Last night in New York was that always-delightful high point of every fashionista’s calendar o’ chic: the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute Gala.  This year’s theme (in conjunction with the Costume Institute’s major annual exhibition of the same title)?  The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion.

While last year’s Superhero show only produced a few interesting footwear choices, this year, there were beautiful shoes galore!

This may well be the year of Nicholas Kirkwood.  It certainly was on the carpet last night.  In my opinion, the most interesting designs were his, and they were on the feet of some of the top models in the industry.

Here’s Jessica Stam in the S9051B.

And here’s Karolina Kurkova so considerately displaying the S9049A for us.

Check out the official site for stockists near you and a peek at the GORGEOUS, uber-glam styles for the spring/summer 09 line.

While Kirkwood was my favorite on the carpet, there were plenty more style statements made through shoes.

Louboutins were everywhere… of course!

I’m not sure I’m feeling the giant bow look (seen here on Ivanka Trump with her Bow T pumps, which you can find at Joseph here), but I’ll tell you I do love her dress.

The so-called hourglass heels from Louis Vuitton that Twinkletoes wrote about so amusingly during Paris Fashion Week earlier this year were EVERYWHERE last night!  And I do mean everywhere.

Madonna wore a crazed thigh-high boot version.

Posh went with the ankle straps.

And Gossip Girl’s Leighton Meester took the cake for Walking Disaster in the covered ankle bow-tie version.  I hasten to add that the shoes are BY FAR the best part of this outfit, and that Walking Disaster status is earned by that horrible piece of—I hate to even call it fashion—fabric she has covered herself in that is an awful combination of rejected upholstery, spangles, and some American Apparel red lamé leggings.  XOXO?  I think not.

But we can’t end on such a hideous note, can we?  No no.  I wouldn’t do that to you.

So instead, I will end with a beautiful shoe that I totally covet.  It’s Roger Vivier’s origami-inspired Kyte in a beautiful ivory/gold combination that matches Marisa’s dress perfectly.  Mwah!

All in all, a beautiful batch of shoes full of interesting heels and toes and uppers and materials.  It’s going to be a fun season, folks.  Can’t wait for it to unroll.

(Celeb photos courtesy of Celebutopia and StyleFrizz.)

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To temporarily interrupt our holiday shoe broadcasts, here’s a more regular blog topic - our shoe showdown.

Tory Burch, Victoria Beckham, and Taylor Momsen have all worn the Fall 2008 futuristic Balenciaga pointy pump during a night out (albeit with reversed colors compared to the runway version).  For this shoe showdown, which gal gets your vote for rocking this industrial statement piece and why?

My vote goes to Victoria Beckham.  These shoes are the focal point of the outfit and the remaining pieces need to stay simple and understated.  Tory’s top and Taylor’s dress just were too distracting for me.

Image from Style.com, Celebutopia.net

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So maybe the real answer to the title of this post is a resounding “Both!” The question was inspired by her recent attire at the launch of the Beckham Signature Fragrance Collection at Macy’s Herald Square in New York City this weekend.

The Evidence:

I’m sorry, perhaps you did not get the full impact of this here photo. Take a closer look.

The Trial:

Defense: As you will see, Lady Posh has lifted an outfit entirely from the Antonio Berardi Fall 2008 runway line. It’s fits beautifully, because let’s face it, Posh can wear the hell out of outfits! And she is all about the crazy high heels!

Prosecution: But she isn’t wearing any heels! Those rubber stockings/boots (yes, they are connected!) have platforms, but are completely heel-less, giving the impression that Posh is balancing all her weight on her tippy toes. That’s not high heels; that’s just crazy.

Def: We of the defense are not the first to laud Miz Beckham for her courageous footwear choices. Let me draw your attention to her Elle editorial from 2008. Here are the shoes that she wore in the highly discussed spread:

Pro: Yeah…those were pretty cool. But wait - they have HEELS, albeit ones that don’t actually touch the ground! The point we are making here is that heel-free shoes are against nature.

Def: It’s not like she’s the first. Marc Jacobs sold a ton of those backwards heel shoes last season. (Still available on Net-a-Porter for the low, low sale price of $660)

Pro: Oh yeah - those were so cool. I mean crazy, they were crazy. I must stick to my guns…

Def: And Vogue’s Stephanie La Cava wore these fantastic Dior Couture uber-platforms to the Whitney Art Party in June and people are still talking about it. See how we are still talking about it?

Pro: I WANT those! Where can I get some. Wow - they look a lot like Posh’s Elle shoes. She’s such a trend-setter. I can’t believe you got to me like this. Ok, she’s crazy AND amazing. We should make a movie about her finely tuned sense of fashion insanity. Must…go…shopping….!

The Verdict: After long deliberation the jury has decided that Posh is both crazy and awesome. Sure we knew that already, but the evidence was too good to pass up.

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