Well-heeled means a flash of gold
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Well-heeled means a flash of gold
Where does individuality come in when major brands are selling almost identical merchandise in almost every major city in the world? How does a fashionable woman put her best foot forward, knowing she has something that fits right and stands out beyond colored soles or logos? Enter the fashionable London cobbler Rupert Sanderson, in partnership with retail entrepreneur Bertrand Mak in Hong Kong, who just may have the solutions for the savvy Asian woman seeking to express personal style. Last spring, Mak introduced a court shoe christened "Hong Kong", which is basically the brand's best-selling "Winona" shoe with an Asian fit, catering to the well-heeled women who patronize the Rupert Sanderson flagship boutique on chic On Lan Street in the city's Central district.
The Winona is a classic 4-inch court shoe with an almond-shaped toe that Sanderson himself hails "the perfect shoe". It was this shoe that sparked Mak's interest in the brand.
A year after the March 2010 opening, Mak introduced the Hong Kong with its exclusive Asian shape in beautiful colors, including a spring hue aptly named "Bertrand Blue".
"Selling a pair of shoes to a woman is an extremely personal service and we value every customer's feedback," explains Mak. "We managed to build a reservoir of knowledge and were able to gather that the feet of our customers are generally rather thin compared to their Western counterparts and that greater support at the arch is very desired."
While from a technical standpoint the construction of the Winona may be perfect, the fit was fine-tuned to requirements of customers in Hong Kong.
Like every pair of Rupert Sanderson shoes, the Hong Kong is named after a British daffodil. "An entirely new shoe form has been constructed for the style Hong Kong and every aesthetic element of the Winona has been retained, staying true to the original," said Rupert Sanderson.
This summer, the duo presented another Hong Kong exclusive, The Gold Collection, a limited edition of Rupert Sanderson classics with 23k-gold gilded heels.
This collection carries the Asian fit that was perfected with the Hong Kong shoe. It features elegant flats, classic court shoes in varying heights, sexy peep-toes and sky-high statement shoes.
Buyers can choose not only the iconic styles but options in materials like tulle and nappa, and unusual colors in patent leather such as navy, purple, bright red, pearl pink, fuschia, lilac, forest green and teal blue.
Every shoe is made in Bologna, Italy at a factory directly owned by Rupert Sanderson. There are over 120 steps that go into the production of a single pair of shoes, not including gilding.
It took six months before Sanderson and Mak were happy with the first prototype. The biggest challenge lay in finding a technique and lacquer that would be strong enough to protect the delicate gold leaves from scrapes yet translucent enough to keep the beautiful "leaf veins" visible.
Working with gold leaf is a painstaking process that requires specialized skills, extreme patience and a great deal of time. Needless to say, this "final touch of glamour" is performed entirely by hand.
Shaping the gold sheets on the heels, smoothing them while maintaining the "veins" and keeping the sheen consistent requires an experienced artisan.
Gold leaf has a precious nature and unique luster, Mak explains. "The gold heels act as a beacon of light, if you like."
Queen of Jeans
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Designer Tong Ying changes the stereotype image of jeans. Provided to China Daily |
One fashion designer finds star power in once-lowly denim, Gan Tian reports.
Designer Tong Ying says denim is a magic material. She can tell people's work by taking a look at their jeans.
A hip-hop dancer must have some torn parts on the jeans' knees, because he has to kneel down to make some good moves. A driver's denim shirts, however, have lighter color blocks around the upper arms, because these parts always rub on his body when he is driving.
That savvy inspired her to be a designer specialized in denim.
Tong was a fashion buyer in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province for five years. She found that not so many Chinese women are fascinated about jeans. For one thing, they seem too casual. For another, denim cannot deliver an elegant image.
"When we think of jeans, we always think of Levi's, Gap or Lee. But I want to create some unique jeans and denim costumes. I want to change Chinese people's, especially Chinese women's, stereotype image of jeans," the designer says.
She started her own label E-World in 2006. The label features Tong's creation of skin-tight pants, hippie miniskirts, over-sized jackets and female accessories. These products have one thing in common: Denim is the core material.
She has now opened around 10 boutiques in Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing and second-tier cities like Changsha, Hunan province, and Wuhan, in Hubei province.
The must-buy item for this season is a pair of tight navy-blue jeans, Tong says. The jeans, like those traditional ones, have some washed parts. However, Tong adds some embroidery, pearls and gemstones, which give this pair a luxurious feel.
"I want to deliver this idea to denim fans: Jeans are not always casual," Tong says.
She looks for many ways of "creating a unique and luxurious style" for jeans. For example, she adds some Tencel, a biodegradable fabric made of wood-pulp cellulose, into raw denim material. The new materials are much softer and make wearers feel more comfortable.
Tong once accidentally burned a hole in the knee of a pair of jeans, but it suddenly occurred to her, why not add some laces around the rim of this hole? And that was the main theme of her 2009 spring/summer collection.
Because the denim culture was not born in China, consumers here don't know so much, for example, about how to care for denim products. Many customers just throw jeans into washing machine to clean them.
That would be a fatal problem for Tong's creations, she says, because her pieces have too many detailed accessories, which might be easily destroyed in a machine wash.
To cope with that, Tong designed tags with special washing tips for wearers.
"But the safest way is not to wash it. It is eco-friendly, and helps to keep its best shape," Tong suggests.
In her label's boutique stores, Tong also holds some seminars for her clients on denim culture and care.
Every time Tong has some new creations, she will put them on herself, stand in front of mirror and stare for a long time.
"From my mirror's image, I've found passion for jeans, and I believe more Chinese people will," Tong says.
Contact the writer at gantian@chinadaily.com.cn.
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