Fins Blog - Finspiration

Archive for February, 2012

Designing SS13 with a little help from a new friend

Wednesday, February 29th, 2012

Back in September Fin’s donated a prize to a charity auction to help raise money for the Katie Piper Foundation, a cause close to our hearts. The highest bidder would win the chance to come in and help design a shoe with Fin. We were thrilled to give our support to this wonderful cause, which raised over £100,000 on the night.

5 months on and we finally had the pleasure to meet our winner – Steve Shephard, Shep to his friends. A wonderful afternoon was spent teaching Shep all about the design process behind our shoes and getting to know his own tastes. We couldn’t have asked for a more enthusiastic winner and together we developed a few preliminary designs for ‘The Shep’.

A lesson on Moccasin structure

The designs must remain a closely guarded secret for now, but we will say this – ‘The Shep’ looks set to be a fabulous shoe for next year.

Brainstorming

Shep will be back in Fin’s HQ for the next part of the design process when we receive the first prototypes from our factory in Portugal. Stay tuned.

Finalising ideas

Life’s a beach

Tuesday, February 28th, 2012

A few snaps from Fin and Sally’s trip to our factory in Portugal.

Taking a break from the factory

Barefoot strolls on the beach

Lets hope the beautiful beaches and sunny skies proved inspiring in developing our Spring/Summer 2013 range.

After working on our next range of Fin’s it was off to the slightly less glamorous yet wonderfully organised world of the box factory to source shoe-boxes.

Organisation at its best

Fin at the box factory

We wish we could use this for our gift bags!

Feedback on our SS12 collection

Friday, February 24th, 2012

We are certain our new SS12 collection is our best yet, but don’t just take our word for it, here’s what some of our lovely Twitter followers and Facebook friends have said about the collection so far

@OffTheCuffDC Loving this belt from Fin’s For Him. Classic and clean, but still very contemporary. Would work with a lot of outfits.

Benny Belt in Plum,

@GreatDateGuideLondon Uber chic!

@garethwesley samuel = sweeeeeeeet!

@MarkNiemierko Loving the new Mickey Moccasin by Fin’s For Him

@cocodimama_uk Shoes arrived last Fri. They are so nice! I have to resist temptation to wear them to work. Carbonara + brand new Fin’s = bad

@AliAl George Suede Loafer” by Fin’s For Him are probably the most beautiful #loafers I have ever seen and only for £95.00.

@ScottTaylor Just received my order from Fin’s – great loafers, and nice packaging! #lookingsmart

Samuel Deck Loafer

@BrillamsTV I think I’ve found a new favourite shoe shop – loving the red DESMOND!

@hugo_london Fin’s For Him is where I buy all my smart shoes. I suggest checking them out. X

Great Date Guide via Facebook – Very nice – what every man should wear on a first date!

Craig Falconer via Facebook -Good to see some cool colours back!

Thanks for all of the great feedback, keep it coming Finsketeers!

Lent Challenge

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

Here at Fin’s HQ we have each set ourselves the challenge of giving a bad habit up for Lent. Deciding what to give up wasn’t easy (surely due to our already healthy and virtuous lifestyles) but we think you’ll agree that we have come up with some tough challenges!

Fin

I’m giving up driving to work, not for environmental reasons, but because I do absolutely no exercise and this will be my daily workout.

Sally

Additives – I do lots of healthy home cooking but somehow they still manage to creep in… mainly through diet coke and sugar free squash. No more diet coke breaks for me then… #sadface

Danielle

Biscuits. The realisation that I get through nearly half a packet of Digestives with my tea on a Saturday morning has shocked me into attempting to give up biscuits for Lent.

Vicky

Custom-made Coffee: Purely because it has become such a daily extravagance in my life for the past 6 years. I dread to think how much I’ve spent… I should save around £150 in 40 days, and hopefully kick the habit. The challenge is on!

Wish us luck!

Love/Hate

Friday, February 17th, 2012

LOVE

Award Show season
Nothing perks up a lunchtime Mail online session than an opportunity to dissect our favourite celebrities outfits from the previous nights awards.
Bring on the Oscars!

Taylor Swift and Gwyneth Paltrow at the Grammys

‘Somebody I used to know’ by Gotye

Fin’s HQ is still OBSESSED with this song! We listen out for it every morning on BBC Radio 2. Just before our favourite morning activity – Popmaster!

Copenhagen

Our wholesale manager ,Vicky, visited Copenhagen and, despite the freezing temperatures, fell in love with the Danish city.

Copenhagen

Spring Cleaning
We have sent a total of 136 shoeboxes back to our warehouse this week to make room for all of our new SS12 stock! The showroom is now looking fresh and ready for spring/summer. To book an appointment please call us on 0207 352 0066.

J Crew UK
Our suspicions were finally confirmed this week when J Crew finally announced plans to open shops in the UK. Best.News.Ever.

Anybody else as excited as us?

HATE

The loss of Whitney Houston
We were heartbroken to hear about the death of Whitney Houston. Relive one of our favourite Whitney moments here.


Adeles 5 year break
After her incredible comeback performance at the Grammy’s we couldn’t believe the news announcing her 5-year break. Boo!

Adele at the Grammys

For our lovely Fin’s fans

Tuesday, February 14th, 2012

A favourite Whitney moment.

Monday, February 13th, 2012

Valentines Day Gift Guide

Wednesday, February 8th, 2012

Finding the perfect Valentines gift can certainly prove to be a challenge, even with a 20% discount across the entire Fin’s range! So, allow us to give you a helping hand with our Valentines Day gift guide. Whether you plan on celebrating the occasion in style or simply staying in, our gift guide has a little something for everyone.

FOR HIM

Obviously the first stop for any Valentines gifts for the boys has to be Fin’s (and with 20% off the whole range there’s no excuse not to!). But for those of you requiring a little further inspiration here are some of our favourite suggestions guaranteed to put a smile on his face this Valentines Day.

A Classic Watch

We love these chic affordable watches from Uniform Wares – a wear-with-all effortless addition to any man’s wardrobe.

£380. Available from Mr Porter

Otis Batterbee

Fin’s has been a fan of Otis Batterbee for years – there is simply nowhere else to look to for all your wash bag needs.

But saying that, one of their Luxury Hot Water Bottle covers wouldn’t go amiss in these arctic conditions. We love the Mono Spot:

Luxury Hot Water Bottle, £65 from Otis Batterbee

Fin’s Samuel Deck Loafer

Our new Samuel Deck Loafer is guaranteed to impress on Valentines Day. We love!

The Samuel Deck loafer. £100 with 20% Valentines discount

FOR HER

All of us at Fin’s HQ are rather partial to a scarf or five. Bring your gf into spring with this beautiful McQueen paisley number:

£355 from Net-A-Porter

PS – for all those looking for a way to Fin’s heart, did you really think that looking at her blog wouldn’t give you a clue?

Well, good thinking, you’d be right. In our eyes, you can do no wrong with the Romantic Nude Rose Knot. Simply heaven.

Available from Wild Heart.

Valentines Day

Tuesday, February 7th, 2012

SS12 – Wear it Now

Monday, February 6th, 2012

Despite the snow and frost outside the window, all we want to do is talk about our Spring/Summer 2012 collection! Whilst we still have a few months to wait before we’re likely to spot the new Finspadrille Alicante on the feet of our Finsketeers, a few of our new styles are perfect for wearing right now.

So, allow us to introduce some of our favourite transitional pieces for those who simply can’t wait until Spring officially arrives.

The Benny Belt

Much as we hate to admit it, the current UK weather isn’t entirely suitable for our beautiful new Mickey moccasin style. However, our new Benny Belts look both fabulous and weather appropriate with a smart pair of jeans and a cosy knit.

The Benny Belt in Plum,

The George Loafer in Cobalt Blue

This is one of our absolute favourite shoes for Spring/Summer 2012 and we think you can start wearing it now. We suggest pairing it with a pair of dark jeans for a toned down look before pairing with other brights once the weather warms up!

The George in Cobalt Blue, £95.00

The Hooper Belt

Whilst Finpsadrilles might be out of the question for chilly February, our new Hooper belts are more than wearable right now! We think the Hooper is ideal for bringing a spot of colour into your winter wardrobe.

The Hooper Belt, £75.00