Tartan Upper Street wedding shoes

Scottish bride, Lianne, wanted a wedding shoe that reflected her Scottish heritge and the location of her wedding, just outside Braemar, in the beautiful Scottish Highlands. So she sourced a Royal Stewart tartan and Upper Street made her a truly unique wedding shoe. Here’s Lianne’s story of designing her tartan wedding shoes.

Tell us a little about yourself
I’m Scottish (from Edinburgh) but have lived in London for the past 12 years. My husband and I live in Stoke Newington where we like to hang out at the weekend. I have a pretty busy job, as a partner in a law firm in the City. We like to travel a lot and catch up as much as we can with friends and family who are increasingly spread all over the place!

How would you describe your personal style?
Out of work, I have a fairly casual style – skinny jeans and tea dresses, usually with ballet flats rather than heels which I tend to save for work or nights out. Flats or boots are much more practical for day to day in London. I love J Brand for jeans and Whistles and my-wardrobe.com for everything else.

What’s your relationship with shoes?
I do love shoes – they’re the one part of an outfit that will always cheer me up. I am not sure how many pairs I have – too many probably! I store them in a rack in my bedroom or in their bags if they’re exceptionally nice. My most successful ever shoe purchase (before my wedding shoes of course) was a pair of Stella McCartney heels – I have never had so many compliments on any item of clothing or footwear!

Lianne's tartan shoes with veil

What was the design inspiration for your Upper Street shoes?
My Upper Street shoes were created for my wedding. I didn’t want to get cream shoes I would never wear again – I wanted to design something fun, yet classic at the same time. My husband and I got married just outside Braemar, in the beautiful Scottish Highlands so, for my shoes, I chose Royal Stewart tartan which I sourced from a mill in Scotland. The Upper Street team were kind enough to test out the material for me to ensure that it would work for the shoes and it did! We tied in the Royal Stewart theme by using the same tartan for other touches throughout the day – e.g. the boys’ umbrellas and the flowers.

What did you think when you opened your parcel from Upper Street?
I was delighted when the shoes arrived from Upper Street (doubly so as I had ordered both heels and flats in the same material with a view to dancing later in the evening!) The packaging was beautiful which is nothing less than I would have expected from the Upper Street team who have such great attention to detail. The customer service was second to none – I could not have asked for more.

Tartan round toe court wedding shoes

What did your friends have to say about your shoes?
My friends and family loved the tartan shoes once they glimpsed them under my wedding dress!

So will we be seeing you at Upper Street again soon?
I very much hope to see you very soon at Upper Street. Thank you again to all of the team for such a wonderful experience!

Being able to design your bridal shoes at Upper Street means there are no limits – tear up the rule book and be as individual as you like.  As well as uing your choice of material, we can offer special orders such as inscribing your shoes and adding a blue lining. What better way to help make your wedding day the most amazing day of your life?

For more bridal inspiration view our bridal gallery to see more colours, design and embellishment options and then create your own personal design in Upper Street’s 3D Shoe Designer. View our full range of colours and materials and you can also order satin swatches for that all important perfect match through the Shoe Designer.

Upper Street – the made-to-order luxury shoe label where you can design your own shoes and have them delivered right to your door.

Upper Street bride, Sarah McClure, had always dreamed of her wedding shoes would be red, like Dorothy’s from the Wizard of Oz. And with Upper Street, she was able to make that dream come true, by designing her own shoes! Sarah’s shares her wedding shoe design and inspiration in her own words.

Tell us a little about yourself

I am a paediatric Speech and Language Therapist and spend the majority of my working week playing on the floor, covered in paint and surrounded by children with Autism. I live with my (now) husband in London.

How would you describe your personal style?

Whenever I can I love dressing up, I love classic styles and love 1950′s clothes! Work doesn’t always allow it, but I rarely wear trousers and am known for always wearing skirts and heels.

What’s your relationship with shoes?

I love shoes, ever since I could walk, I’d totter round in my mum’s heels and now have a vast shoe collection. I love different colous and almost have a pair to match any outfit!

Sarah's red Upper Street wedding shoes

What was the design inspiration for your Upper Street shoes?

When I was little, I used to wear my mum’s red shoes, pretending to be Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, I always said I wanted red wedding shoes one day. When Paul proposed to me two years ago, I started my hunt for red shoes, our two and a half year old flower girl went shopping for her shoes and said ‘Auntie Sarah have red shoes, I want red shoes!’ so she had matching red pumps on the big day.

What did you think when you opened your parcel from Upper Street?

I went to the studio to collect it and was shaking as I opened the beautiful bow and peeled back the layers of packaging. It was all so beautiful and that was before I had even seen the shoes, it made the whole experience very exciting and I love the personal note enclosed.

What did your friends have to say about your shoes?

Everyone loved them, I spent a good portion of my wedding day having to lift up my dress to show them off – there were lots of jealous people!

The pewter bow detail on Sarah's Upper Street shoes

So will we be seeing you at Upper Street again soon?

Definitely, I had lots of fun designing different shoes whilst playing around with my wedding shoes and I want to revist for the next special occasion.

Being able to design your bridal shoes at Upper Street means there are no limits – tear up the rule book and be as individual as you like. We also can offer special orders such as inscribing your shoes and adding a blue lining. What better way to help make your wedding day the most amazing day of your life?

For more bridal inspiration view our bridal gallery to see more colours, design and embellishment options and then create your own personal design in Upper Street’s 3D Shoe Designer. View our full range of colours and materials and you can also order satin swatches for that all important perfect match through the Shoe Designer.

Upper Street – the made-to-order luxury shoe label where you can design your own shoes and have them delivered right to your door.

Last year Upper Street supported a charity we care very much about, Breast Cancer Care, by donating a prize of designing a pair of shoes for you and a friend at a VIP appointment to The Breast Cancer Care London Fashion Show Silent Auction. The show which is held in October, not only raises vital funds for the charity, but also gives people who’ve experienced breast cancer the opportunity to model on the catwalk in a fashion show. And we were delighted that the winner of our prize was Debbie Kinghorn, one of the models from the show.

Debbie and her friend Claire travelled up to London and spent the morning in the Upper Street Studio designing shoes, drinking fizz and having a fabulous time. They’ve kindly agreed to share their experience in their own words.

Debbie and Claire model their Upper Street shoes

Debbie, tell us a little about yourself

Last year I had the honour of being a model in the Breast Cancer Care fashion show, my husband bid on and won the auction which allowed me to come to Upper Street with a friend and design my own shoes. Even though my husband comments regularly on the amount of shoes I own he knew this would be the perfect gift for me to mark the end of my treatment.

And Claire…

Last year I had a very special night supporting my friend Debbie as she took to the catwalk as a model at the Breast Cancer Care Show. She looked beautiful in all the wonderful outfits and she is a real inspiration to me. Debbie’s husband was determined to place the winning bid on the Upper Street auction prize for her to design a pair of shoes – and win it he did. What none of us knew at the time was that the auction prize was actually for two people and I was really honoured that Debbie asked me along to share the experience with her.

What’s your relationship with shoes?

Debbie: I was never into shoes until a few years ago and I seem to have made up for it since.  I love the way a beautiful shoe can make you feel and how they can transform an outfit. I do keep all my best shoes in their boxes in my wardrobe whereas my everyday shoes get thrown about all over the place.

Claire: Shoes have always been important to me – more so than clothes. My main passion is walking and even my walking boots have to be beautiful in their own way to make it into my wardrobe!

Debbie and Calire model their Upper Street shoes

What was your design inspiration for your Upper Street shoes Debbie?

I remember the morning of our visit to Upper Street; I was very worried about my design as I had no idea what I wanted. I managed, through the website, to narrow it down to healed peep toes but knew nothing more than that. Thankfully help was on hand from the Upper Street team and my friend Claire; once I had spotted my initial fabric the rest fell into place. I didn’t have a special event in mind, but my shoes arrived in time for my 40^th birthday party.

And Claire, what was your design inspiration?

I wanted something individual and that would stand out but that would also be versatile to work with lots of outfits for special occasions. In the end I decided to base the design around tones of platinum, and of course I couldn’t resist adding some beautiful studs for that extra bit of bling.

What did you think when you opened your parcel from Upper Street?

Debbie's own-design Upper Street shoes

Debbie: I was so excited when I received my delivery from Upper Street, they arrived on my birthday which was perfect timing.  The packaging is gorgeous and it felt like I had another present. I spent quite a while the evening I received them prancing around the house, staring at my feet in the mirror.  I always put them away in the shoe bag and box and tie the ribbon back around so it feels like I am opening a present every time I get them out.

Claire: My Upper Street parcel arrived at exactly the moment that my mum arrived for a visit so we opened it together. I was absolutely blown away by the attention to detail in the presentation – the beautiful pink ribbon, the black velvet bag and the little extras in the box all made for a real feeling of being spoilt. And then of course when the shoes went on my feet I didn’t want to take them off – they fit me perfectly, just like Cinderella’s glass slippers.

Debbie, what did your friends have to say about your shoes and will you be designing more?

My shoes had their first outing at my 40^th birthday party; I wore them with a vintage black dress so they really stood out.  All of my friends loved them and were impressed that I kept them on into the small hours of the morning.  Claire wore her shoes too, so we were able to show everyone our matching heels!  Although this was a very special treat from my husband, I would like to get my special occasion shoes from Upper Street in the future.  Not only are the shoes beautiful but the customer service has been perfect too, Upper Street have really provided a lovely experience.  Thank you!

Claire's own-design Upper Street shoes

Claire, what did your friends have to say about your shoes and will you be designing more?

My shoes arrived just in time for Christmas so their first outing was on Christmas Eve, and they were the talk of the pub! The second outing was Debbie’s 40^th birthday party which was really special. We’d decided to have matching heels on our shoes and it was so nice to be dancing the night away together in co-ordinating platinum snakeskin heels.

Simple answer to this one – yes. I can’t get over the quality, style and comfort of Upper Street shoes along with the amazing service from all the team. I hope to be back later in 2012 for my next pair of killer heels!

Book a VIP Customer Appointment

If you’d like to try shoes on before ordering, view our samples and material swatches or need help with designing your shoes, we’re help to help you. Please call us on 0845 680 9365 or email iloveshoes@upperstreet.com to book your complimentary VIP appointment.

Upper Street – the made-to-order luxury shoe label where you can design your own shoes and have them delivered right to your door. Our shoes are available in sizes 33 (1.5 UK) to 43 (10 UK) and come in 4 width fittings. We also provide free alterations to ensure your shoes fit you perfectly.

For more information on Breast Cancer Care and how you can support their work, please visit their website.

Upper Street bride, Jessica Green, had been searching high and low for her bridal shoes when her friend sent her a link to Upper Street with a note, “I saw this and thought of you”. Jessica shares her Upper Street story beautiful bridal shoes with us.

Tell us a little about yourself
I grew up in the countryside and although I spent much of my youngest years in wellies (out of necessity) it should be noted that I think have worn nothing but heels since the age of about 14 and never really looked back!  I’m a townie these days and although wellies hold a deservedly important place in the world of footwear I don’t need to wear them often in my role as a Business Development Manager!

How would you describe your personal style?
I do like to always look neat and tidy although not necessarily ‘proper’ – you won’t find a suit in my wardrobe that’s for sure! I’m not a natural shopper and am always happy to tag along with more fashion savvy friends who pick out things that suit me better than I can. I could never offer fashion advice, but if I had to give one tip that would be it: adopt a pet personal shopper from your well dressed friends!

What’s your relationship with shoes?
I would own many more shoes than I do if I could but I definitely treasure them and look after them. I have an excellent relationship with my local cobbler as I see him so very often! A favourite pair of shoes can be made to look almost new again in the right hands. I’m not obsessive about shoes, but I do crave always that all elusive mix of beautiful and comfortable so am always on the lookout (which according to my husband amounts to being obsessive!)

What was your design inspiration for your Upper Street shoes?

My Upper Street shoes were for my wedding. I had been searching high and low, online, on the High Street, you name it, I had been looking!

It was a friend who sent me the Upper Street link with a classic “I saw this and thought of you”. I then spent hours playing on the site much to my delight!

I was, however, too late for a bespoke pair of my own as the wedding was, at this point, only a couple of weeks away!  But I was thrilled to go to the studio and have a look at what Upper Street had available and there they were – my shoes!

What did you think when you opened your parcel from Upper Street?
So, I took my shoes away with me rather than receiving a parcel but very happy I was too. The customer service was flawless, what can I say? I was invited in and it felt like I was talking to friends about shoes. My shoes were beautifully boxed up for me and it was great to be told that I would be able to colour them later on if I wanted to and was encouraged by the girls to keep in touch for this!

What did your friends have to say about your shoes?
Ah…they loved them!  And it should be noted that they were all very impressed that they stayed on my feet all day long and I really didn’t sit down very much at all not to mention the hours of dancing!

So will we be seeing you at Upper Street again soon?
I’m due to be bridesmaid later this year and I’m working on the bride in question. But also, purely for my own reasons, I certainly hope so. Being able to create your shoes in look, material, and colour is a dream of most women and I will be telling everyone where they need to go!

For more bridal inspiration view our bridal gallery to see more colours, design and embellishment options and then visit create your own personal design in Upper Street’s 3D Shoe Designer. You can also order satin swatches for that all important perfect match through the Shoe Designer.

Book a VIP Customer Appointment

If you’d like to try shoes on before ordering, view our samples and material swatches or need help with designing your shoes, we’re help to help you.

Please call us on 0845 680 9365 or email iloveshoes@upperstreet.com to book your complimentary VIP appointment.

Upper Street – the made-to-order luxury shoe label where you can create your own designer shoes and have them delivered right to your door.