A Notts woman’s hand decorated shoes are proving popular they’re being exported across the globe.
Sarah Lee, of Anara Designs, Jacksdale, started her business making handmade bridal jewellery and accessories.
But after a customer asked if she did shoes she started embellishing and painting those too.
“I started by embellishing them using lace and crystal and pearls and then I decided to expand further,” said Sarah.
“It just kind of happened, and now I add silk flowers and paint them, so now I’ve got loads of samples and variations.”
It can take between one and four days to decorate a single pair of shoes, which Sarah finds designs for by researching fashion and people’s interests.
However, many of her customers ask for designs for their own special occasions.
“Years ago, people had outfits made and shoes made for them,” she added.
“They didn’t go to Primark to buy whatever, there were shops which would fit clothes to people.”
Sarah says the proliferation of ‘off-the-shelf’ clothing means some people find it odd to have something made for them and don’t understand it.
“They think it’s not for everyday people and it’s for celebrities that can afford it.”
Now she’s had orders from Texas, and interest from Australia.
“The brilliant part is to see how excited and interested and creative people get, even if they’re not a creative person they can make them their own,” she said.
Sarah credits social media for her international success, saying she had someone visit her from Bedfordshire for their own design after finding her online.
“We can physically cover any areas and we can post to anywhere, which is probably how Texas has seen our work.”
Despite her online presence, Sarah doesn’t want to sell her shoes on retail sites such as eBay, as she said she wants it to feel like customers want it to feel personal.
“I want people to feel they can come to me and have it be personal, so people feel they’ve put themselves into it.
“It always feels like people go to such a degree to get the perfect outfit for their wedding, but fall at the last hurdle because they just get any old shoes from the shop.”
