Manolo says, after much deliberation and equivocating, the Manolo has finally selected the winner of his latest Build the Outfit contest, and it is the Amanda, who submitted the fun and sporty outfit featuring the Banana Republic top and the William Rast straight leg jeans to go with the blood orange Tsubal Zibals.

Here are the Amanda talking about her choices.

Ah, the Tsubos. I own Tsubos myself and am a HUGE fan. I cannot think of a better shoe for shopping on the Madison Avenue in the NYC with the gaggle of girlfriends. So comfortable, so stylish! This outfit would be my choice for such the activity.

The color choice of red, it reminds us that fall is coming around the corner. But the white on the tote says that yes, I love the summer and I embrace it!!!

The tote, it was chosen to tone down the wildness of the shoes and the accessories, as well as to carry the spoils of the shopping spree.

My favorite item in the outfit (aside from the Tsubos, of the course) are the beautiful dainty glass earrings (note how wonderfully they match the colors in the shoes!). In this ensemble, the sharp and sassy girl could transition from the Bloomindales to the drinks at the Tao with ease.

For the Manolo, however, it was the choice of the newsboy cap which caused this outfit to fulfill the requirements that it be for the sporty girl, who also has the “somewhat charmingly oddball manner.” Yes perhaps this hat was not to everyone’s tastes, but the Manolo thought it was cute and very Soho.

And now the Manolo must thank his friends at the Tsubo, who have graciously provided the prize, one pair of the Tsubos, to be sent to the Amanda for the job well done!

Manolo says, the Manolo reminds you that the latest version of the Build the Outfit contest is continuing through Saturday. This week we are building our outfits around the sporty Tsubo Zibal.

Pick the color combination that appeals to you the most, build the outfit, and post it in the Manolo’s Super Fantastic Forums. On Saturday afternoon the Manolo will pick the winner, who will receive the gift certificate good for one pair of the shoes from the kind peoples at Tsubo!

Even if you do not wish to compete you must go to the Manolo’s forums and admire the stylish outfits which have already been submitted.

Manolo says, this week, the Manolo’s Build the Outfit contest is sponsored by the Manolo’s good friends at the Tsubo, the makers of the very stylish and amusing casual shoes.

Naturally, because of this kindness the Manolo has chosen the pair of the sportif Tsubos around which you, the gifted amateur stylists, shall build the outfit.

Above you see the Zibal by Tsubo in the color scheme described as the Denim/Ice Blue/Emerald, which the Manolo finds to be not only attractive but also redolent of the certain sort of sporty young woman, one who has the carefree and somewhat charmingly oddball manner.

The Manolo now asks you to build the outfit for this hypothetical young woman, using this shoe as the start.

Please, as is our custom, post your entries at the Manolo’s Super Fantastic Forums.

The contest will end on Saturday, when the Manolo will pick the winner, who will receive the gift certificate good for the pair of shoes from the Tsubo!

UPDATE: In response to the question left by one of the Manolo’s internet friends, the Manolo has decided to allow any color of the Tsubo Zibal you desire!

Look! Here is the Zibal in the handsome blood orange color…

Or in the Putty/Red, which is the favorite of the Manolo’s amanuensis.

So, use the color combination you prefer, and let the thousand outfits bloom!

Manolo says, the Manolo’s friends at the Shoeflyer have picked the winner of the Manolo’s latest Build the Outfit contest.

And the winner is….Chels. It wasn’t easy but three of us came with the unanimous decision. That said, we’d like to give honoroble mention to second placed Atari. We love Atari’s choice of matching the Demeter with a white outlet skirt. However, it was Chels proposed outfit that took the cake.

Chels truly knows fashion. The Birds of Paradise dress is both modest and flirty. Best of all Chels makes every color in the dress pop with her subtle choice in accessories; from the antique looking twin necklace to the simply stunning gold flower cuff, which happens to be our favorite accessory from all the entries. What we truly love in Chels’s ensemble is her approach of capturing a feminine look without compromising class or function. In short, we’d call the outfit a perfect combination for the summery shining woman of today.

Thanks for all the great entries and Congratulations Chels.

Indeed, congratulations to the Chels.

And now, the Manolo must again note that all of the entries were most super fantastic, and this not the mere puffery, as the Manolo has been truly impressed by the talent for styling shown by his many internet friends.

Finally, the Manolo must thank the peoples at the Shoefly for sponsoring the contest, and to the peoples at the Shoeflyer for judging it.

Manolo says, already there are many excellent entries into the Manolo’s weekly Build the Outfit contest. If you do not care to enter, you must at the least go look at the entries and see the talented stylings of the Manolo’s many internet friends.

Also, this week, the Manolo’s friends at the Shoeflyer Blog will be doing the judging, and the Shoefly.com has provided the prize, these Repetto ballet flats you see above.

Manolo says, this week, the fine peoples at the Shoefly.com and their blog Shoeflyer have provided the Manolo with the shoes for the contest and the judges for the contest, and the shoes for the contest prize!

And Look, here is the shoe, the summery ballet flat from Repetto which goes by the name Demeter–”Queenly Demeter, bringer of seasons and giver of good gifts”–the shoe fit for the sister of Zeus!

So the challenge this week it is to build the outfit around this shoe. At the end of the week, the peoples at the Shoeflyer blog will pick the winner, who will then receive the pair of these shoes as the prize!

As is usual, please post your outfit in the Manolo’s Super Fantastic Forums.

Manolo says, after much agonized deliberation the Manolo has picked the winner of the third Build the Outfit Contest, and it is the LaMaria!

Here is how she described the reasoning behind her choices.

Like some of you have mentioned, these seem like fall shoes but the current season and the open toe would suggest summer, so I tried to lighten up the look with complementary earth mama tones. I wanted the pants to pick up the color of the silvery rhinestones on the shoes and to minimize the tweedy look by using a variety of textures.

Picking the winner of this week’s contest was difficult, there were so many excellent entries.

However, as the Manolo watched the entries arrive over the course of the week, it was apparent that some things worked much better than others. The first was that these shoes were perfect for the cropped pants. The second was that the accessories would have to in some way highlight the rhinestones in these otherwise conservative shoes.

By the way, the Manolo must now praise the designer Laura on the rhinestone addition, these two little details are what make the shoe work for the Manolo, for they take what would be the otherwise overly subdued shoe, of tweed and brown, and give it the sparkle of life.

The LaMaria’s choice of scarf, purse, and bangle all complement the shoes in color and bling, while the pants and top are clean and spare and classical in line, and thus in perfect keeping with feeling of the shoes. Ultimately, though, it is the choice of accessories which make this whole outfit sing.

So, congratulations to the LaMaria! The Manolo knows dozens of the famous stylists who could not have done half as well when presented with the shoes such as this.

For her prize, the LaMaria will receive the pair of shoes from the Al-Amirah. This is certain to be the difficult choice for her as there are many beautiful shoes to be seen here.

Manolo says, the Manolo reminds you that his weekly Build the Outfit Contest is continuing at his Super Fantastic Forums.

Even if you do not participate you must go look at the marvelous entries which the Manolo’s internet friends have been submitting. Many of these outfits are better (and much more affordable) than those put together by the celebrity stylists for the supposed benefit of their clients.

Also, do not forget that this week the prize to the winner is the pair of shoes from the Al-Amirah, shoes which you would most happy to have and wear regularly.

Manolo says, once again the Manolo is impressed by the level of creativity and attention to detail shown by his internet friends for the Manolo’s weekly Build the Outfit contest.

Look here is the shoe, the Lala by the wonderful Al-Amirah, around which the outfits must be built.

As the regular reader of the Manolo you of the course know perfectly well what to wear with these shoes, but your timidity has prevented you from joining the Manolo’s Super Fantastic Forums and posting your entry.

The Manolo says, do not be afraid. The Manolo Super Fantastic Forum is the friendliest place on the interwebs, reflecting perfectly the civilized and gentle behavior of the average Manolo’s Shoe Blog reader. Here you would be among friends.

Also, the Manolo should mention that the winner of this week’s contest receives the gift certificate for the pair of shoes from the Al-Amirah catalog! The handsome Lala could be yours by the end of the week!

Manolo says, it is time once again to play Build the Outfit!

This time, the challenge is the opposite of the first week, which was then to build the outfit that would go with the exceedingly colorful and expensive shoes.

This week, the Manolo asks you to build the outfit to go with the more restrained and affordable shoe, the Lala from the Al-Amirah, the classic peep-toe, ballet flat.

The best part of this contest is the prize, the Laura Vanderhook the designer has graciously provided the gift certificate for one pair of the shoes from the Al-Amirah catalog.

So, rush off to the Manolo’s Super Fantastic Forums and post your outfit there. At the end of the week, the Manolo will award the prize to what he thinks is the best one.

Manolo says, because this is the short week for the Americans, the Manolo has decided to not run the Build the Outfit contest this week. It shall return next week, with the new challenge for the Manolo’s amateur stylist friends.

In the meanwhile, there are many amusing conversations about outfit building in the Manolo’s Super Fantastic Forums.

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!