Rare Salvatore Ferragamo Earrings with Shoe Motifs
View Similar Items
Rare Salvatore Ferragamo Earrings with Shoe Motifs
About the Item
- Creator:
- Place of Origin:Italy
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:Circa 1990
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Chicago, IL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: J150402238830
Salvatore Ferragamo
A perfectionist who as a child crafted a pair of white shoes for his sister’s first holy communion because his parents couldn’t afford new footwear, Salvatore Ferragamo was ambitious from his earliest days. The young Italian shoemaker established in the years that followed what would one day become a fashion empire — the highly profitable multinational family-owned and -operated luxury brand today counts more than 600 stores in 96 countries around the world, and vintage Salvatore Ferragamo shoes, belts, handbags and other clothing and accessories are objects of desire for fashion lovers everywhere.
Salvatore Ferragamo sought an education in the art of shoemaking when he was eleven — he apprenticed with a local shoemaker and spent a short time in nearby Naples learning what he could at a shoe factory. He opened his first shop with a handful of workers the following year, and in 1914 — when he was still a teenager — Ferragamo emigrated to America, just as his siblings had before him, seeking new opportunities for work and to learn in the footwear trade.
After securing a job at the Plant Shoe Factory in Boston, Massachusetts, Ferragamo was uninspired by machine-made footwear. He moved across the country to Santa Barbara, California. Owing to a connection he made with a then-actor cousin, Ferragamo found work with the American Film Manufacturing Company. He made women’s shoes and provided durable cowboy boots for a film crew’s costuming department. Ferragamo’s reputation in the world of Hollywood cinema soon broadened, and he established a storefront in Mission Canyon where he made shoes by hand for the likes of actresses Gloria Swanson, Greta Garbo and Dolores del Río.
By the 1920s, film directors commissioned Ferragamo to produce shoes for a range of movies — the list of films eventually included The Ten Commandments, The Covered Wagon and The Thief of Baghdad. When he felt comfortable enough with the English language, Ferragamo also enrolled in anatomy courses at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles in order to better understand motion and the demands that we place on our footwear.
By the late 1920s, Ferragamo sought to expand production of his shoes and returned to Italy. He hired scores of apprentices to work in a factory in Florence, where Ferragamo carefully melded the principles of handcraftsmanship with all that he learned about America’s shoe factories. He filed patents — hundreds over the years — on the steel shank arch and many other unique aspects of his shoe design, and when economic and political influences during the 1930s forced Ferragamo to substitute pressed cork for steel to support the arch, the wedge heel was born. Other creative materials he integrated into his forward-looking creations were hemp, felt, nylon fishing line, fish skin and cellophane twisted with silk.
In the late 1940s, the brand’s first storefront opened in Manhattan, and today Salvatore Ferragamo is known worldwide and is synonymous with a wealth of iconic footwear such as Viva ballet flats, Vara Bow pumps, Gancini loafers and lots more. Ferragamo’s son, Ferruccio, was appointed CEO in 1984. Under his leadership, Ferruccio diversified and expanded the fashion business further, getting into sunglasses, fragrance, watches and made-to-measure men’s shoes. Ferruccio was succeeded by his brother, Leonardo Ferragamo, and British designer Maximilian Davis is now creative director of the brand.
Find vintage Salvatore Ferragamo shoes, clothing and accessories on 1stDibs.
- 5.37 Carat Diamond and 18 Karat Yellow Gold Stud EarringsBy Royaal Stones LtdLocated in Bangkok, ThailandA beautiful pair of handmade 5.37 carat full cut and rose cut White Diamond earrings, set in 13.72 grams of solid 18K Yellow Gold. These make a great pair for gifting during the holi...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Art Deco Stud Earrings
MaterialsDiamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Fancy Colored Diamonds and White Diamond EarringsLocated in Hong Kong, HKFancy Coloured Diamonds And White Diamond Earrings: A unique blend of Fancy Coloured Diamonds and White Diamonds, this earring is composed of 0...Category
2010s Hong Kong Art Deco Lever-Back Earrings
MaterialsWhite Diamond, Yellow Diamond, Pink Diamond, 18k Gold, 22k Gold
- Vintage Pennino Emerald Green and Crystal Flower Earrings Circa 1960sBy Pennino JewelryLocated in New York, NYVintage Pennino Emerald Green and Crystal Flower Earrings Circa 1960s. These aren't real but they do look it. Clip On. They are comprised of pears and baguettes and look stunning a...Category
Vintage 1960s American Contemporary Clip-on Earrings
MaterialsMixed Metal, Silver Plate
- Vintage Diamante Fringe Dangling Waterfall Earrings, Circa 1980sLocated in New York, NYVintage Diamante Fringe Dangling Waterfall Earrings. Looks great with a t shirt or for a night out. Clip On. These look so fun and so chic for the holidays or even for lunch out during the next few months. Throw on a white shirt, jeans and a black jacket and you're ready to go. Dazzle them. Easy and comfortable to wear. I can send you some velcro dots to wear and they will stay on for hours comfortably. You can go to the gym...Category
Vintage 1980s American Art Deco Clip-on Earrings
MaterialsMixed Metal
- Maison Gripoix Vintage Blue and Light Blue Flower Dangling Earrings Circa 1980sBy Maison GripoixLocated in New York, NYMaison Gripoix Vintage Blue and Light Blue Flower Dangling Earrings Set in Gold Tone Clip On. Always In Style. Very Classic Chic. These are so spectacular. I have them in red as well. The price is different as they were purchased in different exchange rates. These are really stunning. Will never go out of style!! Guy de Maupassant wrote a famous story about a necklace. The story is about a young, pretty, intelligent, well educated but poorly endowed bride who has to marry a petty official; and thus suffering from the limitations of living a life with a husband that lacked any exquisite qualities. In order to entertain his dejected spouse, one day her husband gets an invitation to a ball and gives his wife 400 francs he had saved for a hunting rifle so that she would be able to order an appropriate dress. However, when the dress is ready it becomes clear that it is lacking jewelry; and it would be impossible to attend the ball while looking so poor. The protagonist approaches her rich childhood friend with whom she was raised together at the monastery and borrows a diamond necklace from her. The ball is a great success and she is the centre of attention. However when the woman returns home, she discovers that she has lost the necklace. In order to conceal her faux pas from her friend, she buys a new necklace identical to the one she lost, and to pay it off the woman gets into a huge debt which over the years gradually drags her down the social ladder from bourgeoisie to poverty. Ten years later, having lost her good looks, the woman encounters her friend on the Champs Elysees, who still looks young, beautiful and rich. The protagonist reveals to her friend the whole story about the necklace, but her friend replies in amazement that the diamonds were fake and would “cost 500 francs at most”. Maison Gripoix starts out with a dramatic story. In 1869 (or a year earlier, according to other sources), Paris master glass-maker Augustina Gripoix began making replicas of pearls and crystals; casting glass into different shapes and colours and inserting them into most sophisticated settings. She used the pâte de verre (glass paste) technique, whereby a traditional ceramic or qypsum form was filled with a multi-colour pieces of glass and special gluing substances and then baked in a furnace, resulting in objects featuring fantastical hues. Only Augustina made her crystals by pouring the melted glass paste into the press moulds skipping the furnace step, allowing her to achieve the purity of colour, transparency and shine. She found a simple method to make beautiful jewelry and thus Marquises, Duchesses and Princesses qued up ... so Madame Gripoix would make them replicas of their own jewelry in case of robbery or loss, or some unusual jewelry pieces for their new wraps, neckpieces, or boas. The so-called ‘costume jewelry’ emerged to a large extent thanks to the work of Maison Gripoix. Augustina Gripoix earned her fame in the 1890’s when she started making necklaces for Sarah Bernhardt to wear on stage; and later the costume jewelry for the first high fashion house of Charles Frederick Worth. Later on, Paul Poiret, the leading couturier of the 1910’s contacted her and she created sophisticated oriental style jewelry for him to match his famous oriental costumes based on the aesthetic of Diaghilev’s initial Russian seasons. The value of costume jewelry was now being recognized in its own right; and not just for imitation purposes. The taste of emancipated young girls, who were gaining more and more freedom and opportunities, was best met with bijouterie. So in the 1920, when Augustina’s daughter Susan became the head of the House; Gripoix prospects became even more exciting. Girls with short-cropped hair in short dresses zoomed by in open-top cars wearing bijou rather than diamonds. Everyone ordered bijouterie from Madam Gripoix during this period, from Jeanne Lanvin to Jean Piguet...Category
Vintage 1980s French Artist Clip-on Earrings
MaterialsMixed Metal
- Ruby Diamond Earring in 18 Karat Rose GoldBy GEM PLAZALocated in Jaipur, RajasthanRose Cut Ruby 13.17 carats Round Diamonds 1.69 carat 18K Rose Gold 21.04 gramsCategory
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Artist Clip-on Earrings
MaterialsDiamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, Rose Gold