Warm up your feet in ‘The Mojito’ shoes
The world of style is considered a non-stop line of work where every day starts with thinking really big to create something magical. It never stays the same because that would be rendered as fusty. And one vital part of it all looks into women’s obsession with their shoes which are witnessing a revolution in ways never heard or seen before. I’m referring to their unique boisterous designs.
The concept of edgy designs combined with attributes of ‘absolute grandness’ has become more of a norm today thanks to a growing club of oddball shoe designers who are continually pushing the envelope and in so doing forcing us to think of shoes not just as an accessory.
While these shoes must serve as saleable assets for their creators, they should also have the uber quality in one way or the other to draw the attention of women buyers at first sight. It’s no wonder designing this type of footwear is an artistic endeavor in its own way which requires too much of imaginative clout on one’s part. In fact, your pair of shoes deserves to be looking beautiful and stylish just as the outfits you confidently put on before you start your day.
One such emerging talent is an award-winning British architect Julian Hakes who has bowled the fashionistas everywhere over with his first chic shoe collection. It’s a big milestone for him, although it took him complete two years.
In an exclusive interview with Arab News, he reflects upon his fascination for shoes and how it turned out to be his other major area of interest.
He completed his architecture training at Cambridge University and then went on to do an M.Phil in Environmental Design. He then worked for some well-known architecture firms before setting up his own firm with his wife in 2000. Done with designing buildings and bridges all over the world from Moscow to LA and Boston for almost 15 years, he was looking for some fresh challenges.
He then wanted to make foray into something else that traverses along the lines of architectural and sculptural ingenuity. And there he was experimenting with footwear in the first place because he felt that there was little innovation at that time prompting him to do something about it. From there on, that thought stuck with him. As a matter of fact, he had been drawing and designing shoes since 2006. “I’ve had enough of sketching and needed to do the actual thing. I often asked myself what a simple sandal would look like if it was invented and designed today. To my surprise, I looked around and found nothing new so I thought I would have a go and try myself,” he says.
He was thinking in particular about the natural foot shape and how a footprint in the sand can show you how the body loads are distributed. Then he came to realize that when the heel is in an elevated state, the print will look very different and probably there is no load in the middle under the foot. “So I tested it and the theory proved to be correct all the way. Then, I made a test sample and that’s when the idea really took off,” he says.
He didn’t need to dive into a whole new territory of savoir faire when it came to designing these shoes. With his triumphant strides in architecture and engineering, he made a move toward applying the same technology to a different industry and the experiment showed astounding results. Asked what technique he relies upon while making shoes, he replied, “We use the same processes that are used to create high-end ski gear, snowboards and bindings.”
The structure of shoes looks elegant because they have been made using a single ribbon of material which perfectly holds the steel, easily wraps over the foot under the forepart and back over the toes. Being distinctive is at the core of his shoe design and that’s what sets him apart from the rest as he explains, “We have a strong architectural aesthetic and direction based on a deep understanding of material nature, performance, form and line.”
Since it’s his debut collection, he has made sure everything has a certain wow factor be it the name of the shoe ‘The Mojito’ (which he came up with while drinking a Mojito cocktail), the silhouette and the so-called comfort factor.
“The Mojito is very comfortable as it’s based on the shape a footprint leaves behind in the sand. The heel isn’t that high and with such a natural wide foot bed it actually feels a lot lower,” says Hakes. “That’s where I win the bet.”
They are a special kind of shoe. Anything with a higher heel is, in his view, not suitable for day-to-day wear. Yet, he can’t help but agree that his meticulous designs have been praised a lot by people. “I’m amazed by the wide age range and backgrounds of people who madly love the Mojito. It’s something a young woman can wear and an older woman can also wear, the main difference lies in color choice and what it’s worn with. Some people even buy the shoes just to look at and put on the shelf as a piece of wearable art,” he says. “I just want to make them feel feminine, strong, empowered and beautiful while walking in my shoes.”
The color combination for the Mojito does have its own spark making it even more appealing to women. “I seek dual colors for my Mojito as they really show off the 3D nature of the shoe in depth,” he says.
Curves are difficult to work with since they need to be explicitly patterned. But it’s not impossible. “It has its challenges. Sometimes a pattern can distort so I don’t like to see things which are rigid such as pin stripes,” he says.
Even though celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow endorsing his shoes hardly matters to him, he can’t deny that it feels good to see them wear his creations. “I’m always amazed when new celebrities discover my shoes. We do not do any gifting as other brands do so this means if someone wears the shoes it is because they buy them. Sometimes I will get a call from a friend to say they saw the Mojitos on TV or in film or a music video and that’s always a great surprise,” smiles Hakes.
Now that he’s created a stir in the fashion industry with his designs, they have been exhibited in top galleries and museums in Holland, New York, Germany, and London. “Our work was recently selected as part of the permanent collection at the V&A, London which was a great honor. I was quite over the moon when I heard this news,” he says.
As we came close to the end of our conversation, I asked him what’s next on the table. He said with pride glistening in his eyes, “I’m very excited about SS16 as I have been working on a full collection including a whole new range of styles. So just watch out.”
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