Brandon Blackwood Put Weed in His Debut Shoe Collection

Novelty heels are clearly having a moment.

Beloved for his coveted handbags, Brandon Blackwood has been talking about (and teasing) a expansion into shoes for a minute now. Well, the time has come: The brand’s debut footwear collection drops Friday. 

Brandon Blackwood has sold mink slides in a rainbow of colors on its site for $295 a pair, but this is its first proper shoe collection. 

“If you look at our comments, so many people were looking for shoes to match their bags,” Blackwood writes, in an e-mail. “They want their accessories to match and be cohesive. I love footwear. I own a ton of shoes, and felt it was the natural next step for us. Our outerwear does well, our handbags do well and figured shoes could complete the look.”

There are seven styles total, all heeled, all under $600: a Chelsea ankle boot (the Ani, $325), a thigh-high boot (the Blair, $565), a bootie (the Bamboo B, $345), a platform mule (the Harlo, $285), an ankle-strap platform pump (the Sali, $295) and two sandals with delightful novelty heels: the Joint Heel and the Taxi Heel (each $285). Given the rising popularity of sculptural accents in footwear, the latter two will definitely be sell-outs.

Ani Nieto — Brandon Blackwood’s footwear director and the Chelsea boot’s namesake — explains that the brand “wanted a playful yet sophisticated collection that could sit comfortably with the handbags.”

“Our main goal for this launch was to create styles that could transcend seasons and become instant classics, which is something our brand has always stood for,” she writes via e-mail. “We reimagined classic and trendy styles and made them our own… We wanted the shoes to become the main elements of an outfit, just like our handbags have done.”

The brand also pulls out elements that are already popular in its handbag offerings (like the Bamboo B). Most of the shoes were made in Portugal, with some work done in Italy. (For the Joint and Taxi styles, for example, the brand had the custom heel component crafted in Italy, then sent to Portugal to be assembled.) Every style is sold in sizes 35 through 44.

“Because it’s a new category for us and footwear is very special, we wanted to make sure to take our time to come out with the perfect shoe,” Blackwood says. “We did a lot of learning, a lot of traveling, a lot of sourcing to make what we think is the perfect first collection. Shoes are completely different than bags, and you know there were so many delays, hardships and learning curves. But I think that whole process gave us the best possible product.”

Check out the debut Brandon Blackwood shoe collection below.

Brandon Blackwood Blair.

Brandon Blackwood Ani. 

Brandon Blackwood Harlo. 

Brandon Blackwood Joint. 

Brandon Blackwood Sali. 

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Source: Fashionista.com