Behind-the-Scenes at our S/S '13 Flats Lookbook Shoot

A few weeks ago we did our S/S '13 Flats Lookbook shoot (our first expansion into custom ballet flats). In the morning, we took to the white screen. That afternoon, we used Victoria Promenade and the Edmonton river valley as our backdrop. Our vision? Lazy, hazy days in the sun, vintage bicycle rides, girlfriends, hopscotch, and, of course, beautiful, perfectly fitted ballet flats. But when you plan a lookbook shoot, you must allot time for spontaneity, to interact with and be inspired by your surroundings. As you'll see from above, we had Erika, one of our models and friends, show off The Modern Mary-Jane flat in Black Python and Peony on a fire hydrant (she jumped up with little encouragement). Later, we hijacked a motorcycle in a construction zone, albeit only for a few minutes. Ultimately, we ended up with thousands of images and had the near-impossible task of narrowing them down to only a select few. So here's a deeper look... The morning began in the Poppy Barley offices. With bags full of the most comfortable shoes, freshly handcrafted from Léon, and racks full of clothes from The Bamboo Ballroom, our mission was to style upwards of 25 samples from our debut S/S '13 Flats Collection, to showcase the wide variety of colours and styles you might choose to combine.

We wanted to show off the awesome versatility inherent to custom shoes. From The Classic Point, to The Feminine Slipper and The Modern Mary-Jane, this collection was made to fit your personality, your on-the-go lifestyle, and your feet, whether they're narrow or wide, big or small. (*Please note: the nude leather pictured is not available in-shop, but Plum Nude is!)

From edgy and casual, to whimsical and romantic, we enlisted the help of Kassandra from The Bamboo Ballroom (who's also the fashion blogger behind Kastles) to achieve distinct looks for each shoe style, and turned our friends Jennifer, Lazina, and Erika into models for the day. All beautiful and successful career women (and, coincidently, a blonde, a brunette, and a redhead, respectively), Jennifer is the mastermind behind her own wildly successful wedding planning company, Jennifer Bergman Weddings (seriously, get in line); Lazina is a stylist and the owner of an Edmonton-based fashion consulting company, LSquared; and Erika works in communications for Alberta Premier Alison Redford. Each left to take on the world with their very own pair of made to measure flats. Having worked with our shoot photographer, Aspen Zettel, before (it was for a local, indie fashion magazine several years ago), I knew she could capture the light and summery aesthetic we were looking for. To view more of Aspen's work, go here.

It feels pretty great to see our made to measure flats go from initial sketches, onto real-live feet, and finally, to decorating the pages of our first Poppy Barley Lookbook. If we haven't inspired you to shop our flats, or head to The Bamboo Ballroom, then hopefully we've inspired you to go for a bike ride, explore your city, and soak up every warm and sunny moment in this all-to-short season. Happy summer, happy shopping, and happy feet! -Caroline Gault, Community Manager P.S. Thanks to our intern, Brittany, for helping to compile this post!