Manolo Blahnik Hangisi Black Crystal Buckle Satin Flats
View Similar Items
Manolo Blahnik Hangisi Black Crystal Buckle Satin Flats
About the Item
- Designer:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Thousand Oaks, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU126634913833
Manolo Blahnik
There may be no designer with as wide a breadth of references as the fashion and footwear icon Manolo Blahnik, whose stated sources of inspiration for the creation of his sublime shoes include — but are not limited to — Diana Vreeland, ancient Greece, 21st-century architecture, Spanish cinema and Piet Mondrian.
It’s a fittingly robust list for someone who has spent a lifetime in the self-described “pursuit of beauty.”
Born in 1942 in Spain’s Canary Islands, Blahnik had an early exposure to shoemaking: During World War II, his designer-shoe-loving mother enlisted a local cobbler to teach her to make her own footwear from available materials. The young Blahnik was intrigued.
After briefly studying law in Switzerland with the intention of becoming a diplomat, Blahnik moved to Paris, where he took a job in a vintage clothing shop while studying art at École des Beaux-Arts as well as set design at the art school of the Louvre. It wasn’t until years later, however, that he would realize his calling as a shoe designer. In the late 1960s, Blahnik relocated to London, where he worked for both the Sunday Times and Vogue. In the early 1970s, the renowned American Vogue editor Diana Vreeland saw his sketches and urged him to pursue footwear.
After a debut collection for celebrated fashion designer Ossie Clark — featuring models that Blahnik had gotten to know through his work in the fashion industry, among them Twiggy — received acclaim, he created footwear for illustrious dressmaker Jean Muir and apprenticed with professional shoemakers in London to perfect his craft. By 1973 he had bought out the shoe boutique Zapata and made it his own. Bloomingdale’s introduced him to the American market with a collection a few years later.
Vintage Manolo Blahnik shoes are famous for their theatricality, as the designer is well known for the whimsical, fantastical elements he brings to footwear, often in an explosive palette. “I have always approached color in a bold way, from all angles and variations,” he once said. “Always searching for the poetry of an impossible color.” Tack on teetering height as a trademark that took shape from early on.
“Those poor girls couldn’t walk properly, but people loved it,” the designer recalled of his early models. “Sir Cecil Beaton said to me, ‘Is this a new way of walking?’” To take it from pop culture, it indeed might have been: People are still talking about the night that Bianca Jagger dazzled, horseback, at Studio 54 in a Halston dress and Blahnik shoes on her 30th birthday, and, decades later, the footwear icon was rendered a household name during the long-running television series Sex and the City.
Today, Manolo Blahnik remains a virtual synonym for luxury shoes. Find a range of his footwear and handbags on 1stDibs.
- Guiseppe Zanotti Suede Black Booties Size US 7.5By Giuseppe LancettiLocated in Thousand Oaks, CA-Black Suede Curved Wedge Platform Ankle Boots - Avante Guard - super unique! -Size 7.5Category
2010s Shoes
$318 Sale Price30% Off - ALAIA Lace Up Dark Green High Heel Size 39By Azzedine AlaïaLocated in Thousand Oaks, CAThis ALAÏA heels are stunning! -Lace-up style -Made of dark green leather. -Size 39 or 8.5 US -Great condition.Category
2010s Shoes
$595 Sale Price30% Off - Christian Dior Snake Skin Brown Cross Strap Platforms Size 40By Christian DiorLocated in Thousand Oaks, CAVintage Christian Dior Snake Skin Platforms Mint Condition - never worn Multicolor Brown with cross strap and adjustable ankle Slight platform for m...Category
2010s Shoes
$472 Sale Price30% Off - Valentino Black Leather Fringe Ankle Boots Size 36By ValentinoLocated in Thousand Oaks, CAValentino Black, Leather Fringe Boots. Ankle height with zipper. Size 36 in pristine condition (see soles) Leather slightly relaxed. Estimated retail $1265Category
2010s Italian Shoes
$540 Sale Price20% Off - Balenciaga Black, Leather, Cage Platforms Size 36By BalenciagaLocated in Thousand Oaks, CABalenciaga Leather Black Strappy Platforms Size 36 Platform with block heel Sling back, open toe, strappy Super cute and sexy - Can be worn all yea...Category
Early 2000s French Shoes
- Bottega Veneta Silver Ankle BootBy Bottega VenetaLocated in Thousand Oaks, CASilver ankle boot by Bottega Veneta with block heels and almond shaped toes. Original tags still attached, and comes with original box. Size 37. Retail value: $740.Category
21st Century and Contemporary Shoes
- Pierre Cardin New Old Stock Blue platform heelsBy Pierre CardinLocated in Amsterdam, NLNew in box, old stock, rare Pierre Cardin heels The material is satin with silver color decorative stones Its in excellent condition Comes with the original box size is EU 41/ US 10...Category
20th Century French Shoes
$583 Sale Price20% Off - Pierre Cardin New Old Stock Fuchsia Platform HeelsBy Pierre CardinLocated in Amsterdam, NLNew in box, old stock, rare pierre cardin heels The material is satin with silver color decorative stones Its in excellent condition Comes with the original box size is EU 41/ US 10...Category
20th Century French Shoes
$583 Sale Price20% Off - Pierre Cardin New Old Stock Blue Satin HeelsBy Pierre CardinLocated in Amsterdam, NLNew in box, old stock, rare Pierre Cardin platform heels The material is satin with silver color decorative stones Its in excellent condition Comes with the original box size is EU 4...Category
20th Century French Shoes
$584 Sale Price20% Off - John Galliano Gazette Print Newspaper Unisex Pool Slides Sandals (US 10)By John GallianoLocated in Montreal, QuebecMen's or Women's. Gazette-Print Pool Slides. John Galliano Paris pool slides showcasing iconic gazette-print (newspaper print) motif. Featuring a flat hee...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Shoes
- John Galliano Gazette Print Newspaper Unisex Pool Slides Sandals (US 11)By John GallianoLocated in Montreal, QuebecMen's or Women's. Gazette-Print Pool Slides. John Galliano Paris pool slides showcasing iconic gazette-print (newspaper print) motif. Featuring a flat hee...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Shoes
$154 Sale Price30% Off - Alaia Over Knee Studded Flat Boots size 39By Azzedine AlaïaLocated in Brossard, QCCrafted in Italy, Alaïa's black leather pair is backed in a stretch fabric for the perfect streamlined fit. Metal applications. Solid color Narrow round toe line Composition: 100% Go...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Shoes