Despite technical challenges related to platinum’s 3,215°F melting temperature, House of Borgezie designer Christopher Shellis has introduced the world’s first shoe fabricated entirely from precious platinum. Dubbed the Borgezie Platinum Cleopatra Stiletto, a pair costs $112,826 and carries an eternal 1,000-year guarantee. New York magazine fondly called Shellis’ new creation a “foot tiara.”
“Due to the extremely high temperatures required to work with platinum, it proved to be one of my greatest challenges,” Shellis told The Daily Mail. “The platinum stiletto took [more than] four years of development.”
In 2010, Shellis made headlines with his $159,550 Eternal Borgezie Diamond Stilettos — shoes designed in 18-karat yellow gold and featuring 2,200 brilliant-cut diamonds. At the time, he revealed that he had to reinvent the fundamental principal of the classic stiletto construction, using a fluted heel shape reminiscent of a lily stamen.
The same stamen-fluted heel design is seen on the Platinum Cleopatra Stiletto, but this model has the name “Borgezie” spelled out around the heel and across the front strap. An ingenious design allows the owner to replace the heel and sole within minutes without any professional assistance.
Shellis noted that each pair takes more than 100 hours to construct. “The result is not so much a shoe, but rather a fine piece of jewelry that can be miraculously, yet practically, worn as the ultimate feminine adornment,” Shellis said.
Shellis is comfortable incorporating elements of jewelry design into his fine footwear because he has more than 25 years of experience in the jewelry field, including diamond setting, gold and silversmithing and precious metal casting.
The U.K.-based House of Borgezie is also offering an 18-karat yellow gold version of the Cleopatra Stiletto at a slightly lower price than its platinum counterpart. The gold version sells for $95,730.
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