Manolo says, here are the few links which may perhaps amuse…

The Transformation of Marc Jacobs

What your shoe say about you.

Not that the shoes are by any means naive or childish looking but those over-prounounced features are bringing out the need to wear something similarly exaggerated with them

Manolo says, look at this bit of news from the Postal Service of the United States.

Saks Fifth Avenue says its new shoe department is so big and fancy it’s getting its own ZIP code.

The quintessential Manhattan store is revamping its shoe department, and when it moves from the fourth floor to the eighth floor in August customers will be able to send mail to 10022-SHOE.

“We believe it’s such a big move for us it deserves its own ZIP code,” Saks spokeswoman Lesley Langsam Kennedy said Thursday. “We wanted to make it a destination.”

The U.S. Postal Service said it worked with the retailer on the new ZIP code, which is just promotional. Only the last four characters, which aren’t necessary when you’re mailing something, are specialized, and they won’t be read by sorting machines. The rest of the midtown neighborhood, which includes St. Patrick’s Cathedral, shares 10022.

The new 8,500-square-foot Saks showroom at the flagship Fifth Avenue store will have more shoes, more service and more stock room capability, Langsam Kennedy said. It also will feature a VIP room for private shopping, spacious seating, refreshments and shoe repair on hand, she said.

Some of the Manolo’s happiest hours have been spent on the fourth floor at the Saks. Of the course, he is very much looking forward to the new eighth floor.

P.S. Many thanks to the Manolo’s many internet friends who sent him this news item.

Manolo says, the Manolo’s friend Roger L. Simon, CEO of the Pajamas Media has reviewed the Manolo’s new work, The Consolation of the Shoes.

The Manolo, on his blog, could teach us style and decorum, observe our culture, sell shoes and be funny all at the same time. It was a tap dance he continued to carry off, to my amazement, from week to week. I wondered if he could expand this into longer forms.

Now I know. The Consolation of The Shoes is an attempt to explain The Manolo without explaining him, if you know what I mean, and it succeeds brilliantly. Yet somehow, beneath all the obfuscations and stratagems, truth emerges. And perhaps that is the point. We learn much of the character and development of The Manolo, about his allegiance to Lady Fashion, and the answer to one of the greatest of all imponderables – equal to, if not exceeding, the conundrum of one hand clapping … “What, then, oh mortal men, do you seek happiness outside that which lies within your shoes?”

Please go read the whole review, and then perhaps go buy the copy of The Consolation of the Shoes. You will not regret either decision.

Manolo says, after much deliberation (for there were several excellent entries), the Manolo has finally selected the winner of his second Build the Outfit contest, and it is the Manolo’s internet friend Beth, who submitted this entry…

Here is what the Beth had to say about her entry.

I love the new silver trend that’s been popping up, so I decided to draw that silver out of the shoes and keep the accessories focused on that in order to calm down the pattern in the dress.

And she accomplished this goal marvelously.

For the Manolo, this entry was wonderfully unexpected. He would not have imagined that the outfit with the bold pattern and the handkerchief hemline would have worked with these shoes, but as soon as he saw it he knew that it would work beautifully.

So, congratulations to the Beth!

Manolo says, the Manolo is of two minds about the shoes. On the one of the hands, they are compelling and baroque, on the other they are slightly ridiculous.

However, despite this confusion, the Manolo does know that if the Kylie Minoque wishes to wear these shoes, she needs to pair them with something simple and elegant, something not as underwear-flashing busy-trashy.

Manolo says, here are the few links which may perhaps amuse…

The world is getting smaller; here are a few fashion faux pas that — with a little discretion — travelers to Europe shouldn’t be afraid to disregard.

I never noticed your wobbling, no worries, lovely

I had no choice but to fling myself into their midst and show them how it was done.

Manolo says, here is the Manolo’s latest column for the Express of the Washington Post.

Dear Manolo,

I walk one-half mile to and from the Metro daily to get to the office. I currently wear sneakers but am looking for something a little bit more fashionable. Flip-flops won’t cut it; I need something more age and position appropriate.

Marie

Manolo says, Yes, your lime-green Nike Shox Explodine with the springs in the heels and the orange “swoosh” are comfortable and have the high level of the “street cred”, but somehow, now that you are on the edge of making senior partner, they just no longer seem appropriate for your Chanel suit.

Who was that in the limo that just drove by? The prominent Senator on the finance committee whom your firm has been courting for the months now? Did he recognize you? What was that expression? Scorn? Ridicule? Pity?

Ayyyyy!

And this is why the Manolo does not fully approve of wearing the sneakers for the commute, because one never knows whom one may encounter. Better to look your best from the instant you leave the house, even if this means the men playing basketball in the schoolyard no longer glance approvingly at your feetwear.

Here is the Sevilla from Ecco, the open toe leather sandal that is reputedly comfortable and moderately stylish.

Manolo says, there is now less than 24 hours remaining to compose your fabulous out fit and submit it for judgement. The place to do so is the Manolo’s Super Fantastic Forums, which if you have not already joined you are missing out on the very amusing conversations, with titles such as “The Madness is Spreading” and “Mr. Henry, ou etes-vous?”

Hurry!

Manolo says, the Manolo’s friends at the Due Farina (who need to update their web page) are having the sample sale!

The Manolo loves the crazy Due Farina ladies because all of their shoes are unusual, and many of them are lovely.

Manolo says, here is the exceedingly cute a button thong sandal from the Pucci, the shoe designed solely to make you feel happy.

Manolo says, it is rare for the Manolo to seek assistance, as he prides himself on his self-sufficiency, but now there is something he desires so desperately that he comes before his internet friends and asks them for the favor.

What the Manolo ardently desires is to be named the #1 Hoffster by the peoples at the St. Martins Press.

The #1 Hoffster is the official #1 internet fan of the magnificent multi-talented genius David Hasselhoff, and if the Manolo does not qualify for that, who does?

To that end, the Manolo now asks you, his close internet friends, to email the peoples at the St. Martins Press politely stating the case for the Manolo’s primacy in the matter of Hasselhoff admiration.

Here is the email address: SMPBooks@stmartins.com

Be polite but firm. The Manolo the Shoeblogger should be the #1 Hoffster!

Please, in the spirit of the season, help the brother out.

Manolo says, here is the review of the Manolo’s new work The Consolation of the Shoes posted at the screenwriting blog The Rouge Wave.

You don’t have to have a fascination with shoes to enjoy the cultural and literary phenomena that is Manolo the Shoeblogger. Manolo embodies a certain fabulousity, a verbal elasticity and a post, post-Grey Gardens je ne sais quoi for word lovers and shoe lovers alike.

Published by the New Pamphleteer, The Consolation of the Shoes is a must for writers seeking inspiration and motivation. Nobody writes the way Manolo does; he stands as a beacon for what is possible when we paint with our words and create sublimely entertaining worlds.

Ayyyy! This is so gratifying, for the Wave-inatrix is not merely the Rouge Wave blogger, she is also The Script Whisperer, the person who coaches others to be the good writers.