- He’s 68 years old
- He still designs every shoe in his collection, drafting them first on paper and then sculpting the prototype last of beechwood
- Manolo Blahnik was born in 1942 in Spain’s Canary islands on a banana plantation
- It was on a trip to New York in 1971, he met Diana Vreeland who saw his sketch of a stiletto and suggested he make shoes!
- He studied at L’École des Beaux-Arts and L’École du Louvre in Paris
- Blahnik opened his first US shop in 1979
- For his first show, the shoes were messed up, the models walked funny and nothing worked out quite right….but he’s here to tell about it!
- Manolo says ‘toe cleavage has become an industry rule – a shoe must show only the first two cracks’
- His fashion education came from reading Vogue… (get your subscription)
- And yes, he tries on all the shoes he designs
- Neat note: his creative inspiration comes from old films
