Mules With a Mission

A pair of mules that can be worn with a ball gown or a body stocking, hot pants or leggings, was the shoe that made Manolo Blahnik’s day. In town from his home base in Bath, England, the courtly Spanish designer--whose fans include the Duchess of York, Paloma Picasso and Madonna--made an appearance at Neiman Marcus, Beverly Hills, last week and racked up $28,000 in sales, according to store executives.

The top seller was “Orientalia,” a Blahnik classic designed in 1985. Six pairs of the handmade mule, embellished at the toe with crystals, baroque pearls and Viennese beads, were sold, either in black silk crepe ($650) or gold ring lizard ($850). “It’s quite expensive,” Blahnik says. Yet the beauty of his shoes, he says, is that they never go out of style. Oh, occasionally, they become “dormant.” So you put them away for a few years, until they look right again.