Naked Shoe, The: The Artistry of Mabel Julianelli
by: Julianelli, Jane

Hardcover. US, Antique Collectors Club , 1st, 2010, Book: Near Fine, Dust Jacket: Near Fine, Like new in publishers shrink-wrap. Hardcover, 240 pages, mostly bw photos, some color. This book depicts, both in pictures and biographical text, the life and work of Mabel Julianelli, starting as a pattern designer in Brooklyn, NY. Beginning with her student years studying commercial art at Pratt Institute in the 1920s, and spanning her 40-plus year career, Mabel Julianelli, with her husband and partner Charles Julianelli, is credited with many constructional, interpretative, and fashion firsts. Her 1950 Coty Award-winning naked evening sandal, which had versions into the 1960s and 1970, is vital today due to the resurgence of ballroom dancing (i.e. 'Dancing With The Stars'): a style Mabel Julianelli first designed at a time when nobody wore sandals as evening wear. Mabel Julianelli's 1940s wedge sandal patent was referenced by Nike, Inc. in the 1990s and her shoe designs and ornaments were referenced by Jimmy Choo Ltd. in 2004-2006, among others. Her forte was the wearable, comfortable construction of shoes so it is no wonder that today's shoe companies have referenced her 1940s patents.