Imitation = Flattery?

Typically when I do an "Inspriation = Flattery?" post I'm talking about how a company is knocking off or heavily leveraging the design of another company or designer. But what I am seeing more and more (I'm sure you are too) are celebrity lines somewhat claiming to be based on the spokesperson's style but in reality reproducing the real designer pieces they wear in public.

And with the "celebrity" blogger gaining more and more prominence, it was bound to happen in the blogging realm too. The J. Aldridge by Sea of Shoes collection at Urban Outfitters is really one of the first... I'm sure more are to follow.

Now right off the bat, I am not knocking Jane from Sea of Shoes and I'm entirely basing this on my own opinion and perceptions combined with the PR where Jane states that she designed the shoes based on what she has in her closet. That's more than most companies will say! I just find it interesting that these companies (not just this particular instance) will dumb down and knock off a designer style rather than think up new pretty shoes on their own. I will buy cute shoes at any price point but I don't want lame substitutes.



As stated in the UO press release:

"Jane Aldridge may be just 17 years old, but the Dallas-based fashion blogger has an impressive global following on her personal style blog, Sea of Shoes. "Ever since I've reached my full shoe size I've been fanatical about collecting shoes," says Aldridge. "That's how my blog got started, as a means of chronicling my addiction to beautiful footwear and the evolution of my personal style," she adds.

The magnetic Texas teen has to wear a school uniform five days a week with a one and a half inch heel rule, but outside of class, flats are the last thing you'll see her wearing. From YSL cage heels and Chanel bow-tie booties to Margiela clogs, Aldridge pairs her favored heels with equally envied outfits. And now, she has found another creative outlet for her passion; designing shoes herself, with the help of Urban Outfitters.

Launching next month, J. Aldridge by Sea of Shoes is a capsule collection of three styles, exclusive to Urban Outfitters. Dramatic knee-high brown leather peep-toe boots feature top-stitched detailing and lacing at the front, black gladiator heels with studs and twin buckle straps, and lace-up, pointy skimmers. "I'm really excited to bring my designs to Urban Outfitters," says Aldridge. "The inspiration for this collection is a mish-mash of some of the elements of my favorite pairs—sort of Victoriana meets gladiator warrior."




So here are what I think are the inspirations pieces and the actual shoe in UO.

Top - Chanel bow booties in pink, mesh and black. Bottom - JA SOS Satin Bow Heels in pink and black.



Next - Chloe Lace-up Wedge Booties from Jane's shoe picks for Fall 2009.



Left - Chloe bootie. Right - JA SOS Wedge Bootie



Next, Spring 2006 Prada lace-up peep-toe boots.

I think the JA SOS Laced Boots are a combo of the Ann Demeulemeester triple lace boots and the Prada peep-toe boots.

Last on the left are the Ann Demeulemeester open lace sandal heels and the JA SOS laced flats.

Jane is a very pretty girl who has a great sense of style... combined with access to and the ability to buy amazing new and vintage designer clothes and shoes. She also has a mother, very stylish herself, who has a history as a model and working in the retail business, I believe.

I'd be curious to know how much of the designing she was able to do and how much was Urban Outfitters sifting through her closet and finding pieces they could bring down to a more mass-market level. I'd also love to know, if anyone has bought these, what the quality is like.

As with most celebrity lines and their "creators", I'm waiting to see Jane wearing "her" pieces. Chloe Sevigny is the only one that comes to mind who wore her shoes out quite a bit. Jane has a lot of fans and is getting a lot of attention. I think that is great. What I don't think is great is that her name is being used to sell a product that she didn't really come up with and that she doesn't wear.

Does this bother anyone else?

Forward Thinking; Looking Back

One thing that I know about myself is that I have a tendency to dress pretty streamlined and conservative. While I like a wide variety of colors and unique details, underneath my clothes and shoes are pretty classic, maybe even boring by some standards. And I just no good at layering creatively.

This is why I love seeing what other ladies are wearing because they help me broaden my fashion horizions and get ideas for how I can bring great pieces, that I may not even have considered, into my wardrobe.

I'm very inspired by the modern chunkiness of Miss Nubby's selections, like these Marni sandals. She always has the best graphic combinations of clothes and shoes in colors that I love too, like red, black, green and grey.



Jane at Sea of Shoes (along with her mom) also has some amazing architectural pieces and a great way of wearing them - from casual to excessive.



I'm starting to branch into more unusual pieces and I directly contribute the inspiration to these women. They helped me to open my mind.

Left to my own devices I tend to chose retro, uber-girly, spindly pumps like these Kors Michael Kors "Lush" pumps in muted gold. These have a 1960s cocktail hour shape to them, and while I love them they are well within my comfort zone.



In the next year, I hope to add more pieces that move away from the obvious girly-ness that I default to. I like pieces in this aesthetic, I just need to move towards them more.

Imitation = Flattery?

I just recieved the Nordstrom holiday catalog in the mail the other day and as I was flipping through the pages, I was stopped in my tracks by the spread for these Steve Madden boots/sandal booties.



Which also happen to come in a taupe suede as well. Why was I stopped? Not because I find them that good looking or eye-catching or even well made.





No, it was because they appear to be very poorly conceived and executed knock-offs of the Maison Martin Margiela sandal booties (worn here by Jane of Sea of Shoes)



She also has the tall boot version of these as well.



Here's a close up of the taupe verison.

These white ones were at eLuxury.

Of course the knock-offs (named Triumphh) were done by Steven Madden... the master of bad versions of good shoes.

Blogger Inspiration: Jane from Sea of Shoes

I'm not afraid to say it... when I see someone with great style, no matter her (or his) age, I like to break down what exactly it is that I like, what I can expand on and what can help me to stretch stylistically.

Jane of Sea of Shoes has a great sense of style and a great way of creating unique outfits from vintage and eBay finds as well as a healthy dose of amazing designer pieces. And I'm sure it doesn't hurt that she's lovely and has an extensive wardrobe of high-end shoes and clothes.

One of my favorite style of shoes that she wears are peep-toe boots, like these gorgeous Prada ones. This is definitely a style that is outside of my typical comfort zone but the more I've seen if the more I like it. Jane has done a great job styling hers, both casually with jeans and dressier.

What I liked about the Prada pair is their height, the way they lace up and the wider peep-toe opening. I searched around for a while and found these great boots from Jeffrey Campbell. I got them on sale at Urban Outfitters.

I just got them so I've only had time to take a few quick shots.

Now I need to come up with some outfits to wear them with!