Retro footwear from 70s till today

We talked about retro shoes earlier.

Let’s continue our theme.

Terry De Havilland Wedges

Seventies

Terry de Havilland – a rock’n'roll cobbler who created footwear for celebrities such as Bianca Jagger, Britt Ekland and David and Angie Bowie designed the most wonderful Seventies platforms.

Terry de Havilland came from a shoe-making family. Once he said:

I’d be surprised if I’d got into this business if my dad hadn’t been in it. I grew up watching shoes being made.’

His first shop on the King’s Road, named Cobblers To The World, became a place often visited by rock stars and celebrities who could buy wedge shoes with ankle straps in peach, yellow, pistachio and blue snakeskin, and thigh-high, satin-lined black leather boots.

Soon after Miu Miu had showed a collection of wedge designs very similar to his originals, de Hevilland restarted his own-name brand and created a new series of wedge shoes for Frost-French’s lingerie-inspired catwalk collection. The shoes stole the show and de Havilland transfixed a new generation.

Now, many celebrities wear modern versions of his original designs. For instance, Sienna Miller, Kate Moss or Amy Winehouse.

Your collection will seem incomplete if you have no wedges of the seventies. They are nice to look at and comfortable to wear.

Manolo Blahnik cone heels

Eighties

The cone heel was invented by designer Maud Frizon for combining height with comfort in a way the stiletto did not. It was for the woman who wanted to show she was glamorous, but would not stand for being messed around.

This heel type was very typical for that decade. Business and power had to be together. Blahnik captured the imagination of the era – most of his styles sold out as soon as they were launched.

He had many famous fans including Jerry Hall, who wore her dramatic Antony Price gowns with Blahnik’s black suede heels.

Blahnik cemented his status in TV’s Sex And The City when fashion fanatic Carrie Bradshaw was mugged and famously pleaded:

Please, sir. You can take my Fendi Baguette, you can take my ring and watch, but don’t take my Manolo Blahniks.’

Good reason for adding them into your collection is their practicality, glamour and the spirit of the age.

Christian Louboutin very prive

Still in production

Christian Louboutin is the shoe designer of our times and his footwear stands out from the crowd, because of the famous bright red soles and good quality. His shoes are painstakingly designed and beautifully made.
The idea of red soles occurred to the designer when he was working on a collection influenced by Andy Warhol and his use of bright, highly saturated colours.

After the model was designed, Louboutin felt something was missing and noticed one of the assistants painting her nails with bright red enamel.

He took the bottle and painted the soles of the shoes with the gloss so that although some of the shoes looked simple on the outside, once a woman was walking they gave a flirtatious flash.

This became his trademark and is the only form of advertising Louboutin has ever done.

Louboutin nominated the Very Prive as one of his favourite designs, explaining his love of very high heels:

My long-time love of the French showgirl and stage performers means I design a lot of very high heels that lengthen the leg.

People ask me, How can I walk in these heels?” and I answer with the best compliment I remember from a woman who lives in Paris.

She said:

“Since I wore your heels, Christian, I know Paris. Heels permit me to take the time to look at things.”

High heels give you time to think, to look at your surroundings – and they permit men to stop you. Women should live to the rhythm of high-heeled shoes!’

You should definitely own these shoes! Louboutin shoes aren’t produced for mass consumption and will certainly be a good piece in your collection. They are sexy and women wearing them are instantly recognizable.

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• maud frizon