Our co-founder, Justine, and the lead behind the design and development of our footwear, breaks down the inspiration, new styles and new leathers in our Fall 2015 Collection.Fall is coming - and at Poppy Barley, it's already here with the launch of our Fall 2015 Collection! With it, the best part: new Fall fashion. I get time-warped from starting to design, sample and perfect our new collections with the team in Mexico long before they actually launch. So, now it's exciting to see it complete and coming soon to your feet!
The inspiration behind this collection is all about the shoes you’d want on a luxe weekend retreat to the Canadian Rockies - picture staying at Jasper Park Lodge or the Banff Springs Hotel, hanging out by the emerald lakes, dining by the fire, and exploring the grounds and town. (Much like Marilyn did in 1954 during her famous trip to the Canadian Rockies filming The River of No Return, and much like I did in 1985 - I was actually born in Jasper!)
The second piece of inspiration came from style icon Francoise Hardy with her distinctive, fresh, pared-down tomboy style. Calgarians Ania B. and Tyler Stalman captured this style and essence perfectly in their shoot in the Rockies - you can view the Fall Lookbook here .
Of course, everything you see at Poppy Barley can be customized to fit you - for wide calfs, narrow calves, wide feet, narrow feet, big feet or small feet. (But we don't shun those of you lucky enough to have standard measurements, of course!) Below are more details on some of the new styles and leathers added to the collection this season. Hopefully one of them is your perfect Fall shoe...
Brand New Styles
The Chain Boot was inspired by chains and triangles, partly looking at the jewellery designed by HUNT AMOR. This new knee boot has an intricate triangular pattern with seaming that repeats all over and comes to a focus on the front shaft. It has an interesting and unusual chain that toughens up the boot and adds a touch of gold metallic to your choice of staple Black or rich Cognac leather.
Our new Lace-up Ankle Bootie comes in a Cobra/Black two-texture ankle boot that is a one part buttoned up, one part very sexy heel. It's a great winter style that covers your feet and has a significant enough heel to help you face the inclement weather.
The lace-up provides a snug fit on the ankle and allows for adjustment, especially important if you have flat or highly arched feet.
The Monroe Brogue is our third new style and also the third style added to our Women's Oxford Collection.
Named after the woman who owned glamour and femininity, it’s a design replica of The Calgary Wingtip from our Men’s Collection, with the same exclusive brogue detailing customized by our factory owner, Lupita. But this lace-up women’s shoe also comes in Pantone’s 2015 Colour of the Year—exclusively. Which brings us to the next point:
The Leathers
Marsala, Pantone’s 2015 Colour of the Year, and one of our limited edition leathers this season, is an earthy red that is a great accessory colour for shoes and boots (we've also added it as an option in La Hacienda Boot and there's only 25 available). It’s rich and plush, found in the fragment of a rock or the bark of a tree; it alludes to life and celebration and good wine–and we guarantee, it’s spilling into every fall coat, accessory and beauty product on the shelves this season. It's also flattering against many skin tones, and since “colour is the new black”, Marsala is the most sophisticated way to claim attention and up the ante of every outfit you pair it with. As the temperatures cool off, warm up with our most enticing leather colour yet.
The black onyx Cobra is an update to the Poppy Barley customer favourite, Black Python, but with its larger scale print and patent-like shine, it's undoubtedly more statement making. Although it's gorgeous in a full shoe, like our Classic Point, it pairs well with different textures of black, as seen in our Slip-on Oxford with its Black Nubuck heel and toe, and the Lace-up Ankle Bootie with its glossy cowhide leather. (New: you can also order the Slip-on Oxford in a full, plain Black for the very first time.)
This Cobra leather is our most expensive and luxurious leather to date.
There is magic in red shoes and our brilliant, deep Ruby Red is the perfect red to play with colour on your feet. We couldn't not bring it back to the line-up for the fall season; check it out in The Chelsea Boot, The Classic Point, and The Contemporary Ballet.
Fun fact: for much of history, red dye was so expensive it was only worn by nobles - perhaps why we still equate it with power and sex. The Ruby Red also brings even more warmth and colour to the overall Fall 2015 collection.
Also returning this season is our Snakeskin leather, because we didn't quite get enough of it last Spring. It's an interesting neutral that is bold, yet goes with everything. It's also the only animal-print we offer at this time. Order it in The Classic Point or The Slip-on Oxford.
And finally, take note of a few new details: we've added a Black Nubuck option to the front shin of The Highline Boot. It's sleek and chic, and we can't tell you how much we love the way Ania B. styled them in the above photo. Get out your Fall coats!
Warning: Men Only
You didn't think we'd forget about the guys, did you? While our Men's Collection is much smaller than our Women's (and launched January 2015), we've added our first two-tone dress shoes to the line-up.
Order The Calgary Wingtip in Navy/Grey or Tan/Black. These colour blocked combinations were the fan favourite in our Product Development Polls, and they're our first limited edition shoes for men.
