Anas, tell us how you came up with the idea of using elements of Arabic calligraphy in women's shoe collections?
I must say that this is one of the first and far from the last elements that I borrowed from the Arab culture when creating my collections. In the learning process, I studied the art of calligraphy for a long time. I really liked it and like it. But one day, I was walking along Madison Avenue with my friends, and noted that many fashion houses use Chinese and Japanese characters in their collections. It hit me, and I thought, why not use the rich heritage that Arab artists and calligraphers left us. It is so beautiful! And I started working on my first collection, right after returning from New York to Jordan, where I live today. I decided that I should convey in shoes the feeling of henna patterns on arms and legs traditional for the countries of the East, some ornaments more similar to tattoos. From here appeared shoes embossed in thin leather and suede. In my opinion, it turned out pretty well.
Your shoes, sandals and sandals look not just unusual, but also somewhat exotic, I would say. Who do you think will buy them here at Bloomingdale's gallery in the first place?
It seems to me that my shoes will equally suit both a resident of an eastern country and a European woman. In addition to ornate ornaments, I offer in my collections fashionable high heels and platforms today, ultra-light and very soft leather and suede, beautiful colors. Moreover, all suede shoes have a special surface treatment “metallic”, which creates a feeling of “star dust”. In summer shoes, I used very interesting color combinations - beige with pink, black with blue, as well as warm and delicate mono colors, including daring red. So, no doubt, any woman will be able to choose the model that is ideal for her.
When you create your shoes, what is your priority - comfort or a fashionable look?
Fashionable look! For the sake of beauty, any woman is ready to climb the highest heel, even if it is not the most comfortable. Of course, with such a component as the convenience of shoe pads, you can work additionally, but if the shoes are unfashionable, then let it be super-comfortable, a real woman will never buy it. But I’ll tell you honestly, all my shoes are incredibly comfortable, no complaints from customers about her have been received. All my shoes are made in the best factories in Italy. Moreover, I am one of the shoe makers of the royal family of Jordan, and that says a lot.
What are the most fashionable shoe trends this summer, in your opinion?
Honestly, I do not pay much attention to general trends, as I create my own. If we talk about my collections, this summer I offer a lot of suede with a metallic effect, which I mentioned earlier, various types of soft leather with pronounced textures. I do not like to work with thick and smooth skin, because it is difficult to achieve the desired effect.
Anas, are you going to expand production, and what should we expect to see this fall? You will not offer ladies autumn boots "in the hole"?
No, I want my shoes to remain in their niche and do not plan to do mass production. In the end, when at one party two women are put on the same shoes - this is not very good. Better all my collections be limited. For the fall, I am preparing an interesting line of shoes, boots and half boots, which will also carry elements of traditional Arabic folk crafts, but already, you are right, “in the hole”, that is, they will not be decorated with perforations. I have in my arsenal a lot of other decorative techniques that, I believe, will be able to surprise customers. By the way, I really hope that among the fans of my shoes there will be Russian women. I heard that they are well versed in fashion and love beautiful clothes and shoes.
Thanks for the conversation, Anas. I wish you success.
