My online portfolio: Malotke Designs.
Showing posts with label Shoes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shoes. Show all posts

Monday, February 20, 2017

Shoes & Flowers

Shoes and Flowers


Shoes and Flowers by brimalotke 

I love oxfords/brogues/
loafers/ and any form of these classic styles. When I was in London studying abroad at the London College of fashion I took a Shoe Design class where I focused on looking more into men's shoes and working between a balance of femininity and masculinity. I designed a line of men's shoes inspired by the story "The Princess & The Pea." I love the blending of structure (typically associated with masculinity) and flowing lines (in this case the floral details or touches or colors). I am loving these combinations in the shoes pictured above. I may be rambling, but these styles are just classic and perfect for any wardrobe. You could pair them with jeans, a button down, and a blazer for a more professional yet casual look. Or you could try a tailored dress, sweater, and fun jewelry for a more dressed up style. Really, to me, the limits are endless and could work for any different style.

Thursday, February 16, 2017

For the Love of Stripes

Stripes
Stripes by brimalotke

I'm never entirely sure what my so called style type is but I do know one thing, it includes a lot of stripes. I recently snagged an amazing job opportunity (YAY!) and it's a more professional setting than my current employment. It needs business casual attire and every now and then I'll need more business dress as well. While some may think "Oh man I have to give up jeans and a flannel for chiffon and khakis," I'm super excited. There is a whole section of my closet that never see the light of day and I can't wait to explore the way to pair my fashion sense with the typical business wear. As of now I have about 4 button down tops that are various combinations of black and white and would work perfectly with dress pants or a nice skirt. It's weird to think how easily and excitedly I am to give up super casual dress to dress up but I am really looking forward to it. 

Plus... I just bought a new padfolio and while I was originally thinking pink, my boyfriend pointed out it wouldn't be me unless it was black and white striped. So of course I found and purchased a black and white striped padfolio. Just one way to incorporate how I like to express myself with fashion into this new realm of employment. I think I'm ready to conquer any business meeting or future business adventure. :)

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Getting Funky with Displays

I figured I would add some more pictures of displays I've done at work. I'll add some of the walls I've decorated (which have multiple mannequins compared to just doing the outfit of the day one) when I get a chance to snag some neat pictures. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to just take the pictures off the Instagram account or not so I'm going to ask first and then I'll do some posts about the work I do for the shop's Instagram account & posting for them.
For the look on the left I wanted to do a larger size despite the mannequins being basically a size 0. So I pulled the printed long sleeve dress from the larger sizes, added an XL pink fur vest, and then focused on accessories. I wanted a little bit of shine with 2 simple necklaces and then another pattern & texture with the silver snakeskin clutch. The heels are plain black but lace up and have cool cut outs.


For the look on the right I really wanted to do something more "funky" than before. I chose a long sleeve maroon velvet leotard that has a deep v down the front with strips across. Then found a great pair of textured skinny leg trouser pants to go with the leotard. I decided on all black for accessories since the leotard is bright and the pants have many colors in them. I topped the look off with a loose blazer, black and gold purse, and platform oxfords. I'm probably going to end up buying the shoes because I am in love with them. I own a silver pair but these are too cool to miss out on owning and wearing.

A close up of the shoes!

New Year New Outfit Goals


One of the things I've decided to work on this year is dressing up a little bit more for work. Whether it's actually wearing the shoes I own (I tend to wear the same 2 pairs to work because I know they won't hurt my feet after 8 hours) or trying to add a little lipstick and jewelry to my "basic" look of jeans and a flannel. 
Pictured above is one of my more creative outfits. It's a long sleeve cotton black dress paired with very bold floral printed leggings and a pair of teal suede oxford flats. I also wore black/white striped earrings and bright pink lipstick. It was pretty dreary outside so this look helped me stay positive at work and feel pretty confident as well. Hopefully I'll start actually getting some decent photos of my own looks to post and write about.

Thursday, December 8, 2016

Dressing Mannequins at Work

When I open at my work I usually get to redress the main mannequin that we use as our "Outfit of the Day." It's what we use to showcase a cool look and then we post it to the Instagram. A lot of the time I do outfits I would wear so it brings variety to the store since each of us that works there has our own sense of style. Mine is a little bit of everything but I think it works pretty well. Most of the time I start my look by picking out the shoes and then going from there to construct the rest of the outfit. If there's something I've been debating about buying for myself I try to include it in the hopes that someone will see it and buy it (thus saving me money and room in my already very full closet). I've been doing this for a while but it's only been recently that I thought, "You know, I should be documenting these looks." I wasn't sure what to do with them, but it is a good idea of visual merchandising and styling so why not take a few pictures for records. The following are all the looks for the Outfit of the Day that I've done since I've been taking pictures of them.



For the first one I loved these black boots even though they're ridiculously tall for me to justify them as a reasonable purchase. I went from there using a two tone denim and a cozy striped top. You can't see the back of it but the back opens up and is a black and white polka dot. Then I chose a grey denim button up and a silver skull necklace to add layers. I really liked the mixing of materials (of course!) and the simple color scheme.



For this look I did choose the jacket first. I saw it, was disappointed it's too small for me, and then proceeded to think up a look that would be perfect for a more casual holiday dinner or party. The look consists of a funky  embroidered jacket, maroon cotton and lace long sleeve, and a pair of boyfriend jeans. For the accessories I chose a shiny black tote, cut out oxford flats, and a multi strand pearl necklace. I figured it was comfortable and casual, but still fun with the colors and printed jacket. 

This look is very me :) I wanted to pull from our "Mad for Plaid" wall and create something that someone shopping might not have considered putting together in a look. I started off with the black and white striped turtleneck and then snagged a pair of grey denim jeans with details on the knees. I paired it with a red and black checkered short sleeve jacket, 90s reminiscent black ankle boots, a BCBG black handbag, and a pair of white rimmed glasses. I really enjoy mixing patterns and I think this is a really good example of that.

Here's a look where I started with the shoes (my size and practical!) and then created a look around them. It's difficult to see the details at the neck but I started with a black and white gingham button up sleeveless top and then layered a sleeveless cotton dress over it that says "Aimer C'est Vivre" (To love is to live). Then I chose a comfy green cardigan for warmth and color and a silver and white necklace to top it all off. I figured someone would pair the look with leggings or tights to stay warm with the winter season.
Lastly, is my most recent look that is a little more funky. The buyers did a mall visit a few weeks ago and we were supposed to be deciding on what trends we saw that we thought would be most popular and what we should be watching for to buy or not to buy. I did start with the red suede shoes for this look but then I decided to go with some of the trends we were seeing in the other stores to create the rest of the look. The boyfriend jeans have a lot of patchwork and embroidery and the top has some sequined patches. I chose the red bomber jacket because we saw them everywhere and I thought the color was a perfect match for the ankle boots. To finish it off I chose a small rectangular cross-body in a neutral brown. It's not something I would probably wear together (I love the boots and jeans) but it pulled the trends we've been seeing together and it's a great color combination. Plus someone bought the jacket too!

I enjoy dressing the mannequins at work and I hope I'll be bale to keep creating some neat looks that work for the store and that I can write about at the same time.

Wednesday, July 6, 2016

Reverie & Shoes

Forever dreaming. Dreaming of sunshine and beautiful places. Dreaming of travels and friends. Dreaming in French of adventures not yet taken and of experiences waiting to happen. Dreaming. Dreaming. Dreaming. Hoping that someday, at some point, they'll come true. Dreaming and hoping that I'll soon be practicing my French with native speakers and sipping coffee while enjoying a fresh baked pastry from a colorful patisserie with friends. Dreaming so much that I'll just have to find a way to make them all true. Forever dreaming.

For the French (hopefully correct in grammar) version of my poem, scroll down and read the red version.
Reverie & Shoes
Rêvant toujours.
Rêver de soleil et de beaux endroits.
Rêvant d' voyages et amis. Rêvant en français d'aventures pas encore prises et d'expériences en attente de se produire.
Rêver. Rêver. Rêver.
En espérant qu'un jour, à un moment donné, ils se réaliseront.
Rêvant et en espérant que je vais bientôt pratiquais mon français avec des locuteurs natifs et en sirotant du café tout en dégustant une pâtisserie frais cuit une pâtisserie colorée avec mes amis. Rêvant tellement que je vais devoir trouver un moyen de les rendre tout à fait vrai. Rêvant toujours.

Monday, April 4, 2016

Senior Collection: Finished!

Pictured L/R: Tim, Eric, Sarah, Gabby, Brianna (Me), Dairius, Megan, Kevin, Greg.

On Saturday, April 2nd, I showed my senior collection at 11am and 3pm. My song was Lydia by Highly Suspect and my choreography was pretty simple. During the song Gabby would untie her skirt from around her waist transferring her look from a short draped dress to a floor length evening gown look. I have a few really awesome shots of her in action that I will post soon.

Overall I loved my collection. I got really lucky and my models were amazing people. They were always attentive, on time, excited, eager, good listeners, just the whole nine yards of awesomeness. They also all got along really well, which helped me because I was never stressing out about them or their looks. They all had the same eye makeup for the show, but the girls had red lips while the guys had their lips look as though they were sewn shut. I felt that without hair and makeup and accessories, the outfits could go very punk or very prim and proper. Which is one thing I loved about my looks. Drawing inspiration from bands like My Chemical Romance and then from the classic looks of French tailoring. I really liked playing with accessories and makeup to get the full effect. I like to think my models would make awesome characters in a MCR music video.

My aim was to have the guys have really similar styling but they little differences. For example, they all have different patterned socks and Dairius has a hat to add more black into his look. I wanted the girls to all be different with their styling. For the red and black dress I chose a simple gold ring and a men's pocket square to tie around her wrist. She also got black thigh highs with bows and black ankle boots. Gabby's look had a lot of patterns and my head piece I made in London, so I chose simple black triangle earrings and black heels reminiscent of the Spice Girls style. Megan's look has a Harley Quinn feel to it so I gave her one white glove and some black and white striped earrings. Her heels are cutesy with the t-strap and little black bows, but they're covered in gold spikes for a more dangerous vibe. I am in love with how everything turned out and I can't imagine changing any of it. 

When I get the more professional pictures I'll post those, especially the action shots!

Fashion Show Shenanigans in Photos

Close up of Gabby's makeup.
One of my lovely models getting her
hair done in a faux Mohawk style.
 

Some of my guy models waiting
for their pictures to be taken.


A detail shot of Eric's black and white plaid trousers,
 striped socks, and punk shoes. 

Ready for the show!
Makeup inspiration was from the band
My Chemical Romance when they did
their "The Black Parade" album.

Model & Designer 

All lined up and ready for the show to start!
For the runway they would be entering from altering sides (left/right).
So the first 4 models in line enter from the left and
the second group of 4 enter from the right.

Friday, February 12, 2016

Shoe Love

Shoe Love

Loving the glittery shoes and how fun they can make any outfit!

More to come soon!

Monday, February 1, 2016

Decisions Made: Men's Shoes

Dairius modeling the shoes.
While putting my senior collection together, I've decided to take a more punk rock turn and move away from the polished and sophisticated route my collection was headed. I picked out hair and makeup to help ease my collection further into a punk rock vibe along with my music choice, Lydia by Highly Suspect.
One of the big things that was keeping my collection more polished was the men's shoes. Originally I was going to have them all wear their own black dress shoes, however, when I looked at fit pictures after the break it just didn't seem right. After a while, I considered getting converse for all the guys (5 male models) but I was pretty hesitant in making a final decision. When I discovered these black canvas shoes online at H&M on sale I just went for it. 
I'm pretty happy with the results and they all fit the models- which is pretty great since 2 guys had to go down a half size so that I could order the shoes. I can't wait for all their looks to come together. I'm still pretty positive that I don't want to be an apparel designer and that I'd much rather go into costume design or writing, but I'm having fun with my collection and that's what matters.

Friday, July 31, 2015

Sunday, July 5, 2015

Dark Floral Shoes

Dark Floral Shoes

Dark Floral Shoes by brimalotke

Interested in shoes? Love trying new looks? Want to spice up your wardrobe?

Check out my article on fashionamag, "Dark Floral."

Thursday, July 2, 2015

Dino Shoes

Dino Shoes

Dino Shoes by brimalotke


I saw "Jurassic World" in theaters a couple weeks ago and loved it! While working on some sets on polyvore for articles for Fashion A Magazine I came across some awesome dinosaur related pieces. I decided to chose various shades of green shoes to use for the set. I love the variety of green and style of shoe. Enjoy!

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Parisian Pastels

Parisian Pastels

Parisian Pastels by brimalotke featuring platform sandals


I am a huge fan of pastels & Paris, especially the architecture of all of the buildings in the city. When I created this image I started off with the picture of the cafe and then chose pastel shoes to show off. I wanted a little variety, but I stuck with blues and purples for three pairs and the the fourth is the one with flowers-the only one that has multiple pastel colors. I didn't want the colors to be all over the place so I tried to narrow them down. I love pastels and I think these are some great options for footwear. Pastels are one of those things that is just a staple for spring, like floral prints, the only changes are the more popular colors for the season.

Floral Adventures

Floral Adventures


Floral Adventures by brimalotke

If you're interested in floral prints and staying up to date, check out my 1st article on fashionamag!