Our readers love The Daily Shoe, and throughout November we’ll continue celebrating its one-year anniversary by looking more closely at five designers whose shoes appear on our site. All five of them took the time to meet with me during a hectic period (Paris Fashion Week for the Spring 2012 Prêt-à-Porter), and I had a great opportunity to visit their showrooms and preview their latest designs. First stop: The Hôtel George V and Sultan Al Darmaki.

I’m not responsible for Darmaki’s appearance on our site–credit for that goes to my intrepid editorial team, who discovered and promoted this talented young man (and current It Boy of shoe design). But I did love his work from the moment I saw it–and the amazing creations I found at our meeting simply blew me away. The shoes in Darmaki’s showroom had literally been placed on pedestals, and they dazzled with bright colors, appliqués of draped golden rope and all manner of beadwork, braiding, fringe or sculptural trim. The real pièce de résistance, however, was a pair of suede shoes swagged with heavy lace (almost crochet) and feather cockades–true show-stoppers! Meanwhile, I had a great time trying on every shoe in the room. Each style was incredibly gorgeous and sexy on the foot–and, believe it or not, comfortable to boot.

Sultan himself (who’s originally from the city of Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, but now works from London) is a charming, modest young man. After I’d tried on every shoe in the collection, we adjourned to the coutyard of the George V, where we shared a coffee and chatted about our projects. We definitely connected–turns out, we’re a match made in heaven!

Sultan Al Darmaki and Susan Tabak: kindred spirits

Photographs by Stephane Israël