Babi Bello
Interview
Samantha Magana was able to interview Brazillian Shoe Designer Babi Bello! Check it out!
Babi Bello - My whole life I loved fashion and particularly shoes, always wanting to
design and create beautiful shoes. I
moved to New York City and started working for Kenneth Cole as an assistant
designer, which is where I started the path into making my dream of designing
come true. I have never looked back!
The Monkey's Spoon - What inspired you to get into
shoe design?
Babi Bello - I find shoes to be the centre of fashion – after all, it’s the shoes
that make the outfit! The same pair of
shoes can be worn to so many different occasions and with many different
outfits, always changing to fit the mood!
The Monkey's Spoon - What makes your shoes special?
Babi Bello - Each pair I design is a combustion of colour, leathers and inspiration! I try to make each one a statement shoe that
will add colour and fun to every occasion!
The designs are fresh and edgy, and the leathers are premium South
American leathers. We manufacture in
Brazil, which is known as one of the best shoe manufacturing countries in the
world.
The Monkey's Spoon - What do you enjoy most about
designing?
Babi Bello - I enjoy the whole process of creating something and seeing it go from my
first hand sketches on a piece of paper to the final product on a foot. But
what I enjoy the most is the thought
that I have created something which will give someone happiness and make them
feel great!
The Monkey's Spoon - What’s the most challenging
part?
Babi Bello - Deciding what colours, leathers, fabrics to detail each shoe in is
definitely the most challenging! I have
so many different ideas and visions of
how each design could look like that having to detail each shoe in just 2 or 3
different colourways is just so hard!
The Monkey's Spoon - who’s your most influential
fashion designer?
Babi Bello - There’s a few different ones…I love Galliano for his eccentricity and
creativity; I love Tom Ford for his extreme sophistication and sense of
fashion; and I love Bettsy Johnson for just being so out there and wild!
The Monkey's Spoon - Does your work reflect your
personal fashion taste?? Can you describe your style?
Babi Bello - I think in a way, one’s designs will always reflect the designer’s
personal fashion taste in one way or another, no matter how small it may
be. You want to design for the customer,
but in a way your wn personality comes out.
My style is colourful, fun and experimental, but always with at least
one foot on the ground!
The Monkey's Spoon - What fabric do you use in your
collection?
Babi Bello - I only use premium South American leathers. Occasionally I will use some linen &
raffia wraps on the heels and wedges, mostly for the summer collections when I
want to add a bit of lightness to the design.
The Monkey's Spoon - What’s your favorite season for
fashion?
Babi Bello - I love summer, because I think that’s when most people have more fun
with what they are wearing and are willing to experiment much more with their
outfits, colours and styles. That gives
me much more freedom as to what I can design.
The Monkey's Spoon - Do you try to send out a
message in your collection?
Babi Bello - Every collection has a different theme, which is based on the trends
happening in the fashion and footwear worlds, as well what’s inspiring me at
the moment. But in general – the message
I want to give in every collection is of fun, vibrancy, colour and life!
The Monkey's Spoon - What do you feel sets your
brand apart from the top designer shoe brands?
Babi Bello - Our fresh & edgy designs make our brand quite unique…however, we try
to set ourselves apart from other top designers by always being experimental
with the colour combinations, finishes we execute on our leathers and the
different materials we combine in every design to make each pair of shoes a
statement shoe for our customers. We
want every pair of shoes to stand out on its own and make our customers happy
and feel that they can go anywhere with them!
The Monkey's Spoon - How many different sizes?]
Babi Bello - Our sizes range from (European) 36 – 41.
The Monkey's Spoo - If you had the choice of all
designers in the world to work with/for, whom with that be and why/
Babi Bello - It would be one of the designers I listed previously as they all offer
so much for me to learn from, particularly their experience.
The Monkey's Spoon - Knowing what you know today,
would you do it all again?
Babi Bello - Yes, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I am “shoe-y” through and
through!
The Monkey's Spoon - Do you have any future plans
for your fashion collection?
Babi Bello - In terms of design, my plans are to keep on designing fresh and colourful
shoes that make every customer excited to wear our shoes. For my brand, we are
now expanding into other countries, with our first summer collection hitting
American soil shortly.
The monkey's Spoon - What advice would you give to
an up- and -coming shoe designer?
Babi Bello - Stick to it,
persevere and never give up! Stay true
to yourself and your ideas, but remember to always listen to what the customers
are telling you and pay attention to what’s going on around you as well as the
ideas in your head. In the end, you’re designing for other people, so listen
to what they are telling you.
A little bit more about Babi Bello.
Born in Brazil, educated in Miami, and trained in New York City, designing for Kenneth Cole & developing for Macy’s NY, Babi was headhunted for a major Australian retailer in 2006.
Not many can claim ownership to being a shoe designer, and hence Babi Bello was created! After 10 years at the cutting edge of the ladies footwear industry, Babi has now kicked off her own independent shoe label showcasing fashion forward women’s shoes handcrafted in Brazil from premium South American leathers. After all, if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere, right?!
The self-titled brand, which started in Australia last year, is bold, confident & delivers high quality leathers, finishes & sexy styling.
Whilst always drawing on her professional background & technical training, Babi’s collections are inspired by global trends, her zest for life and her years living in the fashion meccas of Rio, Miami and New York City. The result is fabulous shoes that are unique, well fitted & styled to perfection!
Babi’s designs come to life at the hands of expert Brazilian shoe makers in the South of Brazil. Italian, Spanish and German immigrants have for generations plied their trade in this region and have helped make Brazil globally renowned for quality handcrafted shoes.
With Babi’s eye for trends and design expertise, Babi Bello shoes ooze confidence and are sure to make the outfit!
…Because it’s ALWAYS about the shoes…
http://www.babibello.com
Thanks Cityblis.com
A little bit more about Babi Bello.
Born in Brazil, educated in Miami, and trained in New York City, designing for Kenneth Cole & developing for Macy’s NY, Babi was headhunted for a major Australian retailer in 2006.
Not many can claim ownership to being a shoe designer, and hence Babi Bello was created! After 10 years at the cutting edge of the ladies footwear industry, Babi has now kicked off her own independent shoe label showcasing fashion forward women’s shoes handcrafted in Brazil from premium South American leathers. After all, if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere, right?!
The self-titled brand, which started in Australia last year, is bold, confident & delivers high quality leathers, finishes & sexy styling.
Whilst always drawing on her professional background & technical training, Babi’s collections are inspired by global trends, her zest for life and her years living in the fashion meccas of Rio, Miami and New York City. The result is fabulous shoes that are unique, well fitted & styled to perfection!
Babi’s designs come to life at the hands of expert Brazilian shoe makers in the South of Brazil. Italian, Spanish and German immigrants have for generations plied their trade in this region and have helped make Brazil globally renowned for quality handcrafted shoes.
With Babi’s eye for trends and design expertise, Babi Bello shoes ooze confidence and are sure to make the outfit!
…Because it’s ALWAYS about the shoes…
http://www.babibello.com
Thanks Cityblis.com
