Heavenly Heels

FEMININE: Satin, lace and ribbon-tie for the girl in every woman.

From sexy sandals to classic slingbacks, Rene Caovilla’s fancy footworks are renowned for their exquisite craftsmanship, design and style. DAZMAN MANAN is smitten.

RAINBOW BRIGHT: Kitten heel-andwedge combo heels.

GOLDEN GLAMOUR: Swarovski-studded platform heels.

ALLURING: Barbie-pink heels of sensuous silk.

AFTER several seasons of fiercely fashionable soles – think glossy, patent booties and chunky, wooden heels – it’s time to step into glamorous shoes with a heady dose of attitude.

Remember Carrie Bradshaw’s (of Sex and The City fame) Christian Louboutin pink heels with supple suede ruffles on the front? What about her feathered Jimmy Choo?

We’re talking footwear along those lines but not those bearing the familiar names.

What local fashionistas would soon discover and cherish on their feet is Rene Caovilla.

Touted to be the one to steal Manolo Blahnik’s crown, the Italian label is not only known for its craftsmanship in cobblery but also reputed for its style and design.

Suffice to say shoe-addict Sarah Jessica Parker is already a fan, along with her well-heeled contemporaries Eva Longoria, Heidi Klum and Paris Hilton.

The current collection of heavenly heels, available at trendy boutique Shuz in KLCC, bear a striking resemblance to Blahnik’s creations but Caovilla’s are more seductive and feminine.

Well, at least this season’s (spring/summer ’08) are. Caovilla’s fancy footworks include a satin-and-lace Barbie pink pair that stand on an interesting kitten heel and wedge combination, flat gladiator sandals with colourful Masai-inspired beadwork and dangerously high heels that feature a coiling golden snake complete with forked tongue!

Incidentally, when the brand designed a pair of US$120,000 (RM408,000) diamond-encrusted shoes last year, it was displayed in a glass showcase, at Harrods in London, together with a deadly Egyptian cobra for security.

While Caovilla’s shoes come in similar designs comprising mostly sexy, sandal styles and classic slingbacks, each satin or leather pair is accented with exquisite details like sparkling stones set to resemble grapes, round gold paillettes, delicate silk chiffon roses, chain links and the pre-requisite Swarovski crystals.

Edoardo Caovilla learnt his trade from the great Venetian industrialist Luigi Voltan, the man who initiated the Riviera del Brenta’s distinguished history of shoe-making.

Caovilla embarked on a road that was halfway between handcraft and couture, which his son Rene Fernando evolved in the 1950s, forging the link with art and fashion.

With his sights set on the select top-end of the market, he became a sculptor of sophisticated evening shoes, elegant bejeweled creations, sensual super-precious chaussures.

Rene Caovilla thus carved his niche as a creator of international standing. The 70s saw him enter the fashion arena, thanks to a patron of excellence: Valentino Garavani.

The special creative affinity between the couturier and the designer led to the birth of cult objects, fetish creations carrying the signature emblem of ‘Valentino by Rene Caovilla’.

Next came the collaboration with Christian Dior, the maison with which Caovilla crafted dreamlike, richly imaginative creations, a mix of fairy tale and reality, for the Parisian catwalk.

Then came the era of Chanel, when the artistic spirit of Caovilla met and melded with the rigorous stylistic genius of its designer Karl Lagerfeld.

Today, the company is one of the gems of Italy’s north-east. Located on the Riviera del Brenta, a few kilometres from Venice, the atelier exclusively produces Rene Caovilla signature footwear to dress the world’s fashionable feet.

 

New Straits Times