John Derian – the New York-based designer whose sought-after découpage objets can be found in London’s Liberty and Pentreath & Hall – has collaborated with Stubbs & Wootton, the purveyors of handmade slippers, lending his graphic imagery to footwear.
Stubbs & Wootton’s owner Percy Steinhart approached Derian about a possible partnership after becoming intrigued by Derian’s collages on Instagram. “I sent them a collage and they turned it into embroidery,” says Derian. The resulting slipper-style shoe collection introduces six styles of velvet slip-ons embellished with Derian’s colourful imagery – from botanical illustrations to romantic florals and vintage prints – all of which are priced $650 per pair and are available to pre-order now for delivery in late January.
“It’s a little bit of a departure for me,” says Derian of the designs, which were narrowed down from a set of 50 collages originally presented to the company. The collection also takes Stubbs & Wootton in a new direction – it is best known for motifs ranging from preppy monograms and crests to quirky lipsticks, martini glasses, marijuana leaves and palm trees (the company is based in Palm Beach, Florida).
Four styles will be stocked in Stubbs & Wootton’s two stores (in New York and Palm Beach) as well as online, but two designs in the collection – the Audubon Hunter and Swallows Navy – will be made-to-order only. The shoes are handcrafted in Spain, lined and soled in leather and have a 1.9cm heel.
