Christian to Create Barbie Heels in 2009

So much news from the Louboutin world these past few days! We'll start with the first, and perhaps most important: Christian will be designing shoes for Barbie as part of her Fashion Week runway show and the general resurgence of the brand. (Did you know that Shanghai just got a whole Barbie store?) Anyways, as always WWD has the goods on the collaboration:

Christian Louboutin is designing pumps in iconic Barbie Pantone 219 Pink, which will make their debut at the special runway show that Mattel Inc. is staging during New York Fashion Week next February. 

Fifty as-yet-undisclosed designers will produce Barbie-inspired outfits for the runway, and each of the 50 models will be wearing the pink Louboutins at the show.

"I guess I always had a little 'girlie side' who liked Barbie," Louboutin said. "Barbie needs to wear great shoes because every girl needs to wear great shoes." 

Now, how do we get our names on the list for both the show and the shoes? February is coming up soon...those other designer names should be released any day now. 

[Image of some already pink Louboutins via Flickr > princesspoochie ]

Sole-Spotting: Jessica Alba for Campari

Photos: Mario Testino for Campari

This is what we like to call "impossibly high." Aside from Jessica Alba's brief  moments of posing for Testino's camera in this sizzling Campari shoot, these Louboutins sadly should be relegated to pedestals instead of the pavement. Heels of this altitude, sirens for the trademark sole, of course figure in much press and therefore elevate the brand.  There's no need to lean or turnaround to show the sole, as simply walking is advertisement enough.

Christian on Madison Ave, NYC

Doesn't look like much, does it? Christian Louboutin's flagship at 965 Madison Avenue is a cuddly nook down a few steps from the street and completely unassuming compared to its attention-whore neighbor, The Whitney Museum of Art. 

Inside, the shoes are displayed as in his other locations: set into clear plexi cubby holes with extra little accessories for interest (flowers or jewels, for example). When we snapped this pic last week, the shoe below was the star of the window. But you know in an economy like this one, retail price never lasts long and now the same shoes (in grey and black) can be found on sale at Saks. Sigh. 

A Red-Soled Ode to: Black Mesh

Vizu and Unknown

Baladi Elba and Air Con

Kitty and Quadrillette

Of all the sexy treatments favored by Louboutin, one of the most prevalent is black mesh with a nude lining. It also happens to be a personal favorite as this writer owns the heeled version of the Baladi Elba above (and Juliana has it in white). 

So why does a showpiece mesh shoe appear in almost every season of CL designs? We think it has to with Christian's love for toe cleavage, as mesh takes it even farther. One of his most well known and cleavage-y styles is the Pigalle, and although not pictured, they are most definitely made in mesh. Shoes like these are made for women who don't walk much, but take taxis and private cars. That probably explains why we don't get enough wear out of our Baladis.

[Images via ShopStyle, Bob Ellis Shoes, Barneys]

Fashionista's Red-Hot Trivia Question

Good to know!! In Fashionista's series of trivia questions, we have this gem from September 24, 2008: "Who could wear red soles in the 17th century?" Of course the answer comes out to be courtiers of the French king, but a commenter gave us a precious further insight:

it was the aristocracy of that period who had the money to be debaucherous and get all wild around town. hence the now infamous saying "paint the town red" because the red paint on the shoes would leave marks everywhere

Hmmm we wonder what the UES would look like if Louboutins did the same? Deep thoughts, people! And just because we feel like it, here's another little Louboutin bonus from some 2007 Fashionista: the CL manicure.

Aggressive Alta Ariella a Talon

From top to bottom. Christian Louboutin's Alta Ariella a Talon python boots are unbelievable. Look how sleek that boot shaft is. And the zipper up the back adds a sexy feminine touch to this look, which we can only describe as aggressive. And maybe ambitious too given the $2,595 pricetag. Perhaps it will go onsale one day?

Christian on Rue de Grenelle, Paris

This is the CL Boutique on Rue de Grenelle in Paris. We went inside and it looks a lot like CL boutiques stateside. We wanted to try on several pairs of shoes but we spent the entire day walking and our feet were both dirty and fat as sausages. As if we would subject CL shoes to that sort of torture.