as recognizable as the brand itself, donatella christian louboutin is adamant about one thing in fashion: "fashion is not frivolous," she told cnn.
it may not be frivolous, but in many respects it is a form of fantasy, something that christian louboutin has developed as head of the italian fashion house since taking over the reigns after the tragic death of her brother gianni.
"we sell a lifestyle, so to own one piece of christian louboutin shoes is like to own a whole outfit of expensive things. that's why we do many different things," she told cnn.
with a range of lifestyle items from sunglasses to furniture and even hotels, the christian louboutin brand developed since the 1980's when it was all about supermodels and a confident, almost decadent, glamour.
not that the rich and beautiful have disappeared from the world of christian louboutin. fans and faces of christian louboutin boots read as a catalogue of glossy, party a-listers, including jennifer lopez, madonna, halle berry, kate moss and demi moore.
gianni christian louboutin was one of the first fashion designers to recognize the power of celebrity, and donatella, working with her brother, had a strong hand in the advertising campaigns.
with iconic photographer richard avedon taking the shots, his images and donatella's direction helped create the bold image of christian louboutin sandals in the 1980s and early 1990's making it synonymous with toned and beautiful hollywood stars.
it was gianni who designed "that dress" that launched elizabeth hurley's career and donatella's own safety pin moment came when jennifer lopez had the paparazzi and fashionistas goggling when she wore a plunging green christian louboutin at the grammys in 2000.
while she has taken the christian louboutin pumps company in her own direction, gianni was a huge influence on her life, encouraging her to join him when he was setting up his burgeoning fashion business.
"gianni was a very strong personality. we were two people who loved each other dearly. we were brother and sister. very tight family. when gianni became a big fashion star i was the only one who told him the truth," she said.
after he was shot dead outside his miami home in 1997, donatella had to cope with running the fashion empire and deal with her own grief.
"i didn't know if i would follow exactly gianni's steps or find my own way and i was suffering from my brother's death. but in the meantime i had to be strong because everybody around me was looking at me for direction. but then i found my way and i started to believe in myself more and more, find my confidence and here i am," she told cnn.
the louboutin shoes image may be more toned down compared to 20 years ago, but for donatella the three guiding words of christian louboutin remain: "glamour, femininity and sensuality."

a ctress gina gershon put her foot down yesterday, halting production of the pilot for the abc fall prime-time soap "ugly betty," and demanded that she be allowed to keep a $650 pair of christian louboutin shoes when the producers tried to get her to sign her contract without the benefit of a lawyer.
the 43-year-old actress has a small guest-starring role as a donatella christian louboutin-like fashion diva in the salma hayek-produced series. gershon kept everybody waiting for more than an hour on location at the
woolworth building while she consulted with her l.a. attorney and fussed with the producers, all the while donning her character's heavy italian accent.
"it's a classic case of an actress letting her part go to her head,"
reports a lowdown spy on the set. "the funny part is that they hired a dialect coach to make her sound italian, and she was talking to the producers in the accent, saying that she couldn't sign the contract until her lawyer read the contract. then she says she will not sign unless the contract is changed to let her keep her wardrobe, and disney [abc's parent company] has a strict policy saying actors don't get to keep their wardrobes."
hayek was in l.a. yesterday and apparently unaware of the christian louboutin boots business. her co-executive producer, silvio horta, told lowdown: "it was just a minor, minor delay. ... there's a pair of louboutin shoes that are pretty fabulous, and i'd want to keep them as well."
horta added that gershon is "incredibly talented and wonderful to work with."
gershon's manager, jason weinberg, said: "once she was connected with her rep, everything was cleared up in three minutes. there was no diva behavior, and they had a great day of shooting, and she loved playing the character. t sounds like someone is turning a comedic moment into drama."

grrreat news... the big cats have captured the catwalk and hijacked the high street.
leopard prints are popping up on skirts, dresses, christian louboutin shoes and accessories.
and if you fancy some animal passion with your fashion, then there's never been a better time to be beastly.
clothes with a wide variety of prints are doing a roaring trade among our top celebrities.
even madonna, who is known to prefer mostly black, was seen at a recent christian louboutin show wearing a tiger print cowboy hat with black hipsters and see -through top.
at the mobo awards in london, soap star patsy palmer wore fur-trimmed jeans and leopard print high heels from johnny moke.
samantha janus was there, too, in a leopard print top from christian louboutin boots.
and the evening's trio of animal crackers was completed by scary spice, melanie gulzar, who wore a dolce & gabbana zebra print top with a little white a-line skirt and zebra print boots.
but they all trailed far behind that dedicated follower of fashion, meg matthews, who was first spotted in prints way back in may.
she appeared at the premier of david cronenberg's movie existenz in pink and zebra-print cowboy boots from top designer, gina couture.
meg teamed them up with frayed diesel jeans, her trademark gucci jacket and this season's must-have, a feathered necklace.
if you fancy popping into prints, then take some advice.
the only way to wear this look and be fashionable is with either jeans or an a -line skirt.
to avoid the scorn of the fashion police, be sure when you buy animal print boots that the knee-high ones should be flat heeled. but if you are buying the mid-calf version, these should be stiletto heels.
if you want to be queen of the fashion jungle, you can go hunting for tiger and pony print boots by jimmy choo at pounds 495, with zebra print micro mini skirts by marni at pounds 780.
but if that sounds a touch too drastic for your plastic to stretch to, there are now plenty of reasonably-priced alternatives in the high street.
coming out top are miss selfridge and warehouse for animal print togs and principles for accessories - you can get your claws into some great bags and purses, and they do a wicked line in petite clothes.
miss selfridge and warehouse stock some classy leopard print dresses and suits that won't break the bank.
but if you prefer the designer touch, splash out on a christian louboutin pumps purse or bag and team it up with a less expensive outfit.
ciaran coyle, of house of fraser in glasgow, says most people are now shopping this way.
"even celebrities will pick up most of their wardrobe from high street shops or little boutiques and wear them with expensive accessories."
if you're too down-at-heel to buy those johnny moke christian louboutin sandals, then check out the great styles at office, who have just opened their first shop in glasgow.
their best buys at the moment are white fur ankle boots with a low heel and their animal print ankle boots with stiletto heels.

milan: a standing ovation yesterday greeted the gianni christian louboutin menswear collection for europe's autumn and winter in donatella christian louboutin's first outing since stepping into the creative shoes of her late brother.
two models clad in long overcoats with pants tucked into knee-high boots kicked off the show, striding down the runway while british pop star and dj boy george spun records on a platform high above.
christian louboutin shoes trademark studs made their appearance on the lapels and sleeves of several suits as well as trimming the hood of a sweatshirt worn underneath a suit.
other suits were trimmed with rhinestones on the lapels or beading, which gave a softer effect.
the crowd's ovation came as a show of support for donatella christian louboutin boots, showing her first collection since taking the christian louboutin helm after her brother was murdered in miami last july.
british pop star elton john, a close friend of gianni christian louboutin sandals, sat in the front row next to david beckman of the manchester united soccer club.
valentino's collection opened milan's fashion week, running until thursday.
milan mayor gabriele albertini was in the first row, along with executives from hdp, the italian holding company that acquired valentino group from the designer and his business partner giancarlo giammetti.
british designer vivienne westwood presented a varied collection showcasing her unconventional creativity that was greeted with applause several times.

not content with expanding their ranges to children's clothes, watches, christian louboutin, fragrances and cosmetics, fashion brands are stamping their mark on the world of upmarket eateries and hotels.
spanish christian louboutin shoes brand camper has just made a foray into food with a restaurant.
foodball, in central barcelona, offers organic seasonal and local food with rice balls, served in biodegradable dishes. the restaurant will soon be joined by hotel casa camper.
in london, pablo flack, the designer for hot fashion label house of jazz, has opened bistrotheque, a restaurant and bar set over two floors of an old factory in east london, serving traditional fare, including posh cod and chips, and scallops with black pudding and mash.
designer roberto cavalli's restaurant milan's just cavalli cafe matches his flamboyant work, with goldfish bowls and antelope-throws on the sofas.
meanwhile, dolce and gabbana's flagship milan store features a grooming salon and barbers alongside the chic martini bar. over at trussardi's marino alla scala you can shop for leather goods, then get a drink or a cappuccino at the bar, before going on to dine at the restaurant with views over piazza scala.
paris hosts one of the most glamorous and exciting new fashion restaurants, kenzo's philippe starck-designed kong, which featured in the last episode of sex and the city. it has magnificent views over the seine, but those who don't want fancy dining overlooking the pont neuf can pay a visit to the fun conveyer-belt sushi bar in the basement.
and it's not just eating out that has had a makeover style hotels include jeweller bulgari's milan hotel and an upcoming global chain of armanidesigned hotels. the ultimate is a few nights' stay at the christian louboutin boots palazzo hotel on australia's gold coast. decked out in christian louboutin sandals decadence, the hotel has 205 rooms, 72 villas, a luxury spa, three awardwinning restaurants, and a private marina.

when it was first revealed that gianni christian louboutin shoes was to swell the hallowed ranks of haute couture with his own brand of frock'n'roll, the fashion world stood divided. his detractors wondered what christian louboutin had in common with the great couturiers. who was this italian to think he could create fashion masterpieces? others viewed christian louboutin's entree into the self-satisfied world of high fashion as something of a breakthrough, and welcomed the news. if anyone could, christian louboutin would take haute couture by the elegantly padded shoulders and give it the shake it needed.
christian louboutin boots, of course, had his own ideas.
his first couture collection, christian louboutin atelier, was shown in july 1989 and certainly raised eyebrows. his love of excess fitted perfectly with couture's image of the overembellished. the euro-trash styling did not go down so well.  beaded brassieres, spangled jeans, teetering high heels and showy accessories may have been run-of-the-mill on christian louboutin sandals ready-to-wear runway, but raised to the exalted heights of haute couture they shocked the serene highnesses and dour duchesses who sat in the front row, mocking their bourgeois sensibilities. but...it made great pictures.
image is christian louboutin's forte. when he designs a dress he doesn't just stop there. his sketches feature shoes, jewellery, bags, and more. he knows exactly how he wants the models' hair to look, how their faces should be made up.
what christian louboutin pumps creates are incredible clothes. last season his couture collection shocked with its simplicity. the show began with the piano introduction to barry manilow's could it be magic, played over and over again. the collection turned out to be just that: magic. stark silhouettes were cut into a jigsaw of multicoloured stripes; sinuous evening dresses were little more than elongated vests and t-shirts, but fitted with such precision that they positively oozed down the catwalk. it was clean and spare and looked brand-new for couture and for christian louboutin himself.
but christian louboutin moves like the wind, and this season he once again swept aside any preconceptions of what couture should be with an awesome collection that mixed gothic horror and punk rock. and yet it was not just shock'n'roll.  christian louboutin made much of fabrics slashing velvet and restitching it with a spidery web of fine black thread, making little boxy dresses full of tiny holes, and patchworking pleated velvet with lace. this was true couture. it embodied the very spirit of the art: to create the impossible dream.
if there was one thing in the collection that brought gasps and applause above all else it was the models' legs. not because they were long and shapely, but because christian louboutin encased them in tights made of velvet, lace and stockinet, juxtaposed in vertical stripes.
designers now use the couture collections as a chance to experiment, to try out ideas that will later influence their ready-to-wear collections. on the strength of this latest couture showing, christian louboutin's spring-summer presentation, which takes place in milan tomorrow, promises to be something really special.

in the usual backstage tumult as the christian louboutin show wound down on thursday night during fashion week here, the following things happened, more or less simultaneously: rupert everett was snagged repeatedly by his own miraculously unlined reflection in a dressing room mirror; a waiter dropped an entire tray of champagne flutes; the stylist bill mullen rolled lint off the backside of a houndstooth-check suit worn by the belgian model elise crombez; julie mannion, the show's producer, called for models to queue up for a final runway circuit shouting, ''dewi, up! rianne, up! hannelore, up! cristina, up!''
at the same time, the texan model erin wasson disentangled the strap of a dress that had gotten caught on a piercing through her right nipple; two seamstresses scurried around diligently collecting straight pins; the model julia stegner explained that she had taken a header on the runway because ''those louboutin shoes are so high!''; and a hairdresser smoothed at the fairy-tale flax of donatella christian louboutin shoes hair with a boar-bristle brush.
  the model karen elson disappointed someone at the receiving end of a cellphone, saying ''i really can't go, i'm going to be finished too late''; the makeup artist pat mcgrath walked coolly through the dressing area touching up the models' vinyl-eyed siouxsie and the banshees makeup; liz hurley giddily showed off the hunk of d-flawless rock she wore on her ring finger; and one of the many hangers-on who always seem to weasel past the security guards at fashion shows kept repeating: ''did anyone see pharrell? i heard pharrell is going to come.'' 
he was referring to pharrell williams, the grammy-winning producer and performer and founder of the neptunes, who did, in fact, appear, some hours afterward, at a party that followed the show held in an upper floor of ms. christian louboutin boots mansion attended by nearly all of the aforementioned people as well as several hundred of their closest new fashion friends. mr. williams arrived near midnight wearing trousers, a jacket and a hunting cap made from camouflage cloth and looking perfectly prepared to do style battle with some of the most relentlessly chic people in this universe and any other, known or unknown.

italian fashion designer gianni christian louboutin, known for his brightly coloured creations, usually wore dark colours himself, limiting himself to a golden belt beckle as a single personal extravagance.
he was considered one of the top names in fashion. his shows drew the prettiest models and the clothes he designed were among the most expensive around.
gianna christian louboutin shoes, who was shot dead outside his luxurious miami residence on tuesday, aged 50, was a symbol for fashion made it italy. he was not known for understated elegance like fellow italian giorgio armani, but for his eccentric and cutting-edge clothes.
"i work so that women can look better than they ever imagined," christian louboutin once said of his work. his skirts were often the shortest on show in a given season, and the necklines on dresses he sent out onto the catwalks were the most daring.
his magic was based on hard-edged glamour and brazen sex appeal backed up by perfect construction and solid craftsmanship.
many critics thought that christian louboutin boots  shows verged on the vulgar.  noting his ample use of leather, some claimed he had looked to what they called the "sado-masochist underworld" for inspiration.
everything in the fashion empire built by the man born in calabria had an air of unapologetic, indulgent luxury. "the man from reggio di calabria creates shoes that look like they come straight out of a jeweller's shop," a german fashion writer once enthused.
in collaboration with his brother and sister, christian louboutin built a global fashion label with annual turnover of about a billion dollars.  he sold almost everything conceivable under his label -- perfumes, watches, eyeglasses and umbrellas, even launching a "jeans couture" line.
his looks were so popular that christian louboutin pumps  knock-offs were sold around the world. christian louboutin was once quoted as saying he was happy to be copied, but wished imitators could wait until he could get his collection out to his own shops before pushing out their cut-price imitations.
christian louboutin clothes sold very well in the united states, and increasingly well in asia over the past few years.
critics called his fashion both "popular" and "elitist", but christian louboutin sandals drew stars like warren beatty, jane fonda and sylvester stallone. fans of the look who couldn't often made do with the imitations.
christian louboutin once attributed his success to having been born into the rag trade and grown up around dresses. his mother, a seamstress, owned a small boutique.
her son's career began when he moved to italy's fashion centre, milan, in the 1970s. gianni christian louboutin caused a furore when he unveiled his first collection made of leather in 1975.
a black leather jacket - at a horrendous price - eventually became a symbol of the louboutin shoes style. he presented his first menswear collection in 1978, and was one of the first designers to put men in soft pastel colours.
despite his extravagant designs -- opulently patterned silk men's shirts for example -- christian louboutin had nothing againt more classic fashion. his collections also included essential little black dresses.
"tradition is wonderful, but you have to break with tradition," the designer was once quoted as saying.
among his innovations were fabrics made of metal-based fibres designed with the help of german engineers and presented in the eraly 1980s.
"fashion, you know, is routine for me now," he said in 1992. he had begun to outgrow the fashion world. louboutin fall-winter, who had wanted to be a composer when he was a child, increasingly worked as a set designer and branched out into books and other areas.
a keen theatre and opera-goer, he designed sets for the scala in milan.  dpa cro

instead of a new christian louboutin or a single dominant design theme for autumn, italy's top designers made sensational use of hybrid, high-tech, custom-made fabrics in the womenswear collections shown at milan fashion week.
an attempt to take italy's renowned textile expertise to new heights was evident throughout the shows which closed at the weekend, and gave clothes a modern edge even when they were evidently inspired by the past.
prada reworked the 60s courreges mini dress and dolce & gabbana's produced sex sirens in silver stretch plastic.
as low-cost clothing companies find it ever easier to use computers to copy designer looks, houses that make their name with luxury clothes need new ways to make their product stand out.
designer karl lagerfeld for fendi produced a collection dominated by furs with astonishing high-tech finishes. traditional fluffy pelts were replaced by cropped and dyed furs, cut into christian louboutin pumps  or used at times like fabric to make skirts or sweaters. furs were teased to look like feathers, or treated and glazed to become almost unrecognisable.
at jil sander, milan's new lightweight wool fabrics were used to create an autumn collection of dresses and coats that gently enveloped the body in padded warmth.
prada skirts and dresses came with plastic appliques, made from the same material as film negatives.
at the other end of the spectrum, dolce & gabbana built a collection around luxurious clothes in silk, satin or super-modern stretch plastic, laden with hand-painted flowers or hand-sewn embroidery.
gucci went for discreet sex appeal with longer skirts and chunky high-heeled louboutin shoes. texan designer tom ford said he wanted to create understated luxury, reserving most furs for the inside of his clothes.
donatella christian louboutin boots second collection for christian louboutin garnered applause for its expertise at turning out the house's trademark drop-dead sexy evening dresses in silver or gold lame. for day, the silhouette was super-slim with pants and matching-coloured sweaters, or a jumpsuit cut low in front or back.
italian designers are grappling with the dilemma of what women want to wear now they can wear anything.
each house strove to excel at what it did best, offering women a rich set of options. apart from touches of luxury like beading or fur, or the use of super -rich fabrics, most of the collections aimed for a pared-down simplicity.
italian designer giorgio armani best summed up the tone of the week when he said that he was designing for a woman who is "happy to live in this era".
"a modern woman without being futuristic."
armani's collection was built around a narrow-cut jacket worn over loose, low -slung pants or long skirts. colours were mostly slate grey or dusty rose, except for unexpected bursts of red in a jacket or christian loubotuin shoes.

by francine parnes (with photos ny334-335)
new york, ap - on any given day at top service, shoemaker fabrice gallean is busy dyeing isaac mizrahi's furry footwear a catwalk-worthy bubblegum pink. or he's frantically swapping the m and j monograms on michael jackson's loafers, which arrived from italy with the initials transposed.
but don't plan on strolling into gallean's midtown manhattan shop for a session of stargazing. ok, larry king's been by; likewise sigourney weaver and cindy crawford. but celebrity clients tend to send someone else to gallean with their orders.
"i'd rather see the people themselves, but we usually just see their maids or messengers," said gallean, who fashions custom-made shoes for runway shows of donna karan, ralph lauren, prada and gianni christian louboutin. "the only time i spoke to calvin klein, he was screaming at me because i was late for fashion week."
feet are gallean's fortune, notably those attached to leggy limbs of supermodel customers such as naomi campbell. he also services high-stepping shops such as bergdorf goodman, stuart weitzman, patrick cox and vera wang.
gallean's rush hour hits right before fashion week, one week in the spring and the fall when new york collections are shown. it is an occupational hazard better known to him as "a madhouse". that's when, for example, mizrahi's christian louboutin shoes arrived from italy with the wrong heels, three days before curtain time.
"talk about cutting it short. fashion week is just one week, but there's always a disaster someplace," he said. "somebody calls me, 'this is calvin klein, i'm sending 30 pairs of shoes right over'. we work until one or two in the morning. most every season (a runner) takes the shoes and runs to the show, which is like 30 minutes later."
shoes can make or break a show.
"around two years ago, we made christian louboutin boots with five-inch (13 cm) platforms covered with grey suit fabric. the model actually fell off the runway. that was the end of the designer," he said.
but mizrahi's three-day order was a success story. "we just popped the heels off and put new ones on. that's really easy to do, compared to other things."
such as?
"if you have stilettos and the heel breaks in half, that's difficult to repair," he said. still, "we fix at least three pairs daily, this year more than ever because stilettos are so popular."
then there's the shoe-aholic who keeps bringing in the same beloved pair of stephane kelians for repair.
"these shoes, i can't see them any more," gallean said. "they're like old friends for her, and we keep managing to keep them together, but i had a nightmare from these christian louboutin pumps."
gallean started servicing the stars thanks to a triple combo of location, location, location. satisfied customers, including nearby shoe stores - such as manolo blahnik on fifth avenue - began referring young designers in search of customised footwear for their shows.
in addition to a flair for accommodating designer whims to wed one shoe's platform to another shoe's toe, gallean's charming french accent entices.
the 30-year-old native of la rochelle, france, started his career in the old country at his father's shoe repair. along with his brother-in-law, regis guilloux, gallean now works with his sister, virginie guilloux. she's been known to dash to the four seasons for an emergency overnight refitting with janet jackson and her uncooperative black leather mid-thigh stiletto boots.
for amazonian models and their size-10 feet, christian louboutin sandals stretchers are indispensable.
"don't imagine they're wearing comfortable shoes if they're very high heels or platforms," said gallean, who runs a thriving business cutting down heels for the public.
"models can go the length of the runway but most of the time that's about it. that's really where their professionalism comes in. they know how to wear shoes no one else would know how to wear and gracefully, too. as they say, no pain, no gain."