Her Many Bags: Kylie + YSL

I'm going to go out on a limb and call YSL as Kylie Minogue's favourite bag label :)

Incidentally, am LOVING the Camilla Skovgaard heels on her in the pic below:

(pc: tfs)

The Price Of Fame

YAY

NAY

A little part of me died today when I spotted Nine West's brazen copy of Camilla Skovgaard's Zaha ankle boots.  While I'm happy she's now famous enough to be copied (Halle Berry's endorsements surely didn't hurt), it still puts a thorn in my little indie fashion side.  

Grab original Skovgaard hotness at Gilt today - 12noon Wednesday EST (midnight for Singapore)

The Devil Wears Skovgaard

It's official: I've sold my soul for shoes.

Since purchasing the "offending" Camilla Skovgaard platform wedges, I must confess that they've been glued to my feet. They're fierce, platformed, make me *almost* tall and feel like Nikes... I even ran for the bus in them on Friday! I think I'm in love; this must be what sympathy for the devil feels like :)

Just a thought: I'm mentally prepared to replace the platform's fierce "teeth" with some thick tyre-ridged rubber soles when they start to wear down, but what of the styles which have a regular stiletto (see below)?
I might go mad trying to get the thickness of any replacement soles to perfectly match the height of the heel. Maybe Skovgaard will thoughtfully introduce mail order replacement "teeth"?

Lots of outfit pics to follow but in the meanwhile, sell your soul with the aid of VISA and Net-a-Porter or Shopbop.

Penance for this bad (but feels SO good) buy? A 6-month shoe & bag ban.

Lust List (Halfway through 2009)

I'm trying to cut back on the fast fashion so I can finally show some love for the designers on my lust list (what isn't helping is Alexa Chung strolling the streets of NYC in the Barbera Hulanicki for Topshop dress I wilfully passed on as part of this new shopping resolution) :

1. Something from Camilla Skovgaard - am partial towards her new styles with "teeth"

2. Something from Vice & Vanity - Ever since I realised their workshop is just round the corner, I've been gathering girlfriends for a V&V shopping excursion later this month.

3. Totally out of my budget (and a bit "been there, have that" for most bagaholics) is the Balenciaga First in Noir. Also, the Purse Forum is also an evil EVIL place - but there are genuine Balenciaga deals abound. Even at a discount, this is a hefty purchase and at that price the City seems a more worthwhile investment? SIGH

For now (and until my poor bank balance looks a tad healthier), let's just relish Kate rocking the First:
{images c/o wonderlandlondon.blogspot.com & richienickel}

Shoe Lust : More Halle Berry in Camilla Skovgaard

There's certainly no such thing as stopping at one pair of Camilla Skovgaard heels! The gold ones that Halle Berry made Jay Leno sniff certainly were just her first.

We didn't have to wait long for Halle to make headlines again - Miss Decade of Hotness made out with Jamie Fox onstage at Spike TV's "Guy's Choice" Awards.
Fret not plebians, these magnificent midnight blue heels are still available at Shopbop. Alas, only large sizes are left *boo*

Camilla's PR team must be popping the champagne - can you say 'kerching'?

{images c/o Just Jared}

Give Me Strength: Camilla Skovgaard on Sale!

Shop Jake is having a very decent 40% off their selection from Camilla Skovgaard's SS09 collection!

They're all dead sexy. And the quality of the leather and construction is the best I've seen on Asian-made shoes - primarily because the materials are all from Italy, leaving only the assembly done in China. Whilst you might balk at the idea of paying top dollar for "Made in China", let me remind you that lots of *ahem* large fashion houses have been known to do the same (but of course never admit to it).

So don't fault Ms Skovgaard - at least she's being upfront about it :)

Manolo goes Independent

It's not at all surprising to see independent shoe designers collaborate with some of the most recognised brands in the industry when it comes to executing footwear.

For the large part, most people tend to presume that the more well-known label's designer is a multi-tasking visionary. This isn't entirely unexpected since not all of the collaborative design work is openly credited outside of the fashion industry.

That said, this almost rite-of-passage system has produced many notable teamings such as Georgina Goodman for Luella, Erdem and Alexander McQueen, Nicholas Kirkwood for 3.1 Phillip Lim, Belstaff and Tommy Hilfigger, Rupert Sanderson for Louise Goldin and Camilla Skovgaard for Matthew Williamson and Pucci.

But for Manolo Blahnik to do the shoes for an independent label? That's pretty cool... check out this delicious pair (main pic) the shoe maestro drew up for Boy by Band of Outsiders's SS09 collection. Incidentally, it's only available on special order from the NYC Manolo boutique.

How about more collaborative loveliness (and their counterpart "originals") to help ease the dreaded Friday lull:

(1) Nicholas Kirkwood, current It-boy of shoes, with his trademark platform soles for Belstaff (in white) & his own collection (in bright blue suede):

(2) Bond Street darling Georgina Goodman gives boots the wraparound for McQueen (in brown) and herself (in toffee) :

(3) Georgina Goodman again, this time doing scarf-tied platforms for both Erdem's SS09 runway show and her own collection:


(4) British Fashion Awards winner Rupert Sanderson reinterprets his black Picadilly rainboots for Louise Goldin's SS09 show:

(5) Danish rising star Camilla Skovgaard's shoes for Matthew Williamson's SS09 show and for her own eponymous label:

Shoe Lust!

I don't have these in store but boy do I 'waaaants theeem' (in my best Gollum voice).

From Israeli-born, LA-based designer Yotam Soloman, these satin & leather beauties are an accessible take on the whole caged shoe trend this SS09. The blue is also a refreshing alternative to the fabulous but stark black variations by YSL (below).

For something in the same vein as the YSL, this whole caged look is right up the alley of Danish shoe designer Camilla Skovgaard. All her shoes have that sexy biker-bondage edginess!

Images: Shopbop

But since Camilla's been doing this caged look for a while now (tsk tsk, YSL?), her FW08 styles are completely on-trend AND on sale (here) and (here) at Shopbop!

What a bargain :)