Retro footwear is becoming fashionable again

Plenty of celebrities are fond of collecting retro clothing now.

The sales are booming as never before. However, retro footwear is not so popular with collectors. Probably, it’s just a matter of time…

Some footwear designers have created their recent collections on the basis of vintage ones.

For example, in the early 2000s, Miu Miu, inspired by Terry de Havilland’s Seventies’ platforms, produced a collection leading to a resurrection of the shoe designer’s career. Now de Havilland’s fantastic pop-art python-skin heels regularly sell for high prices at auctions.

Original shoes by top designers of the past such as Andre Perugia, Beth Levine and Roger Vivier are also hunted down by collectors from various countries.

Kate Moss was photographed in vintage footwear, sparking great interest in the original models of shoes.

Cate Blanchett caused a stir when she was photographed at the Helpmann Awards in Australia wearing a nice pair of vintage limited-edition Roger Vivier stilettos, studded with Swarovski crystals.

There are still plenty of retro shoes available, many of them by iconic designers, for relatively little money.

You can buy a pair for half a price of your skirt or blouse.

Here is a list of retro shoes designed by couturiers of the past. They surely deserve your attention and can be good pieces in any collection.

Salvatore Ferragamo Stilettos

Mid-fifties

Salvatore Ferragamo is famous for the quality of his craftsmanship and the extravagance of his designs. His stilettos were considered glamorous and a whole generation of Hollywood stars loved wearing them.

Marilyn Monroe was one of those who preferred his heels, she owned 40 pairs.

From 1956, stilettos became much higher after the Italians started to strengthen plastic heels by running an aluminium spigot down the shaft.

Perhaps the most well-known pair of Ferragamo stilettos were the scarlet satin rhinestone-studded stilettos that became famous after Marilyn Monroe starred wearing them in the 1953 film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.

Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell show off their footwear in Some Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

In 1999 the original shoes were sold at Christies in New York for $42,000.

It’s worth collecting them for they represent the glamour of a golden Hollywood age and just because they look beautifully and are perfectly made.

Roger Vivier Pilgrim Pump

Early sixties

These shoes were very popular with ladies in the early Sixties. They were flat and square-toed, designed to be worn with short skirts.

In 1965, Vivier’s series of Pilgrim pumps, as they were later called, complemented a collection of Yves Saint Laurent’s Mondrian-inspired mini-dresses.

The shoes became incredibly popular among duchesses and ordinary dolly birds as they looked nice and were comfortable and easy to wear.

That year Vivier sold over 200,000 pairs. His customers were the Duchess of Windsor and Catherine Deneuve, Jackie Onassis, and many other famous women.

Christian Louboutin, a shoe designer says:

Vivier’s shoes spoke by themselves. He understood that a shoe has a bone structure and that has to be perfect. He covers his shoes with beautiful embroidery and embellishment, but underneath it all is a perfect plain pump with perfect proportions – pure perfection.’

You can collect them for at least two reasons: the Pilgrim pump was the most imitated shoe shape of the decade and it is associated with the sophisticated chic of Sixties Paris.

Andre Courreges Ankle Boot
1964

In the early Sixties, such boots were considered to be fit only for old ladies. The Parisian couturier Courreges changed all that. His space-age ankle boots became extremely popular when they were shown in his 1964 Moon Girl collection. It was more than a sensation.

The boots were comfortable, easy to pull on and off, in soft white kid.

However, Courreges soon got furious as some shoe designers, such as Kurt Geiger, Sacha and Ravel, started copying the boot.

He had to ban the Press from his shows for the next few seasons.

You can add them to your collection since many fashion pundits are tipping the Sixties for the next big retro revival, so get in first with some covetable originals, which also play a fascinating part in fashion history.

To be continued…

• audrey hepburn shoes
• andre courreges
• gentlemen prefer blondes
• audrey hepburn modeling
• beth levine handbags
• jane russell hot
• original shoes
• pilgrim pump
• courrèges moon girl
• marilyn monroe fashion

1. October 15th, 2008 at 5:23 am
   Elie Says:

   Nice article!

   Funny playboy!

2. October 15th, 2008 at 5:50 am
   Millie Says:

   i’d like to have apair by Terry de Havilland!!!

3. October 15th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
   Raj S Says:

   The picture with Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell is really funny. The Photograph is not targeted on the footwear!

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