The Maestro Stumbles
Manolo says, many, many of the Manolo’s friends have written to him these past weeks asking him what thinks of the new mens shoe line being launched by his idol, the Maestro Manolo Blahnik.
When the Manolo first heard the rumor that the Maestro was making the men’s shoes, he was overjoyed. Finally, the genius cobbler of our age would produce something that the Shoeblogger could wear!
But, as one may guess from the fact that the Shoeblogger has delayed as long as possible speaking to this subject, the realization of the dream has fallen short.
Just look at this…
Ayyyyy! The suede open-toed slingback for men? Noooooo! No! No! No!
Query: Is this the sort of shoe the impeccably tailored Manolo Blahnik would wear himself?
Answer: Clearly not!
Look here are some of the others…
Leopard-print mandals?
No!
The green oxford?
Although the quality is undoubtedly high, this shoe, nonetheless, looks like something from the atelier of Stacy Adams.
Perhaps in the different, more subdued color combination, this could be worth wearing.
To say that the Shoeblogger is disappointed in this collection is the understatement. There is nothing here the he would wear, and he suspects the same is true of the maestro Manolo, himself. Indeed, the collection seems like the elaborate joke.
And now, we shall never speak of this again.
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Comments
justsomemanoloer 17 years ago
When I first saw these shoes … and that they were by the man with the name of the Manolo, I was the aghast.
Not THE Manolo I said to myself. I cannot believe that the man with the most excellent taste would produce something of this turdliness.
My faith in the Manolo has thusly, now been restored, since it is apparent that THE Manolo had nothing to do with the creation of the abortion displayed here.
Ayyyyyyeee!
Ashe Mischief 17 years ago
I think you’re nuts! Those green oxfords are the most vibrant and stylish man’s shoe I’ve seen in a while.
long island 17 years ago
My heart is broken. Is this some cruel joke? The world became a little darker today.
Daisy 17 years ago
I must agree with Ashe and say that the green oxfords are absolutely delightful. The others… ehhh….
annie 17 years ago
Count me with another vote for the green oxfords! What does the rest of the outfit look like? This could be another of The Manolo’s contests!
Imelda 17 years ago
I’m with Ashe, Daisy and Annie on this one but I’m going to take it one step further and call the leopard print mandal…I’ve got a thing for prints…in fact if it sparkles, glitters or has an animal print then it’s in my wardrobe. I believe this is what’s commonly known as having the fashion sense of an 8-year-old girl!!!
As for the suede peep toe slingbacks…barf!
http://www.imelda.com.au
K 17 years ago
Sorry, fellow Manoloers. But they’re all ghastly. End of story.
karlfest 17 years ago
At no point should women’s shoes resemble men’s, or vice versa. The line between daring and drag is wafer, wafer thin. Best not dally near it for fear of losing balance, and, god forbid, stumbling over the line ( See mandals above)
karlfest 17 years ago
The green oxfords are Jack Nicholson as The Joker in “Batman “
DAL 17 years ago
The slingback is just frightening but I agree that the oxford in a different color combination could be worth while. I’m not a big fan of green to start with and that shade does not at all appeal to me.
Denise 17 years ago
Got to like the green oxfords… the rest are atrocious.
Genevieve 17 years ago
I feel like he didn’t really want to do this collection. I dunno…for some reason I like to think of some marketing person pleading with him, ‘but women love your shoes! So men, they will love them too!’ and Blahnik being all, ‘No, no, I cannot, I do not want to, this is just not attractive to me in any way, why would I want to do this, please, just go bother Lagerfeld, he’s dead anyways and can’t hear this incessant whining.” And finally, just to shut up this marketing person- “Here! Take them! Take whatever you want! Call them what you want, I don’t care, put my name on them, I spent 5 minutes on the whole collection, I just took a piece of cardboard and glued some leopard skin to it, I don’t care what people say about me, just, for the love of God, go away and never speak again!”
Because, really. Ick. ;) Or maybe I’m just too tired from studying…
daisyj. 17 years ago
Oh. Dear.
Jennie 17 years ago
I am the quintessential best friend of the gay mens… The last party I was invited to had 2 straight men, 5 straight women, and 27 gay men…All some of my GBFF’s. They are somewhat ill about these shoes, even the drag queen (she said that the Monolo is best worn as 4″ heels…)……..
Livia 17 years ago
This is extremely funny. Nobody would truly expect a man to wear anything as ridiculous as things that are routinely sold to women: cropped pants, 3/4 sleeves, peep-toes, and so on. This person thought it was worth a try!
Phyllis 17 years ago
Now for the blue peep toe oxfords I’m trying to imagine what might be the perfect shade of polish….
Victor 17 years ago
Those are hideous–even the Oxford.
I confess I may sound sexist in this comment, but I believe the ladies who love the lime-green Oxford are thinking they have a dress that would look fantastic with shoes of that color, but I doubt there is a single male–be he gay, straight, or metrosexual–who has a suit that would be enhanced by lime-green footwear.
The style of the Oxford is stunning, and I love the humorous touch on the side of the upper, but that color has *got* to go. Apparently, this is the green & black combo; I don’t think the navy & stone combo would be much better.
Elvira 17 years ago
This is just so sad. Even the oxfords.
Kate Cavendish 17 years ago
These are truly gaudy shoes. I can imagine the green-and-brown combination in a woman’s shoe, but do find the green to be a tad too electric. Who on earth does Manolo think his client is?
enc 17 years ago
Those shoe designs are far-fetched, at best.
I wonder, Manolo, why are you running Steve Madden ads on your site, after all that hubbub?
Victor 17 years ago
enc, I believe I can answer this, as I’ve seen other apparently hypocritical ads on other blogs. Please note I am not associated with Sr. Manolo, except as a fan, like yourself.
Sr. Manolo did not sell ad space to Steve Madden; however, he did sell ad space to a company that tailors the ads to the blog. Sr. Manolo writes about shoes; Steve Madden…uh…”designs” shoes, and an ad for Steve Madden came up in the ad rotation. In the same space next week, tomorrow, or even later today, you may well see an ad for a different shoe designer.
Cat 17 years ago
Those are some ugly shoes. This collection is an abomination. I’m sure of it.
enc 17 years ago
Victor:
Thanks for pointing that out; I hoped it was some sort of keyword association tie-in, as you point out . . . . I didn’t imagine the Manolo would have sanctioned such a thing on his own.
Manolo the Shoeblogger 17 years ago
The Glam Media and the Google, two of the Manolo’s principal ad brokers, sometimes show ads of which the Manolo does not specifically approve.
Such is the case with the ads of the odious Steve Madden and his cheap shoes.
As enc and Victor have noted, with these ads it is because the blog of the Manolo is the place to come if one wishes to find the shoe lovers.
MissPrism 17 years ago
I’d happily wear the oxfords if they came in women’s sizes. I don’t like the other two, but can’t help feeling a flicker of approval for anything that gets away from the usual men’s=boring, women’s=crippling rules of fashion.
(Pedantic bonus comment: traditionally, a cordwainer would make shoes and a cobbler merely mend them.)
PJ 17 years ago
Why are we still discussing? K at 7:03 says they’re “…ghastly. End of story”!
raincoaster 17 years ago
I like the green oxfords, but a man could only wear them with black jeans and a quiet-looking sweater; nothing else on the face of the planet would work.
But those leopard thongs are hilarious! What the kept man will be wearing this season?
long island 17 years ago
“But those leopard thongs are hilarious! What the kept man will be wearing this season?”
All of a sudden I am conjuring an image of a boy toy with leopard spotted thongs on his feet and a leopard spotted thong covering his manhood.
Sarah 17 years ago
I would just like to point out that I believe Manolo Blahnik is trying to use his stature to rectify a quotidian, but still sad, disparity in excitement between womens and men’s shoes. Keep in mind that if some designer once upon a time did not risk public opporbrium by putting a man in a purple tie with a business suit, men would still look like they were working for the KGB.
raincoaster 17 years ago
You know who does good men’s shoes with style? John Fluevog. His women’s shoes are a love ’em or hate ’em deal, but the men’s shoes are quite stylish.
La BellaDonna 16 years ago
With the greatest respect to the ladies who liked some/any of these shoes:
No.
No gentleman would ever be seen wearing these. Not under any circumstances. La BellaDonna feels compelled to remind the ladies that what they may admire in terms of design is not what is appropriate for men. These are not “daring,” these are not “fashion forward,” they are not “stylish.” They are inexcusable.
And the very fact that some of the ladies see at least some of these styles as “vibrant” or “stylish” is why John Molloy said that women who want their men to be seen as successful should never shop for them.