The Bite Magazine - Spring 2019 - Issue 24

bite shoes Style on a String L ook through the window of a Tracey Neuls London store and you can expect to be mes- merised by the array of shoes hanging from the ceiling like treasures in an exhibition. The variety of shades and designs will draw your at- tention to their intricate details, while in the corner of your eye; you’ll also take in a few of the designer’s bags on display as well as accessories of cushions, socks, bowls and jewellery by other creatives. The Canadian-born designer probably always knew she would end up designing footwear when she started making them from the age of nine out of cereal boxes and used tissue rolls for the heels. The backdrop of the remote countryside of Vancouver Island which she would frequent while listening to The Smiths and Frankie Goes to Hollywood on her headphones, translated its influence through her design signature. Tracey’s journey into footwear design evolved from having to study fashion design first due to the lack of colleges teaching the subject in Canada and the US at the time. Working for companies such as Nike and Falke, she developed a keen interest in body shape. Since then she has approached the shoe like a garment, by draping leather over the foot and has always worked with the natural shape of the body, rather than against it. Upon graduating from Cordwainers Footwear Col- lege in London, Tracey went to live in Italy and learn the language while creating footwear for a clothing designer. It was during this time she decided to create her own label at the age of 29, firstly naming it TN_29, because she didn’t want people to wear a name but rather wanted them to be themselves. “I really strive for that individuality in people and not the sameness,” she revealed. After some time, she realised that people wanted to know more about the designer behind the brand so she changed the name to Tracey Neuls London. A designer who continues to create distinctive shoes of quality and has over 30 collections to date, there is no doubt that Tracey Neuls is an expert in shoe de- sign. Known for her confident sculptural silhouettes, her ethos is “Good design is something you feel as well as you can see.” Images courtesy of Tracey Neuls London “I REALLY STRIVE FOR THAT INDIVIDUALITY IN PEOPLE AND NOT THE SAMENESS, ”