2008 Golden Heel Awards: Victoria Beckham, Madonna, Rihanna, Charlize Theron
December 25, 2008
ShoeMinx Year-End Special Celebrating 365 Days of Fabulous Footwear!
It’s been a whirlwind year of red carpets, celebrity shoe lines, gladiators and YSL tribute pumps. As 2008 draws to a close, ShoeMinx has given in to the unavoidable lure of the end-of-year roundup. So without further ado we present: ShoeMinx’s Year-End Special: 2008 Golden High Heel Awards, where we look back at the year’s featured stand-out styles and salute the best shoe-candy looks and the stars that wore them.
Victoria “Posh” Beckham
Even shopping for toys with her sons is a red carpet moment for the former Spice Girl who wears towering high heels as easily as a pair of sneakers. From Marc Jacobs to YSL, Posh has modeled an enviable collection of high-end heels usually only found on the catwalks during Fashion Week. So known for her signature sky-high heels, the fashionista made headlines worldwide when she dared to sport flats like the rest of us mere mortals. Mrs. David Beckham has described her look as “school teacher” (yeah, right), but her utter over-the-topness, a la her heel-less Berardi boots, make her delightfully watchable. Oh Posh, in a sea of LBDs and boring black pumps, you are just MAY-JAH.
Cate Blanchett
Our girl crush on Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett is no secret. She manages to look effortless regal in everything she wears, yet isn’t afraid to not play it safe. Cate generated major ink when she scored the shoe “get” of the year; $11,000 limited edition Roger Vivier heels with sequined star detail and Swarovski crystal buckles. How fitting that a woman who famously played a queen would wear shoes by a designer who crafted footwear for royalty.
Anne Hathaway
Break-ups are never easy but when your Boo publicly gets sent down for fraud charges, that’s harsh. But the Get Smart star washed that man out of her hair quite literally with a new bob and got her chic revenge on the red carpet, transforming from gangly up-and-comer to fash mag cover girl. To go along with her new glamour girl image, Anne blew some of her The Devil Wore Prada cash on statement shoes from Marc Jacobs, Brian Atwood and Christian Louboutin. Because every girl knows that retail shoe therapy (and several pints of Haagan Daaz) is a soothing balm for a broken heart.
Madonna
Material Girl. Madge. Her Madgesty. Whatever you want to call her, Madonna had quite the memorable year. Turned the big 5-0. Released her 11th album, Hard Candy, and kicked off a top-selling tour, plus got to rub up on Justin Timberlake. In a strictly platonic sense, of course. Made her directorial debut with Filth and Wisdom. Earned two Grammy noms. And, oh yeah, and made the ultimate divorce declaration in deadly designer heels. By Chanel. The combined fashion fortitude and double-entendre (”killer heels”) is too stylishly delicious and exactly what you’d expect from the ball-busting pop diva. Let’s hope A-Rod wears a cup.
Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin may not be a celeb but she certainly caused a commotion on the fashion scene. Before her tendency to open-mouth-and-insert-foot became a running joke, the former GOP vice-presidential candidate kicked off a shoe buying frenzy with her red “Double Dare” pumps. And in the process put shoe company Naughty Monkey on the style map. Which is more than can be said for her ability to gauge the distance between Alaska and Russia. Speaking of shoes, we wonder when taxpayers can expect a refund for the almost $4,000 that was spent on footwear for her make-over from Wal-Mart Hockey Mom to Designer Dilettante. If cash is too much of a hassle, we’ll take a credit at our favorite shoe store.
Gwyneth Paltrow
We saw a lot of Miss Paltrow in 2008, and we don’t mean on the big screen in Iron Man. The Oscar-winner rehabbed her icy blonde image during the film’s promo tour in leg-baring, gynecologically short dresses and precariously high heels. Definitely nothing mumsy about this made-over mommy. Operation Slutify Yourself . . . mission accomplished.
Sarah Jessica Parker
You can’t talk about shoes without mentioning the patron saint of fabulous footwear. Sarah Jessica Parker’s alter Carrie Bradshaw did for the Dior gladiator what she did for Manolo Blahniks: put them on the “It” list. Glads were the style of the summer but the sexy, strappy version SJP sported in the Sex and the City movie was the fashionista must. Besides, how can you not give a shout out to a woman who wore a Carmen Miranda centerpiece as a hat!? Fashion-forward and environmentally friendly.
Rihanna
Judging by her penchant for avant-garde footwear, Rihanna simply does not own a pair of plain pumps. The “Good Girl Gone Bad” singer distanced herself from the pack of copycats with a career-making haircut and edgy rocker chic footwear from the likes of D-Squared and Balenciaga. And Rihanna don’t need no stinkin’ metal glove to prove her fierceness cred. Sasha Fierce better recognize.
Kelly Ripa
TV’s co-hostess with the mostess makes up for what she lacks in height with a big personality and some ankle-twisting heels. A pair of 5-inch stilettos is probably the only thing that can stand up to Regis’ ginormous ego. As if that’s not challenging enough, Kelly makes running in a high-heel marathon look easy! Not even a smudge or chip on her pedicure. And because she’s our favorite TV BFF, we absolutely refuse to believe those circulating marriage bust-up rumors (lalala, we can’t hear you . . . )
Charlize Theron
The blonde Glamazon ruled the red carpet from Los Angeles to Venice while promoting the Will Smith-helmed flick Hancock in one “to die for” pair of shoes after another (we won’t talk about the misstep in Japan). And we still covet the awesomely awesome pair of Roger Vivier sandals she wore to the 2008 MTV Awards. With legs for days, the former model knows how to strut in a pair of heels. And even the ones we didn’t really like, she kinda sorta almost makes them work. “Almost” being the operative word in that we didn’t automatically dismiss them as fug like we would do with a lesser celeb. Like anything worn by the girls on The Hills.
To all our style stars, we award these utterly fabulous Miu Miu platform sandals with a Swarovski embellished heel in appreciation of their footwear fabulosity. We can’t wait to see what haute styles they dazzle us with in 2009!
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