Designer to Watch: Nicohlas Kirkwood

From Refinery 29:

"Nicholas Kirkwood has earned many accolades since his Spring '05 debut, but as Fashion Week approaches, the young, London-based shoe designer is as pressed as anyone to get ready for the runway. With a fine arts foundation at Central Saint Martin's, Nicholas worked for Britain's mad milliner, Philip Treacy, before studying shoemaking at Cordwainers College in East London. Previous seasons have been coveted at Harrod's, and his latest will soon grace Bergdorf Goodman's main floor. Look for his work at the Anne Christensen-styled Cynthia Steffee show on Monday, February 6, and at the upcoming Sharon Wauchob show in Paris. Nicholas was in Bologna last Friday, putting on his finishing touches. Here, he talks to Refinery29 about his process behind-the-scenes and what comes out on the other side."

My jaw dropped when I found out that Nicohlas Kirkwood will be a part of Topshop's New Generation Line in London in the fall. Kirkwood has been my favorite new shoe designer. I just randomly ran into a pair of his shoes at Bloomingdales in SF about a year ago. They were amazing gold and linen peep toe shoes, except they were in a euro 36.5 and they just wanted to slip off. I went back to Bloomingdales the next season to find them carrying just his semi plain gold pumps that were sold out of my size. This guy only has one store (The Look Boutique in SF) in Northern California that is charging a lot for a pair of his amazing shoes... *sigh* Shame... I would love a pair of these:



I want them... even though they were never really produced. They were actually only for show. Maybe one day, he'll be custom making shoes to fit my foot, just like how Christian Louboutin still does it.

Or maybe these:


I guess I'll just have to wait for next season...