Seeing Red: The Christian Louboutin Legacy

10,000 years ago, deep in the caves of Oregon, early man produced the world's first pair of shoes. The ancient shoes, made of woven bark, were nothing more than a shield from the elements. Tens of thousands of centuries later and halfway around the world, a young boy by the name of Christian Louboutin wandered into a gentleman's night club in Paris and witnessed female nudity for the first time. Awestruck and enamored, the nude female form became Louboutin's inspiration behind one of the biggest fashion empires to date.

During his teenage years, Louboutin often drew women's shoes in his notebooks during school. Then, in 1979, he saw a billboard in Paris for the Oceanic Museum of Art. The billboard banned women's stilettos from the museum, and Louboutin fixated on the sign's 50s iconic image. As a result, he began to draw shoes with soft soles and smaller buckles, much like the ones he drew in his school notebooks.

Louboutin sought higher learning from the design schools of Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent. He initially worked at the universities, and then began working for Roger Vivier in 1988. While working for Vivier, Louboutin realized that his calling was to create women's shoes. He worked as a landscaper for three years but returned to the fashion industry in 1992 with his own line of shoes. The solo artist created classic, timeless footwear that enabled women to reach bold new heights.

Louboutin first tried offering his shoes to women at parties, but the women claimed that the shoes were too expensive or that they had no money. Not to be deterred, he soon opened his first store, offering free coffee to his often-wealthy shoppers. Before long, retail giants like Neiman Marcus and American began to carry his designs as well. One evening, during a runway show, he realized that his shoes were incomplete. He spotted an employee's red Chanel nail polish, and painted the soles of his footwear. The red sole still remains the trademark of the high-end shoes. Today, Louboutin has designed and opened 5 stores in the Unites States and several more boutiques across the globe.

Ten different hands touch each hand-made shoe. Louboutin sees a shoe as a human face, insisting upon the perfect proportion and proximity. Adornments are only additions, he has said, and they will never create the perfection but rather enhance it. Several years ago, Louboutin produced a bridal variation of his footwear, which featured blue soles. But due to trademark issues, he had to stop making them. His most expensive product was one that he created for a man and wife. The soles were encrusted with rubies, and their sole purpose was for the wife to wear them in the marital bed. One of his more notable styles, called "inseparables," was born in the early nineties. The sought-after flats featured a left shoe with the letters "LO," and a right shoe with the letters "VE."

Louboutin's work has achieved prominent notoriety within the media. Oprah Winfrey instantly became a fan of the shoes after seeing them in Tina Turner's dressing room, describing the shoes as "little pieces of sculpture." Musicians from Madonna to Carrie Underwood are fans, and Actresses Angelina Jolie and Nicole Kidman wear them as well. The rich and famous from Japan, Jordan and the United Kingdom also pay homage, while the average and anonymous can show support in the form of a Christian Louboutin manicure - a black manicure with red undersides. Even museums have constructed galleries to showcase the fancy French footwear.

Shoes have come a long way since their birth 10,000 years ago. No longer are shoes solely a means of protection. They make a statement, and the Christian Louboutin collection is no exception. From his creative beginnings in grade school to the fashion empire he oversees, his designs remain a step ahead of the rest. So much so, that fans of the sensational soles are often seeing red. Louboutin once said, "Designing my shoes, I'm thinking timeless. Not trendy." He spoke with eloquence and truth. The Christian Louboutin legacy is here to stay.

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