- The New York Times interviews up-and-coming fashion designer Christian Siriano.

- Marcus Jordan’s loyalty to Dad’s shoe brand causes University of Central Florida to lose it’s Adidas sponsorship (LA Times).

- In more positive Adidas news, Adidas has announced a plan to make €1 trainers in an effort to make affordable shoes available to those worldwide who would otherwise be without footwear (UK. Telegraph)

- Collections are ongoing through November 23rd for  Samaritan’s Purse:  “Operation Christmas Child“; a UK-based charity that collects Christmas gifts packed in shoe boxes to be shipped to children worldwide. Packages can be tracked online to their destination. Dropoff locations (By postal code) are available here.

- Jimmy Choo line goes on sale at select H&M retailers with some locations passing out wristbands in an effort to head off fights or violence. Shoes are already appearing at markup on online auction sites such as ebay - a predictable sign of the times. More here. (Market Watch, The Telegraph, NY Daily News & Shanghaist)

- It’s official, both the NY Times and Chicago Tribune are writing about this fall’s continuing women’s footwear trending toward ‘extreme shoes’; super high heels and statement shoes are still going strong.

- Minnesota-based shoe brand ‘Red Wings Shoes’ will be laying off 200 employees at Kentucky and Minnesota locations due to the continued economic downturn that continues to affect their blue-collar customer base (Kansas City Star).

- Popsugar has a chance to win a pair of Christian Louboutin shoes….all you have to do is be willing to sign up for shopstyle email alerts to be entered.

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Remember how - not too long ago -  we were anticipating the new Christian Siriano-Payless Shoesource collaboration?

Well, some styles are now available in-store an online.

So far, I am seeing 2 shoe-styles and 1 handbag online:

Christian Siriano for Payless “Slither” $49.99. Don’t expect these to go on sale anytime soon.

Christian Siriano for Payless “Sandstrap” platform peep-to $34.99. This is a cute and classy shoe.

Christian Siriano for Payless “Sassafrass” extra large hobo handbag $34.99. I wonder if that little inverted pyramid-thingy will be the Siriano trademark?

These are cute and I like the idea of supporting new designers - particularly when they are trying to create affordable fashion for the many folks who must stay on-budget every month.

But, online styles appear to be limited ….. Let’s hope there are more styles to be found in-store.

…Or, am I just being unreasonably greedy to get my hands on a pair of the edgy little chain-adorned numbers we saw on the runway?

Now I’ll just have to  try to get some time to go into town today to see if anything has shown up locally. Unfortunately, small-town living may not bode well for me in this instance.

ETA: Another new style just popped up on the Payless site (particularly useful to those who’s local stores never saw any September in-store stock); these certainly weren’t there yesterday morning - Brown snakeskin flats:

Christian Siriano for Payless “Saunter” $29.99

I suppose there’s some of that chain we have been mentioning in the comments below.

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Yesterday, r5bales showed you Christian Siriano’s new shoe collection, which will eventually be reimagined for Payless. His last collection was toned-down considerably for sale to the general public, so it remains to be seen what will happen to his newest heel innovation: The Claw.

To recap:

But it seems that Siriano is not the only designer to have decided that The Claw is the way to go for Spring 2010. Tomy Cohen, who showed his deconstructed collection at Bryant Park yesterday, seems to have embraced a similar aesthetic. Check it out:

Admittedly, Cohen’s Claw is not nearly as pronounced as Siriano’s (we are talking about CHRISTIAN SIRIANO here), but it still doesn’t look that stable to me.

So tell me, what do you think of The Claw? And while you’re thinking about it, check out more of Tony Cohen’s collection as well as the Larare for Tony Cohen footwear collection.

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Christian Siriano introduced his Spring ‘10 Runway collection at Payless Shoe Source in New York during Fashion’s Night Out.  Now, I don’t know if these shoes will be in my neighborhood Payless, or if they will make them less “runway” looking, or if these are a llimited edition for only New York.  Last year we saw Payless take his hot runway shoes and make them consumer friendly (average).

Here are the shoes introduced. 

These are what the model wore at the sneak peek.

Christian and the current display.

Payless Shoe Source is trying to make unusual shoes available to the lower end market.  They also have Alice+Olivia limited edition designs available.  We’ll see how well this line does in the stores.

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For the uninitiated, DIY stands for “Do it Yourself.” In fashion, it refers to people who take it upon themselves to modify or create their clothing to make it their own. No one has a more personal style than a fashion DIY-er.  It’s not easy to take a pair of scissors to a dress or write all over a pair of shoes if you haven’t done it before. I know. I used to think that the clothes were sacred! They were the way they were for a reason! This is clearly some mythic idea I concocted in my brain. It’s gone now. Payless has taken it upon themselves to make the first step easier by introducing the Friendship shoe.

This all-white shoe is sold with a package of three markers in order to give you the little push you might need to start scribbling on and personalizing your shoes. Originally, the idea came from kids. Remember, in school how important is was that EVERYONE in your class signed your yearbook or your cast (if you managed to break an arm)? These let you collect signatures with the need for tragic accident or the end of the year. But they don’t stop there. In addition to running wild with the pens that come with the shoes, you can also expand on the idea by adding feathers, paint, rhinestones, studs, fabric, or anything else in your craft arsenal. The possibilities are endless. The shoes come in both adult ($22.99) and children’s ($17.99) sizes and are available online as well as in stores in the New York Metro area (which includes New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania).

Did I mention that 100% of the proceeds from these shoes go to The Fresh Air Fund? This wonderful nonprofit program raises money to allow inner city kids to experience summer camp and outdoor activities free of charge. It literally provides kids with “fresh air.” Those of you who live in places that have large quantities of nature may not understand just how important this program is. I live in the center of Manhattan. On a regular day, it’s entirely possible that I may not actually see a tree, or anything else that grows. Kids in the city have little access to nature and little opportunity to run and play. This is an essential part of childhood and I cannot express to you how vital it is for a healthy childhood. I believe the Fresh Air Fund is providing children and families with a tremendous service.

To give you all some idea of the possibilities of the Friendship shoe, take a look at what our beloved Christian Siriano did with his pair:

That Christian has a way with feathers.

Another famous name, at least in the business of high-end athletic shoes and graphic design, also took a shot at the Friendship shoe. Jeff Staple has designed some of the most sought-after shoes in Nike’s history as well as limited runs for New Balance. He will be designing an entire collection of Airwalk shoes for Payless that will debut in Fall 2009.

So there you have it. The Friendship shoe gives you a chance to do some good, get some comfy kicks, and express your personality in one easy step.

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