of all ages.

Now, of course everything is good in moderation.  It would be refreshing to see Diane Keaton in something other than a suit, but I’m absolutely fine with the sisterhood of the pantsuits on the red carpet look.

Images via: Celebutopia.net