Heels for wheels

Mecca Bingo have recently launched a charity drive to raise funds for disabled children. They are auctioning off celebrity footwear to bingo players. Mecca Bingo are affiliated with charity organisation Whizz Kidz and this is the second year of fund raising for handicapped children. The online auction was held from the 8th to the 13th of December and gave bingo players the chance to purchase Lorraine Kelly’s sling backs, Trinny Woodall’s golden heels and footwear belonging to Eastenders actor Cliff Parisi. Politician Theresa May also donated a pair of her finest shoes for a good cause. Dubbed “Heels for Wheels” donations will help buy wheelchairs for kids.

Top class luxury at a Mumbai cinema near you

When next in Mumbai you may like to go to the cimema and take advantage of the free services on offer. Competition between the two main distributors has resulted in the multiplexes offering filmgoers extras. The comfortable seats are just a beginning with leg massagers available on request at Cinemax India Ltd as well as an attendant to clean and polish your shoes. Rivals Metro BIG Cinemas provide their clients with diapers, first-aid kits, sewing kits, stain removers, blankets and lens cleansers to viewers.

McCartney/Morrissey no go

Fashion designer and animal rights activist Stella McCartney has denied reports she is to collaborate with Morrissey on a leather-free footwear range. Previously it was reported there was to be a collaboration between the two, but now this has been refuted. Stella, has previously designed clothes for Madonna and Annie Lennox, and has a long history of collaborations with other labels, from her ranges with Adidas and H&M to her most recent collection for GapKids.

Diamonds are forever: Rio Ferdinand's Live the dream

The most expensive football boots in history belong to John Terry (Chelsea), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United ) and Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United). A total of 7,444 precious stones adorn the three pairs and the blingy boots on Earth are valued at a massive £385,000 ($770,000 A). Each pair has been independently valued and certificated by Goldsmiths. Former model Luisa Di Marco had the brainwave of creating the world's most expensive boots. After consultations with Ferdinand, the boots were commissioned by Embee Jewels of London and Luisa worked with fashion designer Scott Henshall, Goldie and Embee's craftsmen to do the rest. Terry's boots are the most expensive at £135,000. John Terry’s Umbro boots has 2,374 jewels individually attached. The player’s children's names, Summer and Georgie are embroidered in red and the cross of St George is etched on the tongue. The studs are tipped with 84 black diamonds and set in white gold. There are more than 27 carat of white diamonds, nearly 11 carat of sapphires, while his famous No 6 is made from white gold. Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has already worn his blue and white Nike boots in the Premier League before they went infor the bling treatment and are now smothered in 2,576 gems with more than 10 carat of white diamonds and 31 carat of black diamonds. His famous No 10 is moulded out of rose gold. These are valued at £125,000. Rio Ferdinand's white and black Nike boots have been customised with spray paint and grafitti-style artwork by film producer and former musician Goldie. The central defender's No 5 has been in sculptured in rose gold, the laces are gold-tipped, while the boots themselves are covered in 2,494 stones - more than 18carat of white diamonds, 15 carat of black diamonds and nearly 11 carat of rubies. Ferdinand’s boots are also valued at £125,000.

All three pairs will be auctioned for charity at the VIP launch of Rio Ferdinand's new Live The Dream Foundation in front of 1,200 guests in London on Wednesday. The star-studded champagne gala evening will be hosted by Gavin and Stacey comedian James Corden, while Ferdinand's special guests will include Robbie Williams, world heavyweight boxing champion David Haye, The Saturdays, JLS, Frank Lampard and Strictly Come Dancing celeb Alesha Dixon. Ferdinand will also auction his cherished replica James Dean Porsche Spyder 550 which is valued at £30,000. Representatives from Guinness World Records will also be in attendance.

Cat Burglar Barbie by Christian Louboutin: Product placement par excellent, but?

Barbie, plastic icon has been transformed into a fierce fashionista, complete with glossy auburn locks. The first of three limited edition models is dressed in a skin-tight leather-look catsuit, the French designer, Christian Louboutin has remodelled his Mattel Inc muse as a bad girl Cat Burglar. The doll comes with four pairs of mini red-soled shoes, which are exact teeny tiny replicas of real-life models. And, like any serious stylista, Barbie can house all of her shoes away safely when she's not wearing them, as each pair comes with it's own mini shoe box.
Cat Burglar Barbie by Christian Louboutin can be yours this Christmas from between £100 - 150. Definitely a collector’s item but what does it say about a society willing to expose children to sexualisation and all in the name of an idefatigable obsession with footwear?

I think I might prefer the thong wearing an Australian Girl.

NIKE (RED) laces for Xmas

(NIKE) RED laces were launched at NIKETOWN this week in London with some of the world's finest footballers including Didier Drogba (Chelsea), Joe Cole (Chelsea), Andrei Arshavin (Arsenal), Marco Materazzi (Inter Milan), Lucas Neill (Everton), Clint Dempsey (Fulham) and Seol Ki-Hyeon (Fulham) and Denilson (Arsenal). Bono was there too to give the proceedings a touch of pop glitz. (NIKE) RED laces are specifically designed for football boots, but anyone can wear them and they sell under the banner 'Lace Up. Save Lives.' The proceeds are split between the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and football-based community programmes aimed at educating people about AIDS. Nike (RED) laces will be available at Nike.com for purchase and additional Nike (RED) products will be introduced in the coming months. The Red Laces are $4.00.

toeslayer on the telly

Feet different sizes? : Useful contacts

Many people have mismatched feet causing them added expense when shopping for shoes. Sadly, very few shoe stores, manufacturers, or online suppliers of footwear offer mismatched shoes. There are some organisations which will sell single and mismatched shoes and other organizations that match people with complementary sizes of mismatched feet. These organizations and matching efforts have met with mixed success. As the number of brands and styles of shoes have multiplied the task of matching has become more difficult. Several websites now offer single and mismatched shoes in a variety of brands and styles. MixMatchShoes.com and OneShoeTwoShoe.net, are retail sources of single and mismatched shoes, and OddShoeFinder.com is a free site that allows users to buy, sell, and swap single and mismatched shoes. People with mismatched feet can now exchange their unused mismatched pairs of shoes with others with PayPal the favored means of doing so. The site allows users to ask questions about shoes posted on the site and to post pictures and descriptions of the shoes they want to sell or exchange. OddShoeFinder.com also offers opportunities for shoe stores left with shoes they cannot sell. Stores invariably write them off as a loss and give them away or sell them below cost. With the millions of people with mismatched feet, there is a large potential market for even the mismatched pairs of shoes to be found among the shoes that would otherwise be thrown away.

Other useful sites
Amputee Coalition of America
e-Bility.com
Healthy Feet Store.com
Swap Shoes

Winter Boots big hit with the Brits

Mukluks and Uggs take a step back for it is winter boots that will be on the Chavs’ feet this Christmas. In the UK, ladies winter boots are selling like hot cakes. The change to winter blasts have seen a meteoritic rise in sales of quality fashion boots. Fear of a repeat of last years weather extremes the Brits’ fashionista are determined to be prepared. Snow boots have become a fashion must for the season ahead. Made from the finest fabrics with rich fur linings and a series of unique and elegant designs, winter boots are a must. Originally designed to be worn for walking around a ski resort, ladies winter boots are beautifully styled and feature insulating layers to hold in heat while being completely waterproof with excellent grip to prevent slipping on the ice or getting stuck in the snow. This makes them perfect for the British winter where sleet, snow and icy footpaths are common place. Men’s winter boots are derived from walking boots featuring more rugged, hard wearing and built for trudging through the snow to the shops and shovelling snow out of the drive way. Winter boots have proven to be a unique product, combining high fashion with high performance and usually a suitably high price point to match.

On A Pedestal: From Renaissance Chopines to Baroque Heels

"On A Pedestal: From Renaissance Chopines to Baroque Heels," is the title of an exhibition at the Bata Shoe Museum (runs until Sept. 20, 2010). On display are rarities from around the world featuring the chopine (platform) from 16th century Italy to the fashionable high heel of the 17th-century.