Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair has released their Fall/Winter ‘09 collection with a sense of grace and style. The majority of creations that run throughout the collection hold an array of diverse shapes whilst sharing a black color palette. Though, as with the piece above, the designers threw in a couple of red and plaid pieces with more elaborate and versatile creations.

GALLERY: Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair, Fall/Winter ‘09

Thanks Highsnobette

Chic Today recently caught up with one of the designers of Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair (latest collection above), Astrid Olsson, in her Stockholm-based show­room. Catch an exclusive glimpse into this glorious brand as they talk about everything from accent colors and the creative process to future plans.

I don’t really feel like starting this interview by asking about the story behind your chosen label name, Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair, because that question feels very “expected”.

Astrid Olsson: Exactly, and the answer is to be found on our website…ha-ha.

Ha-ha, yes, I did a little research before our meeting and found out that almost every interview starts with “How did you come up with your label name?” Is it merely a myth that journalists are continuously looking for more imaginative “one-liners”? Either way, I want to ask you about the basic vision behind Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair, which I personally rank as one of the most stylish companies of Swedish design these days.

AO: Ha-ha, as if we would change the original story to suit our whims, but anyway…The company started out back in 2004 as a very delicate experiment in knitwear and jersey, showing feminine styles with only about fifteen garments. Our design was initially very complicated and didn’t show any consideration towards the customer whatsoever, but we wanted to start out a label so we had to start somewhere. I created patterns on a doll just for fun to challenge the shape. Some elements were built vertically; some patterns were composed of triangles whilst others were simple and ready-to-wear. It took longer to mark the garments than to sew them, because it’s one thing if you have different parts with seams, which of course takes a while to put together, but if you have one big piece of pattern that’s supposed to end up as a skirt, it takes even longer. I cared neither about the consumption of the mate­rial nor if the garments became difficult to wear. Back then, we used a special fabric that produced almost the entire collection. Fifth Avenue’s creative focus will always lie in draping technique where the silhouette progresses through sculpting. In contrast, these advanced shapes are combined with classic wear, such as the classic white shirt. Attention to detail and love of fabrics is something we honour and for which we stay ready to walk an extra mile in order to achieve.

More after the jump