The more time I spend working in media and fashion, the more I learn to appreciate the work that goes into designing and creating the works of art that we shoot; be it poofy wedding gowns from local designers, cute workwear that has heart and soul put into it, or even shoes. What gets commendable is when people behind these businesses have a cause to help the earth and communities, when it’s so easy to throw everything into a lifeless factory in China to do all your work.
Such is the case of Moscow-based designer Meher Kakalia. I met the lovely Meher in Ellis Street in London in one of the stores where she stocks her gorgeous line of shoes and accessories, and we went for coffee after that.
I learnt that Meher set up a workshop in her hometown of Karachi and hired craftsmen who could revisit the Pakistani art of traditional shoemaking. Shoes are hand-stitched together to make sure that they last a really long time – and that the worksmen don’t breathe in nasty fumes from glue that people usually use to make shoes. And the result of that? Comfortable, breathtaking shoes that are classics – and trust me, what a big difference it makes when you slip your feet into a well-made pair of footwear.
Aside from how pretty it is, and how soft the lambskin is, I love the fact that the shoes fold up, and is stored in such cute bag:
