He’s Got the Midas Touch! Manolo Blahnik Celebrates 50 Years in Fashion with an All-Gold Collection
I met Manolo in Perry Ellis’s design studio in 1979 or 1980, but my favorite memory was a dozen years later, when he and my mother observed a fitting I did with Shalom Harlow. My mom and Manolo had already bonded over Xavier Cugat and Norman Norell, but something about Shalom resembling Ava Gardner was utterly thrilling to them—a lot of screaming ensued.
Victoria Beckham, Designer
I have always loved a BB pump—one of my funniest Manolo memories is wearing a pair whilst driving the Spice Bus at full speed as we filmed Spice World.
Amanda Harlech, Creative Consultant and Writer
In 1979 I had just discovered Grace Coddington’s work in Vogue. Later, I wanted to be Talisa Soto in a red Fiorucci boiler suit and my red Manolos. It was like jumping off a cliff into an adventure—there was no turning back.
Kate Moss, Model
I still wear my Manolos from the ’90s—my favorites are a gold scalloped peep-toe. They’re the perfect heel to go from day to night.
Naomi Campbell, Model and Activist
He reminds me of a marquis—I’m sure he’s royalty somewhere and he doesn’t know it. He’s just so precise in all that he executes.
Sandra Bernhard, Actor
He’s one of these bigger-than-life characters that you can’t believe exists in today’s world, but he evolved as an artist in a more elegant time, when people paid attention to the details. I think that’s why he’s continued to attract people: There’s a magnetism to that kind of beauty. You want to be around it; you want to possess it.
Shop the collection below and visit the virtual reality installation Manolo Blahnik: A New Way of Walking to learn more about the storied shoemaker.
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