RUBY SLIPPERS

Dorothy’s red ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz are so famous that we can pretty much guarantee that if you walk out wearing any red shoes, someone will make a reference to you wearing “Dorothy shoes”.  From experience, they need not look anything remotely like the slippers that Judy Garland wears in the film. To celebrate this iconic shoe and the film’s 70th anniversary, Warner Bros Consumer Products and Crystallized Swarovski Elements asked some of the world’s most influential designers to give Dorother’s slipover their own person makeover as part of what is being called The Wizard of Oz Ruby Slipper Collection.

The collection kicked off Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York one year ago when it debuted at a gala event at Saks Fifth Avenue where a number of the shoes remained displayed in the windows and on the 8th floor (their famous 10022-SHOW section), for a week. Select slippers were also displayed surrounding the fountain in Bryant Park throughout Fashion Week where many of us were able to marvel at some of the resulting designs. For those who didn’t catch them however, this month they will be displayed at the Swarovski Crystallized lounge in the UK (24 Great Marlborough Street, London, W1F 7HU) through August 20th, marking the first time the shoes and sketches will be displayed there.

The participating designers are include A.Testoni, Abaeté, Alberta Ferretti, Betsey Johnson, Botkier, Christian Louboutin, Diane von Furstenberg, Giuseppe Zanotti, Jimmy Choo, L.A.M.B. by Gwen Stefani, Lisa Pliner, Manolo Blahnik, Moschino, Oscar de la Renta, Roger Vivier, Sergio Rossi, Stuart Weitzman, Tibi, and Tuleh.