MANOLO BLAHNIK Size 8.5 Brown Patent Leather Booties
View Similar Items
MANOLO BLAHNIK Size 8.5 Brown Patent Leather Booties
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 8.5 (US)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:San Francisco, CA
- Reference Number:Seller: 1077771stDibs: LU162212188982
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.
- JIMMY CHOO BOUTIQUE Size 9 Black Suede Gold Hoop Peep Toe PumpsBy Jimmy ChooLocated in San Francisco, CAJIMMY CHOO BOUTIQUE pumps come in metallic suede with black leather piping, and gathered peep toe with gold tone hoop. Made in Italy.Excellent Pre-...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Heels
- STUART WEITZMAN Amber Size 10 Black Suede BootsBy Stuart WeitzmanLocated in San Francisco, CASTUART WEITZMAN "Amber" boots comes in a black suede featuring a over the knee style, round toe, pull on, and a rubber sole. New With Box. Marked: 40.5 / 10 B Measurements: ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Boots
- CHRISTIAN DIOR Size 9 Purple Patent Leather SandalsBy Christian DiorLocated in San Francisco, CACHRISTIAN DIOR sandals come in purple leather featuring a contrast material suede and patent leather, chunky heel, and elastic strap ankle. Made in Italy.Very Good Pre-Owned Conditio...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Sandals
- REED KRAKOFF Size 7.5 Black & Beige Two Tone Leather Cap Toe FlatsBy Reed KrakoffLocated in San Francisco, CAREED KRAKOFF flats comes in a black leather with a beige alligator tip trim featuring a cap toe and a front bow detail. Comes with box. Made in Italy.Very Good Pre-Owed Condition. ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Low Heels
- CHANEL Size 7.5 Black Silk Ankle Strap PumpsBy ChanelLocated in San Francisco, CACHANEL pumps comes in a black silk featuring a open toe, ankle strap, patent leather trim, and a chunky heel. Made in Italy. Very Good Pre-Owned Condition. Marked: 37.5 Measure...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Heels
- BRUNO MAGLI Size 9 Brown Contrast Stitch Leather LoafersBy Bruno MagliLocated in San Francisco, CABRUNO MAGLI loafers comes in a brown leather with contrast stitching featuring a slip on style and a wooden sole. Made in Italy.Very Good Pre-Owned Condition. Marked: 9 FOutsole:...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Moccasins
- VERSACE GOLD LEATHER FLAT SANDALS with GOLD MEDUSA STUDS 36.5, 37.5, 38By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Gold Ankle strap sandals Medusa gold metallic studs, open round toe, buckle fastening ankle strap. Content: 100% leather IT Size 36.5 - US 6.5 insole: 9 1/2" IT Size 37...Category
2010s Italian Sandals
- VERSACE SILVER LEATHER SANDALS SHOES with GOLD CHAIN 40 - 10By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Silver-tone heeled sandals from Versace Made of textured calf leather Strap around the ankle with buckle fastening Gold-tone hardware with 3D Medusa Decorative chain on ...Category
2010s Italian Heels
- S/2018 look 43 VERSACE CITY STUD STRAP SANDALS IN BLACK 40.5 - 10.5By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Spring 2018 look # 43 Resort 2018 look # 2,7 CITY STUD STRAP SANDALS IN BLACK High-heel, open toe pumps in calf leather, with City Stud two-tone studded toe and ankle str...Category
2010s Italian Heels
- Christian Dior Folk Platform SneakersBy Christian DiorLocated in Geneva, CHThese "espadrilles" sneakers are made of black and silver woven leather. Trimmings are in black leather and the sole in black rubber. Material: metallic woven leather Lining: leath...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Shoes
- New VERSACE BLACK SNAKE PRINT LEATHER GREEK KEY PATTERN 42 - 9By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE City Shoe Both casual and chic, these loafers are a great alternative to sneakers when off-duty. Rubber sole loafers Signature GREEK Pattern Lining: 100% leather ...Category
2010s Italian Shoes
- Chanel Black Leather Heeled Booties with Front Camellia - 40By ChanelLocated in West Palm Beach, FLChanel Black Leather Heeled Booties with Front Camellia - 40 These shoes are in excellent with very minor wear on the bottoms. They are leather with zippers on both sides of the s...Category
Early 2000s French Shoes