Hasta La Ideas

One of my favorite designers, Melody Ehsani, has just dropped her latest shoe collection, now available at Karmaloop.com. The LA based designer has a knack for designing and creating eye-catching footwear. Web-exclusive to her own site and Karmaloop.com, Ehsani’s collection offers a fantastic line of shoes, featuring bold, flashy pieces that have caught the attention of many celebrities. Ehsani has just recently collaborated with fellow designer Richie Rich on a new collection, and has also partnered up with singer Keri Hilson, producing her merchandise for her tour with Lil Wayne. The designer has a strong belief in her inner power as woman, which has allowed her to challenge the status quo and conventional norms. Through her line, she pushes other daring women to overcome barriers and shed any weight of uncertainty about themselves. The Melody Ehsani customer believes in self-expression, independence, and women loving fashion for themselves because of the way it makes them feel. The collection yields nothing short of quality high-fashion products that are stunning, comfortable and affordable. Peep the ‘Love Stinks’ heel and the ‘Javier’ heel and join Ehsani in her fight to upset the equilibrium!

I remember my very first Lacoste experience. I wore one of their polos to my first day of kindergarten (yes, I was way ahead of my time). I was so proud of the shirt that I went up to my teacher and said with boyish excitement, “Look! I have a crocodile on my shirt!” Fast forward to today and I still get excited when I don one of their polos. I go up to total strangers on the street and say with boyish excitement, “Look! I have a crocodile on my shirt!” In any matter, the crocodile has become synonymous with the savvy sportswear brand since Rene Lacoste started it over 75 years ago. To celebrate Lacoste’s chic crocodile, they have created a collection of shoes that cleverly incorporates mythologies associated with crocodiles all around the world. The Ogata India is inspired by Hindu temple motifs and tells the ancient myth of the Hindu philosopher Shankara and his relationship with the Mugger Crocodile. The Tennis Polynesia uses rich brown tones of the New Guinea Crocodile and wood carvings of the Nuga, a half man half crocodile that is associated with the creation of the world. The urban legend of monstrous crocodiles in the sewers of New York City are showcased in the street-chic Revan 3 NYC, and the Rene Lacoste Japan (my personal favorite) tells the story of a blind men who was left to drown by his cruel sons via a gorgeous crocodile skin print upper inspired from traditional Japanese silk kimono. The other styles in the limited collection are created from crocodile mythologies from South Africa, Egypt, West Africa and Brazil. See some pics of the collection in the slideshow, then read more about these crocodile myths at www.lacostecrocmyths.com.

Like funky footwear? Then its time to discover LD Tuttle shoes. Tastemakers like Natalia Vodianova and Mary-Kate Olsen have already been seen sporting the avant-garde shoes all over town. Designed by Tiffany Tuttle out of her Los Angeles studio, the line has been a fashion favorite for a few seasons now, and Tuttle’s designed shoes for RVCA by Erin Wasson and VPL by Victoria Bartlett. The Ivy League-schooled designer decided to pursue fashion and went back to school for a graduate degree from FIT. Working for Givenchy in Paris and then for Rebecca Taylor, she realized her love of shoes and jetted off to Milan to learn the craft. As a former ballet dancer, she understands and has studied the shape of the leg and arch of the foot that helps her create the most flattering shoe possible. Now she turns out shoes that have a raw yet refined tough girl edge. The spring collection will meld perfectly with the season’s tough-chic fashions, or punk up even the most prim of dresses. I’m just dying to get my hands on the ‘spectre’ open toe boot. Check out the slideshow to see which LD Tuttle shoes are your favorites!

As a nostalgic ’80s and ’90s baby, I’ve always looked back at wearing