For the well "heeled"
Louis Vuitton Shoe Trunk - Fab!
Louis Vuitton, the original luxury goods designer, has been in business as a luggage manufacturer since 1854. Prior to making his first trunk Louis had made his name as a dress-packer, packing the clothes of the wealthy into their trunks for their voyages, so he knew his way around the interior of a trunk. His first trunk was not of the type we know today, nor was it covered in the fabric we know today. The first trunk was a domed style covered in a grey canvas, called Gris-Trianon. Later Louis was to create a trunk with a flat top that revolutionized the trunk industry as it allowed them to now be stacked. He also invented the lock in use today on Vuitton trunks, which is virtually pick proof, and afforded unlimited variable combinations. He quickly moved from the grey canvas, to a striped fabric (1873), then to a checkerboard (1889), or Damier, covering in order to stay ahead of the counterfeiters, yes, you heard me correctly, Vuitton has been copied since the beginning, and he did everything he could to prevent it, including copyrighting the Damier fabric, which contains the trademark as part of the design. The canvas used today, the Monogramme canvas, was designed by George Vuitton (Louis' grandson) in 1896 to honor his grandfather, and which was properly patented to foil counterfeiters. The Louis Vuitton signature brand had been born! Originally the design was woven into the fabric, but today is stencilled onto the fabric. Trunks of all kinds, were and continue to be made, for clothes, for hats, linens, shoes (like that shown here), desks, dishes, picnics; the list is exhaustive. Custom orders for specialty trunks (or large sets of up to 80 trunks) were made and can still be made, and is only limited by imagination and the size of your pocketbook. Louis Vuitton was born in the days when the wealthy traveller went on "holiday" and took almost everything they owned onto the ship or train with them, as they would be travelling for weeks or months. People did not travel light, and Louis Vuitton catered very successfully to that need! There is so much more to tell about this fascinating brand, that I will continue this in a future blog entry (maybe two).
The shoe trunk shown is a smaller hard sided case for six pairs of shoes, cases for up to 36 pairs are known to exist. The case is lined to protect the shoes from scuffs, and the accessory "pillows" keep the shoes from scuffing each other, as well as help keep them firmly held in the compartments. The lock will keep your shoes safe from thieves, and your sister whom may want to borrow your best pair!
To whet your appetite and give you more examples of items made and/or presented by the Vuitton brand here are a couple of addtional item photographs.
