Schiaparelli Shoes Got the Same Couture Treatment as the Gowns
Stephanie Hirschmiller
European Editor
The first show of Paris Couture Week was Schiaparelli, and the shoes had us all aflutter. The hero style from the show was a wraparound sandal featuring a sublime butterfly motif on the heel. Crafted in laser-cut leather, the delicate wings had the look of filigree lace and fluttered almost imperceptibly with every step.
“It was a small sculpture on the heel; I love the butterfly,” the house’s creative director, Bertrand Guyon, told FN following his pagan goddess-inspired spring ’18 show, which took place today in Paris at Schiaparelli’s headquarters in the city’s Place Vendome.
“I love the butterfly,” Guyon continued “but also because this is one of the signs of Schiaparelli. I always use these signs [in my collections] but in a more discreet way.” Along with the brand’s signature lobster, heart, beetle and lock and key motifs, the butterfly is another important design code from the late Elsa Schiaparelli’s storied couture house.
This butterfly motif also appeared on the couture gowns themselves, embroidered on a concoction of white organza and blush tulle and etched in silver onto a puff of midnight blue silk chiffon.
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Butterflies aside, the exploration of raw materials was another way Guyon linked footwear to the gowns. The platform soles of the shoes (there were also flatform sandals for the more tomboyish nymphette) were overlaid with an ethereal cobweb candy-floss woven from threads of linen. “The fabric was made especially for the show by an dedicated artisan,” Guyon said.
Click through to see the full Schiaparelli Couture collection for spring ’18.
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