Because not everyone can afford $1,200 stilettos, Christian Siriano and Lela Rose both debuted their latest designer collections for Payless on the runway at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. The Fall '12 collections are expected to be available in September with styles typically starting at under $40 an item! Now that's a deal that Beauty and the Budget can do.
"Providing high-end fashion pieces at affordable prices is something we pride ourselves in season after season," said LuAnn Via, CEO and president of Payless ShoeSource. "Christian and Lela [Rose] continue to create inspired designs that translate well both on and off the runway; and we are thrilled to make their unique designs, along with all our Designer Labels, available and accessible for all to wear and enjoy."
Inspired by the 1930s movie, "The Vampire Bat," the Christian Siriano for Payless Gold label for Fall '12 draws from the dark, dramatic presence of bats with the intricate detail of the creature's veins and bones in a striking nine-piece collection. The lead actress in the film, Fay Wray, played an elegant and sophisticated woman who wore beautiful blouses tucked into long evening skirts in black and white -- a look juxtaposed with the horror content and backdrop of the movie. This was great inspiration to Christian's line, as well as the grainy nature of the old film, which influenced the white and black color palate seen throughout the accessory fabrications, which includes croco and snake prints, faux pony hair, rich black velvet and strong use of black and white "snow bat" croco. The Estella bootie, Christian's wear-it-with-everything ankle bootie, combines a black faux pony hair upper with the snow bat croco and is accented with a large buckle.
The long linear lines of cable-stayed bridges -- pioneered by Spanish architect, sculptor and structural engineer, Santiago Calatrava -- inspired Lela Rose for her Fall '12 collection. The Lela Rose for Payless Fall '12 shoes are created with a mix of fabrics and textures such as wool, leather and wood, shown in a range of rich, deep colors such as pewter, mustard, Bordeaux and navy. Details including unique stitched and tufted heels treatments, copper nail heads and curved T-Strap cutouts -- all tying back to the structural influences of Calatrava's bridge work. Each of the five shoes is named after a city that hosts one of Calatrava's bridge designs. The Pontevedra is a unique T-Strap pump that features a distinctive stitched heel and an exposed platform highlighted by vibrant striated color blocking. The pump's T-Strap incorporates a cable-stay bridge design with light cutouts up the T-strap vamp of the shoe.










I was in Payless this weekend and opted for a pair of wedges.