Wallpaper 10

PHOTOGRAPHY: NORMAN WILCOX-GEISSEN FASHION: LUNE KUIPERS WRITER: LAURA HAWKINS

PATCH PERFECT

Manolo Blahnik’s latest kaleidoscopic creation

‘DRUSILLO’ SHOES, £1,735,

BY MANOLO BLAHNIK.

‘PATCHWORK’ FABRIC, £161

PER M, BY DEDAR MILANO

Manolo Blahnik looked to a diverse range

of influences when designing his first

menswear collection, from Regency dandy

Beau Brummell to Sicily’s boldly hued houses.

But it was coverage of a more furnishing-

focused kind that inspired the footwear

aficionado’s ‘Drusillo’ shoe. The colourful

Oxford style nods to the tones and patterns

of a Moroccan patchwork quilt. ‘Its detail

was exquisite,’ Blahnik demurs. ‘Each piece of

fabric had been sewn together so precisely.’

The designer has been creating men’s shoes

since he launched his eponymous footwear

brand in 1973, catering to the likes of David

Hockney and Mick Jagger. But it is only

now that Blahnik has launched a dedicated

menswear line, with an accompanying

boutique in London’s Burlington Arcade.

The design of the ‘Drusillo’ was also a lengthy

pursuit. ‘I decided the patchwork should be

multicoloured python,’ Blahnik says. ‘It took

more than a year in the making. I don’t like

to rush things. I’m a perfectionist after all.’

manoloblahnik.com

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