“Austin-based cobbler determined to mix style and comfort - Austin American-Statesman” plus 2 more |
- Austin-based cobbler determined to mix style and comfort - Austin American-Statesman
- Eastview Mall to get a Naartjie Kids clothing store - Democrat and Chronicle
- 'Day Without Shoes' raises awareness - Memphis Commercial Appeal
| Austin-based cobbler determined to mix style and comfort - Austin American-Statesman Posted: 28 May 2010 01:23 AM PDT By Becca Hensley SPECIAL TO THE AMERICAN-STATESMAN Amanda Dimova claims she spent most of her childhood barefoot. That makes sense: Her parents, after all, were shoemakers. You know the saying: The cobbler's kids wear no shoes. But in this case, those shoemaking parents — the owners and creators of Brownwood-based Bear Feet shoes, an all-natural children's shoe company — did their artistic offspring a favor. They immersed her in a world of shoes. If she wasn't wearing shoes, then Dimova was, at least, surrounded by them — and by leather scraps, sewing machines, patterns, glue guns and all the accoutrements of creativity. She wasn't allowed to touch the sewing machines, but her father gave her a pack of hand sewing needles early on. "They were very thick, with triple-edged slicing tips, made to pierce the leather," she says. Armed with remnants, she sewed all sorts of coin pouches, cat toys and doll clothing. Then, at around age 12, she produced her first pair of shoes: "They had cardboard soles and scrap uppers. I decorated them with leaves." Redolent of the bloom of her first creations, Dimova's new handcrafted shoe brand — known as Dimovi — hit stores last month. Hoping to redefine women's footwear, Dimova designs and produces shoes that manage to be beautiful and comfortable all at once. Girly and chic, her sandals and flats pass seamlessly (and blister-free) from morning to evening, from school conferences to cocktail-hour events. Not teetering sculptural shoes or instruments of toe-pinching torture, Dimovi shoes are nonetheless stylish and hip. Modeled in graceful, flattering contours, they boast spongy insoles and easily adjustable straps. Dimova guarantees you can walk in her shoes — for miles. And she promises you'll look smashing doing it. Austin-based, twentysomething Dimova didn't always want to be a cobbler, but shoes had a way of tying her to their bootstraps — so to speak. As a child, her first job was folding shoe boxes to earn her allowance. She couldn't resist playing with the hot glue gun she had been told never to touch — and, of course, burned her leg badly. Eventually, she started crafting leather jewelry from scraps, then reworked the patterns to create shoes and handbags. When her mother asked her last year to take over the Bear Feet brand and to rev up the kid colors and styles, Dimova consented, but saw the door open for her own designs and the creation of her big-girl brand, Dimovi. Just as Bear Feet made its mark with all-natural footwear that focused equally on comfort and cuteness, the Dimovi line follows suit. Both brands use natural rubber soles from the Hevea tree. Uppers consist only of ethical leather products, or in some cases, natural fiber fabrics. Neither brand uses plastic lasts for shaping. This allows the wearer to shape the shoes to their feet, rather than the other — sometimes painful — way around. "The shoes sculpt and customize themselves as we wear them," she explains. Dimova and her staff cut the patterns from raw materials and create the shoes to order. With the help of some of the same machines that crank out Prada and Gucci, Dimovi shoes are made in the long-revered Italian tradition — and look the part. Marked by a unique serial, each pair of shoes arrives in a handmade wooden shoe box. While Dimova admits that her artistic influences tend to hail from modernism and the pop art world (she's a big fan of Christo and Jeanne-Claude, for example) and that some of her best ideas are born during episodes of "Blue Planet," most of all she is an artist who celebrates whimsy. "Lives are not at stake when I make shoes," she says, noting that many of her designs begin as the shape of an animal she reveres — like the hammerhead shark. Other shoes resemble flowering vines that swirl around the feet. Simpler ones might be knotted ropes or perhaps deconstructed vintage versions of a flapper-era boot turned into a sandal. Before Dimovi, she had a closet full of shoes but often went barefoot. "I wanted a sexy, flat sandal, pretty enough to wear out but with enough grip to keep me from falling while chasing around my kids," she said. "People who like my shoes know Manolo Blahniks and Jimmy Choos are really just more expensive, uncomfy shoes," she said. "People who love Dimovi understand that the shoe defines the outfit." Dimova, dressed simply in jeans and a tee, but wearing a spectacular pair of multicolored sandals and carrying a white, patent leather handbag (yes, she makes purses, too), summarily proves her point. Kicking up her feet, she says: "Almost as good as going barefoot." Five Filters featured article: The Art of Looking Prime Ministerial - The 2010 UK General Election. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction. |
| Eastview Mall to get a Naartjie Kids clothing store - Democrat and Chronicle Posted: 28 May 2010 10:05 AM PDT A new children's store is opening at Eastview Mall in Victor. Naartjie (nar-chee) Kids, a popular children's clothing store founded in Cape Town, South Africa, plans a 984-square-foot store in the Sears wing of the mall next to Yankee Candle and Auction Direct. The Eastview outlet, planned for a mid- to late-August opening, will be the first for the chain in upstate New York. Naartjie sells clothing, shoes and accessories for children from newborn through age 10. Naartjie clothes are known for their colorful palette. The new store is the latest in a raft of summer changes at Eastview. The cosmetics retailer Bare Escentuals will open in the mall on June 25, followed by the apparel store Buckle on July 8 and L.L. Bean on July 9. Pandora, Beauty Plus Salon and Friendly's Express also plan summer openings at the mall. Also, the clothing store Cache has moved from its spot near the food court to the Macy's wing. A grand opening is planned this Saturday. Wet Seal is being remodeled and has moved to a temporary location in the Bon-Ton wing. The renovated apparel store is expected to open in mid-July. Five Filters featured article: The Art of Looking Prime Ministerial - The 2010 UK General Election. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction. |
| 'Day Without Shoes' raises awareness - Memphis Commercial Appeal Posted: 28 May 2010 08:03 AM PDT 
ECS students (from left) Brent Rooker of Germantown; Mary Grace Murphy of Memphis; Nick Wiseman of Cordova; Allison Pfund of Cordova; Haley Hauss of Byhalia, Miss.; and Morgan Dudley of Millington, went shoeless for a day in the "Day Without Shoes" event. The purpose of the event is to raise awareness about the thousands of children across the globe who do not have shoes. The student body at Evangelical Christian School participated in the national "Day Without Shoes" movement to bring awareness to those countries whose children must go on a daily basis with no shoes. In some of these developing nations the children must walk barefoot for miles to attend school, to access clean water and to seek medical attention. Many students who pledged to participate in going without shoes all day thought that it would be fun and comfortable. "After the first hour, I wanted my shoes," said Chelsea Gurene of Collierville. "The ground was cold and my feet were getting cold." Dawn Shute, the faculty adviser, believes that this experience opened the eyes of many to a side of the world that these kids have never considered. More than 250,000 people participated in more than 1,600 events worldwide. Brent Rooker of Germantown quickly realized that some areas of campus are just not "feet friendly," such as the bathrooms and cafeteria. For Cordova's Parker Threadgill, the event was an eye-opening experience. "I was given the chance to go without something that I never thought was a blessing before a 'Day Without Shoes,' " Parker said. "Every time I put my shoes on now, I do think how fortunate I am." Patricia L. Littrell is the assistant director of admissions for ECS. Five Filters featured article: The Art of Looking Prime Ministerial - The 2010 UK General Election. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction. |
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