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Showing posts with label shoe closet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shoe closet. Show all posts

Monday, February 6, 2012

Celebrity Shoe Closets

Good morning! Is it already Monday again?? Well hopefully this post will be a little pick me up.

I LOVE me a good shoe closet ladies. Isn't it funny how that's actually a thing now? A closet specifically for shoes? Celebrities have made having one feel almost normal. I said almost.
The closets seem to keep getting more and more extravagant and I'd bet the pressure to outdo the other girls is intense! It's like a celebrity home staple now. I think it just proves that the relationship between a woman and her shoes is a powerful one. There's something truly special about just the right pair, or for these ladies and myself, the right hundred or so pairs ;)

Here's a roundup of some pretty awesome shoe closets...

Maybe the original? Joan Crawford

The QUEEN of shoes, Imelda Marcos has an entire shoe museum!

 My dear friend, Adrienne Maloof. (the photo doesn't do her collection justice)

 Christina Aguilera

Coco 

Khloe Kardashian

 Mariah Carey

Miley Cyrus 

 Nicky Hilton

 Paula Abdul

Jessica Alba 

Kimora Lee

Even the guys are into it! 


As for non celebrities, here are my past shoe closets...


This was back in 2004 when I was singe and had a condo with a ridiculous 300sq ft shoe closet all to myself. This started my obsession with shoe storage and I'm afraid I'll never be the same again.

And this is my old house. We didn't have a ton of extra room so we converted out office into an office/shoe room.

And later still, and still in the works- here's a little peek at my current shoe closet in my new apartment. Single again with just my shoes to keep me warm. ;) I kid. I have to make light of my pain... don't judge.

Who's closet is your favorite??




XOX,

Friday, January 6, 2012

New Year, New Blog?

Well no, not quite. But new me for sure! I haven't blogged in so long it feels so weird to be sitting here on my new couch in my new apartment... blogging. I miss you guys. I miss blogging.


Let's play catch up in case you're new here or it's been a while.


My life has changed in the following ways:
* I am now a 30 year old divorcee. Shitty.
* I moved out of my home (for obvious reasons) and am now renting an apartment a town over
* I lost about 10 lbs (yay) from stress and depression (boo) but am now getting into a happy place which means it's on it's way back on my body (BIG boo, but yay for being happy)
* I made my TV debut a few weeks back on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills
* I am learning the joy of buying less expensive shoes. Less $ = more shoes! DUH!


My old shoe set up was pretty cool...

Packing my shoes wasn't as fun.


Ok, so.... Let's start fresh with a little about me.


Hi! I'm Celine Ouaknine. I grew up in Huntington Beach, California. I like to joke that I was born in high heels, and although that's obviously not true, I was born with the love of shoes in my blood.


My father (right), a former professional soccer player, came to the US from Morocco in the 70's. He started off as a shoe salesmen and had a natural talent for it. He worked his way up and eventually co-founded a company called French Follies. They made cute little espadrilles and ballet inspired shoes. From there he went on to Guess and Charles David footwear, where he eventually became President of the company and brought it to its height of popularity in the late 80's.

I was so lucky to grow up around shoes. I was the only girl in the 8th grade wearing the kick ass ankle boots Guess was famous for... and remember those Guess jellies?? Yep. I had those too. And at a whopping hundred bucks a pair, let's just say I made a lot of new friends when I came to school in those! That's the first time I felt the power of a hot shoe.

In the 90's, my dad left Charles David/Guess Footwear to pursue a new venture... Bebe Footwear! It was his first shoe license, and it was super successful. Soon after he started his own line with his namesake, Joey O. Since then his company has held the exclusive licenses for L.A.M.B. Footwear, Harajuku Lovers footwear, Charles Jourdan footwear, Laundry by Shelly Segal footwear, Antik Denim footwear, Playboy footwear, Zinc foowear, Hale Bob footwear, Badgley Mischka footwear, Mark and James by B.M. footwear, Betsey Johnson footwear, Betseyville footwear, Jill Stuart footwear, JLO Footwear, True Religion Footwear, Joe's Jeans Footwear, and Adrienne Maloof footwear. Awesome, right!? :) did I type "footwear" enough?

So... like I said, shoes are in my blood! I realized this at an early age, when I would go into my mom's closet and pull out her shoes and clear off my book shelves, fill them with shoes, and put a sign up that said "Shoe Show". I didn't really know what it meant, other than that was where my dad was always flying off to. Shoe shows. I wanted to be a part of it!
I went to design school in Milan, Italy when I was 20. My professors at Ars Sutoria taught me all about making shoes, including sketching, pattern making, leather tanning, and lots of technical shoe stuff. It was intense.

From shoe school to designer! After graduating from my shoe program I went back home and started working as the assistant to the designer of my dad's company, Titan Industries. At the time, we were only making bebe and Joey O Footwear, and were about to go after our second license, JLO Footwear. I was a part of that project and I loved it! It was so exciting putting what I had learned to use. I was off to China and working my butt off. I was the assistant to our head designer for a little over a year when I got offered the job of taking over as the designer for Playboy. It wasn't anything I had ever thought I would do, but it was a chance to be my own designer! No more assisting!!! I took it! Then, a few months after accepting the position as designer for Playboy, I was offered another line; Zinc footwear! I took it!!! I loved working with Zinc. The clothing was cute and the shoes were much more "my style". 

Later still, I was given the job as designer of JLO footwear.

I launched the debut collection (and every collection thereafter) for Harajuku Lovers in August 2008, and in May of 2009 I took over as designer of Betsey Johnson footwear until Steve Madden bought out 
the company in October of 2010.

Currently I'm designing for Bebe footwear, Adrienne Maloof Footwear, and just launched my own line, Cece L'amour, which I am very excited about.
I love my job! I get to work with shoes every day. It's my job to look at shoes in magazines, online, in stores, and on the streets. It's a dream job honestly, and I feel lucky every day. My obsession is my job... So cool!


Betsey Johnson and I backstage before her runway show <3

Gwen Stefani and I after a L.A.M.B. runway show <3
Mark Badgley, James Mischka and I at a Nordstom personal appearance. Two of the NICEST guys you'll ever meet <3


So thats me, more or less.

My new shoe set up? Well OK since you asked... Here's a sneak peak but I'll be doing a full post on my new apartment soon.

:)

So stay tuned. 2012 is going to be a good year... Thank you all for your continued kind words and support. It really means so much.





LOVE and kisses,

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Greetings from Irvine!

Hello friends! It's your favorite queen of the disappearing act... ME!
;)

I'm about 90% better from my eye surgery and about 49% moved in to my new apartment. Yippee!

 My cozy girly living room is coming together nicely. I'm waiting on some pretty turquoise upholstered chairs to finish her off...
(from Urban Outfitters)

 Bags and boxed all over the place!

 Shoes litter the floor

 My future shoe room!

 boxes and boxes and boxes of shoes!

My favorite place. This couch is so soft and comfy <3

Once I get all this crap cleaned up I'll be enjoying this space a lot.



Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Bring on the Bling!

If you follow me on Twitter you may have seen some back and forth conversation between my favorite Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star and me. A few of you emailed to ask what was going on. What secret were were sharing?
Well, I'm super excited to announce that Adrienne Maloof and I are working on her very own line of shoes!! Adrienne Maloof by Charles Jourdan to be precise! She's teaming up with myself (representing Titan Industries of course) and isaay.com to bring you a collection of shoes where "love is in the details".

How exciting is that!?

I can't even tell you guys how much fun she is to work with. I feel like I've met a long lost girl friend and I'm so glad. She's sweet, charming, incredibly down to earth, and best of all, sassy! She also happens to have a killer collection of shoes, which was our starting off point.
Adrienne and I raided her closet where she picked out her favorites and expertly explained what it was about each one that caught her attention. I was pleasantly surprised to hear her using design terms like 'last' 'construction' and 'pitch', and from our first meeting I knew that Adrienne knew shoes. She understood that although she and I may love high heels, a lot of women want to look sexy AND have a comfortable shoe. She wanted to make sure we covered the bases for all kinds of glamorous women- from working moms to fashionistas walking red carpets.
We quickly found that we have very similar taste and even have several of the same shoes, though her collection is far bigger ;) She and I joked that we are sole sisters- we have the same love of sky-high heels, "The higher the better"! We also share a love for "bling". She loved the gem I have on my tooth and said that I had found a place to put bling that she hadn't thought of!
Overall I was incredibly excited to get started. It's really great when you get to collaborate with someone who really has a passion for what they're doing. I can tell that Adrienne puts 100% into everything she does and that's in part, how her family business is so successful. She wanted to make sure that she was involved with every step of the process, from sketching to prototypes to actual samples. It's a collaboration in the truest sense of the word.

We're in full swing and the line of shoes that Adrienne and I designed together are currently being shown to buyers in New York! It's all so exciting :) I can't show you any images yet, but I'll be sure to keep you all posted. You can follow Adrienne on twitter HERE and get all the inside scoop from her ;)

Here is an excerpt from her interview with Footwear News. You can check it out in it's entirety here:
WWD article- Inside Adrienne Maloof's Closet
Also, an article from WWD here:
Isaay Goes Glam With Adrienne Maloof


Brands owned: Alaïa, Brian Atwood, Chanel, Charles Jourdan, Christian Louboutin, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, Jimmy Choo, Miu Miu, New Balance, Prada, Skechers, Yves Saint Laurent

Organizational strategy: Maloof keeps her everyday shoes in one section of her closet and evening looks in another. “From there, I try to coordinate by color.” 

Personal shoe style: 
Classic with an edge. “I like [my shoes] to be a little more trendy and fashion-forward.”

All-time favorite:
 Tall Prada boots on a 1-inch heel. “They’re easy to run around in and are classic, chic and stylish. I wear them so often. I know I’ve gotten my money’s worth.”

Most stylish shoe:
 Yves Saint Laurent nude platform pumps. “They elongate the leg and go with everything. They have the height and are very sexy.” 

Last pair purchased: 
Jimmy Choo strappy sandals embellished with Swarovski crystals

Style I’d never be caught wearing:
 Anything with a rounded toe. “And I don’t do ballet flats. I know they are comfortable [and] stylish, but they’re not for me.”

If you could raid the closet of any other “housewife": 
Bravo producer and host of “Watch What Happens” Andy Cohen. “We call him our honorary housewife, and he’s an incredibly sharp dresser. He has a great eye for what works.”

Biggest splurge:
 About $4,000 on a pair of cocktail shoes with a gold heel and completely detailed in crystal

Pair I’ll never throw out: 
The strappy, light-blue, crystal-embellished sandals by Vera Wang worn during her wedding to Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Paul Nassif

Favorite shopping city: Las Vegas. “There’s just about every shop you can imagine, and it’s so close. A 45-minute airplane ride is easy and quick.” 

Best qualities in a sales associate: 
Personality. “They have to put a smile on their face, and they have to know what’s going to be in fashion for the next season.”

Top shops in Beverly Hills: 
Barneys, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and boutiques such as Chanel, Prada and Yves Saint Laurent

No. 1 shoe mistake: Short, chunky heels with a square toe. “I had a pair that I gave away. [The look] does not work for me and doesn’t do anything for the legs.” 

All-time favorite shoe brand:
 Yves Saint Laurent. “Their classic basic pumps are just gorgeous.” 

Favorite style on your husband and sons:
 “As a doctor, Paul is very conservative all day, so I love to see him in a more relaxed state. I’m a fan of men in casual, masculine clothing, and he looks great in a rugged boot. My boys are huge fans of the whole skateboarding culture, so they love hip sneakers.”

Best workout shoe: A lifelong tennis player, Maloof turns to New Balance when she hits the courts. “I’ve been playing since I was four.”

Trend you wish would go away: Mid-calf boots. “It’s the worst height and hard for [any] woman to wear.”

Style icons: “Madonna is constantly switching up her fashion and reinventing herself. She’s a strong woman. Coco Chanel also dared women to celebrate fashion and was so ahead of her time.” 

Highest heels I could bear:
 “The sky is the limit on that one. The higher, the better.”

Dream closet:
 Plans to expand her wardrobe are under way. “It will be huge and well lit, with lots of space to try things on. I’d love to truly display my shoes as the art form they are. I’ve been trying to bribe Paul to move his closet down the hall and let me have his, too, but so far, no luck. I’m open to bribery.”

Strategy for getting rid of shoes: Maloof turns to charity when she needs to clear space in her closet. “I donate to charities that help women getting into business and who need [professional shoes] to wear to interviews.”

Here's a little video I found of the housewives at a charity event and Adrienne talking about the upcoming line...






xox

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Crazy? No...

This is what I do when I'm sick in bed...


That would be my face on Christina's body (though I'm more interested in her closet) with pink hair and baby Ben's face over her baby's.

Hehe.

Friday, November 5, 2010

Before I Go...

So I'm off to China to work on my shoes for the next 8 days (boooooo!) but I wanted to share something real quick!

I've posted about my shoe storage before since many of you ask me what my closet situation is. Well, it wasn't pretty.

Piles of shoe boxes...

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Piles of shoe storage boxes...

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Hot mess status.

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UNTIL! Ben and I had a crazy idea...
What if we made our home office into a sort of shoe room. (well my half of the office anyway)

Well, we did it. And I freaking love it.

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TAH DAH!! Yay!

And with this post, I must go. My flight to China is taking off. I can't blog from China but I'll try to get Ben to post some stuff for me. :)

xoxo