Milady...

These darling little kitten heels by Christian Louboutin are my third and final pair from the contest. 'Milady' is from the Fall 2012 collection and I love the patent bow.... I'm noticing a theme =)

I've decided that I have been drawing too many shoes recently, it's become an obsession! I must move on to something new... perhaps my new fall wish list... is it too early to be dreaming of sweaters and boots?

Pair Number Two...

These chic little gold 'turban' flats are perfect for the girl who can't fathom wearing heels all day in the city. I wanted to get a pair of Louboutins that I would actually wear, and given the sizing dilemma mentioned previously, I was lucky enough Bergdorf's had mine in stock. Yay for pair number two!

"Love Me" My Louboutins...

Two weeks ago, I finally worked up the courage to spend my Louboutin stipend at Bergdorf Goodman. I have to admit, it was a little intimidating... I never dreamed to someday walk into Bergdorf's and walk out a proud owner of three shiny new pairs of Christian Louboutin shoes! There was one small catch to the whole thing-- I had to spend it all at once. And that proved more difficult than I thought...

It took me two weekends to find three pairs of shoes in my size. Most of his shoes run small and very narrow so I had to go up a size to fit my big feet! I am still breaking them in and have yet to wear them outside. (Don't want to scuff those red soles!)  It has become a nightly ritual to try my shoes on and walk around the apartment in them just a little bit before going to bed. Pretty silly, huh? The BF just shakes his head... oh well =)

Here's the first pair, "Love Me" from the Pre-Fall 2012 Collection:

I hope you're having a great week =) Stay tuned for more sketches & pics of pairs two and three!

Lucky Little Boxes...

A couple of weekends ago I finally made a very special purchase... and I can't wait to share with you! I'm working on illustrations of my lovely new shoes so until then, the boxes will have to do =) Stay tuned!

Wednesday Wishlist...

Happy Wednesday, everyone! I've been seeing floral pants pop up everywhere while out window shopping and browsing my favorite blogs. It's almost enough to make me want a pair of my own! Now that a new Anthropologie moved in a few blocks from my apartment (a very gorgeous space at that, it's at 71st and 3rd if you happen to be in the area!), I might just hop in on my way home from work and try these on with a cute chambray shirt.

And now for backstory on those lovely red-soled sandals...

When I entered the contest, I knew that part of the prize would be a gift from Christian Louboutin and Bergdorf Goodman. I also knew that I would get to keep the dress I made. Of course all of the designers were dying to find out what these mystery gifts were going to be!

When I went to pick up my design from Bergdorf Goodman PR offices, I was given my dress in a garment bag and a Bergdorf shopping bag completely stapled shut. I really wanted to rip the bag open in the downstairs lobby, but I contained myself long enough to carry it all home...

I got to my apartment, opened the bag and there were my beautiful Alta Dentelle shoes from the contest, wrapped in tissue paper! Also inside were two little boxes, one had a gift card to Bergdorf's and the other revealed a gift certificate to Christian Louboutin... enough to buy at least two pairs of his amazingly gorgeous shoes! The perfect end to an amazing journey that I still can't believe happened =) Time to go shoe shopping!!

Christian Louboutin / Bergdorf Goodman : The Contest, Part 3...

The night of the event finally arrived! The dress code for the party was red and I ran all over the city the weekend before trying to find the perfect dress... and shoes... and bag. I'm not a very fancy person and realized throughout all of this that I own absolutely zero fancy clothes!

At this point I was exhausted, had been working non-stop on this thing for a month, and just wanted to survive it all. I finally found a cute little shift dress, some sparkly tights, black satin bow pumps, and fun chandelier earrings. I had no idea what to expect... I imagined everyone wearing Louboutins and ball gowns!

As it turned out, not everyone was dressed to the nines and I felt completely comfortable in my little red dress. Before we all went up to the shoe salon, the models wearing all five winning designs posed for a group shot. I jumped in the pic along with another designer, Hyeyoung Kim. 

The highlight of the night was meeting Mr. Louboutin himself and having him sign my dress! He was so sweet and reserved. I also met Linda Fargo, Fashion Director of Bergdorf's. She was fabulously dressed in a sparkly 30's style flapper dress and had tattooed herself all over with sequin hearts and stars. Half way through the night, a Marilyn Monroe impersonator brought out a cake and sang 'Happy Anniversary Mr. Louboutin.' Everyone celebrated with delicious cake pops!

After eating, drinking, and dancing it was time to go home. I finished my fairy tale night with some delicious macarons that my lovely coworkers gifted me...

Well that sure was an adventure! I'm so grateful for the opportunity and am so appreciative of all the support from family and friends. And I have to thank the BF profusely for putting up with my crying/cursing/maniac self the past month. Okay, now that's done... back to reality =)

*Missed Part 1 & 2?

Christian Louboutin / Bergdorf Goodman : The Contest, Part 2...

All the 20th anniversary capsule collection shoes were published in the February issue of InStyle magazine. I ran to the store and flipped through the pages to find them: my shoe was the biggest one on the page! The pressure was on... I had three weekends / 6 full days to make it all happen. And every night after work, I'd come home and sew. Since I didn't have a dress form, I ordered an inexpensive adjustable one online and had it shipped overnight. There was a mix up with FedEx and after a mini melt down (The BF had to calm me down!) we both travelled to the middle of no where in Queens to pick up the dress form at the FedEx depot. Once I had my form, I started draping the bodice in muslin...

Next I transfered the drape to pattern paper, cut out the pieces again in muslin and sewed it up to double check that everything looked right. I had never worked on an adjustable dress form before and the knobs were a little difficult to work with... definitely not made for creating fitted garments. But I did my best and tried to work around them.

The bodice was the hardest part to get right, the lace inset was difficult and I ended up re-doing it twice. Tears... curses... hair pulling out... but finally after a trip to get more fabric, I was in a better place. I bought some fabulous faux fur at Elegant and found the perfect leather for the hot pink snakeskin embossed belt at Leather Impact.

There was a fitting at the Bergdorf PR offices on Friday before the final event. All the designers met their models and we got the chance to try our garments on an actual person. I was worried sick that it wouldn't fit at all... those dress form knobs are in the worst places... but luckily it zipped and I knew I could make it work. I did have to re-make the shorts underneath longer in the torso so they would meet up with the bodice. But my model, Ashley, looked gorgeous!



After the fitting, I finished the hem on the skirt part of the dress, hand tacked the bodice lining in place, and sewed the snaps on the belt. I was so relieved to be finished... but I still had to find something to wear! Stay tuned for party pictures...

*Missed Part 1? Don't miss part 3!

Christian Louboutin / Bergdorf Goodman : The Contest, Part 1...

Wow. This past month has been unforgettable. I want to document everything and share it all with you because I'm so relieved and happy that it was all worth it in the end! Let's start from the very beginning...

Back in November I received an e-mail from my alma mater, Parsons, alerting 2010 and 2011 graduates of a design contest collaboration with Bergdorf Goodman and Christian Louboutin. This past year marked his 20th anniversary in the business and to celebrate, he challenged recent alumni to design a look based on one of his soon-to-be-released capsule collection shoes.

There would be 5 winners in the end, all would receive $1,000 to fund the creation of their look as well as press at the launch party event and gifts from both Bergdorf Goodman and Christian Louboutin.

I jumped at the chance to participate and received an image of the shoe I would use as inspiration for my look. It was a beautifully sheer, lace stiletto boot- the Alta Dentelle. I immediately thought of an image I had saved from the November issue of Vogue Mexico... fur, lace, a pink lip and attitude. I did a bunch of rough sketches before settling on my final design then sent in my mood board and hoped for the best.

The top 20 designs were selected by Parsons faculty and sent to Linda Fargo and Christian himself to choose the top 5. Just before Christmas, I found out I had made the first cut. At this point I was half thrilled and half scared to death.. it had been over two years since I had draped anything on a form, my sewing machine was covered in dust, and I knew if I won, I'd have to actually make the thing. And that was terrifying!

Either way, I figured it could at least go on my resume that I was a finalist, so I was pretty much content with the way things were. And then after New Year's I got the congratulatory e-mail from Parsons... and couldn't believe it! The next three weekends I knew what I'd be doing. Armed with all my supplies, I got started that very weekend and worked on it every free moment I had for the next three weeks... stay tuned for pics of the dress in progress and the final reveal at Bergdorf's!

* Continue to Part 2... and 3!

Exciting News...

I have been dying to share this exciting news with you... and now that it's public I have to tell! I am creating a look for the launch of Christian Louboutin's 20th anniversary capsule collection. All my free time in the past few weeks has been devoted entirely to the creation of my outfit inspired by one of his brand new shoes, you can see them all in the February issue of InStyle magazine.

Once my design makes it to the event, I will share all the details! Until then, here's a feature on WWD! I couldn't be more excited... or terrified! Wish me luck as I work fervently to complete my outfit. I can't wait to tell you all about it!

*Edit: See my sketch for the contest on British Vogue!!