Celebrities and Socialites Love Bond No. 9

See a shoe and Pick it up and all day long you’ll have Good Luck.

So said Andy Warhol half a century ago, when he first got noticed …

as a shoe illustrator ensconced on Lexington Avenue.

Bond No. 9 returns to Warhol’s origins

and celebrates the mutual sensuality of shoes and eau de parfum.

Andy Warhol is perhaps best known for pioneering Pop Art, but Bond No. 9 is banking on a less commonly known fact about the artist: his foot fetish. The perfumery is launching its Andy Warhol Lexington Avenue scent this September, (the third fragrance in a series of Andy Warhol collectible scents) and just in time for what would be the agent provocateur’s 80th birthday.

The inspiration for the fragrance came from Warhol’s formative pre-Pop years in New York during the 50s when he was living on Lexington Avenue and working as an illustrator for the legendary shoe establishment, I. Miller. The launch celebrates the fashionable, sophisticated, and successful women of New York City through the whimsical lens of Andy Warhol. The bottle is appropriately decorated in a collage of shoes and boots commissioned by I. Miller. 400 limited-edition bottles will feature silver shoe pendants by jeweler Robert Lee Morris.

The overall effect is witty and sophisticated-as assured as the high-stepping optimism of the mid-century America of Warhol’s shoe-illustrating years. Lush and unapologetically seductive, Andy Warhol Lexington Avenue dares to link two of the most ultra-feminine commodities a woman can own, fragrance and footwear.

The Andy Warhol Lexington Avenue Scent:

* Crisp BLUE CYPRESS (Attention, fragrance scholars: rare example of a wood as a top note)
* Smoky, licorice-like FENNEL, hinting of a tall glass jar of old-fashioned twizzlers
* CARDAMOM-the curry spice in a lusty, provocative mood
* ROASTED ALMONDS-the mind-numbing key component of marzipan
* Impudently beautiful PINK PEONY
* FLORENTINE ORRIS-the intoxicating root of the lovely iris flower, a sultry love potion
* CRÉME BRULEE so lusty it slithers out of its little ramekin
* PIMENTO BERRY, expressing its true peppery nature once it’s released from the confines of the olive
* Paradoxical PATCHOULI-sweet, dark, and haunting all at once
* SANDALWOOD that seduces as it soothes

Most women love the fast-paced, sense-awakening energy of New York. From the bright lights in Times Square to the posh Park Avenue, it’s like a whole different world as we go from neighborhood to neighborhood. Bond no. 9 captures the essence of the city - complete with all its sexiness and enticement.

The Collection of 18 Bond No. 9 neighborhood scents, for men and women, is perfect for those who want to give the entire City of New York as a gift.

Chelsea Flowers smells like an exuberant bouquet of peonies, tulips, hyacinth, magnolia and rose. Caught at the peak of freshness, imagine they’ve just been wrapped at the Chelsea Market, leaving traces not just of the insolently fresh flowers,but of the musk, sandalwood, vetiver, and tree moss that surround them.

The Bond no. 9 line is all about New York City.

~Eau de New York: A nice solifloral Lily scent with a Neroli head note and a peppery end note.
~Chinatown: A very wearable oriental - Peach Blossoms, Gardenia, Patchouli, Cardamom.
~Little Italy: A citrussy scent with a nod to Gelato. The Clementine note truly sparkles.
~Coney Island is a gourmand scent with fruits, vanilla, and chocolate in a light sandalwood & cedar base.

People Magazine’s Haute List:

“10 Best Dressed Stars of 2008″

As the saying goes, fame is measured in column inches. People magazine’s coveted list of “10 Best Dressed Stars of 2008″ applauds celebrity fashion from hippie chic to hip-hop couture.  But what about the shoes?  The glorious, glorious shoes!  ShoeMinx singles out the stars’ best shoe moments of the year for applause (and envy).

Michelle Obama

Wife of presidential candidate Barack Obama

Mrs. O dresses her classic Talbots look with pearls and coordinated heels or flats that bring to mind another famous first lady. But we suspect that there’s an inner stiletto girl yearning to burst free.  Dancing at the inaugural ball with her newly elected presidential hubby would be the perfect occasion to step into a killer pair of heels and her new role as fashionable first lady.  And in the race to the White House, the democratic first-lady-in-waiting leads in fashion polls, topping Cindy McCain two to zero in best dressed wins.

Sarah Jessica Parker

Actress, Sex and the City; Bitten clothing designer

We love it when life imitates art. Just like her wildly popular Sex and the City character, Carrie Bradshaw, Sarah Jessica Parker has a serious addiction to shoes. When asked about Carrie in a recent interview, SJP says, “She could probably count on a Manolo more than a man. So is it better than sex? Yes!” Hmm, what does that imply about hubby Matthew Broderick? And also says she has no problem walking in towering stilettos, “I could run a marathon in heels, wake up the next day and run another one.”

Charlize Theron

Oscar-winning actress, Monster

“If they ever do my life story, whoever plays me needs lots of hair color and high heels.”

Rihanna

“Good Girl Gone Bad” singer

After a style “SOS,” the Barbadian beauty transformed from a generic PG cutie to a funky R&B princess with an enviable look from the top of her punky hairdo to the bottoms of her architectural shoes. From DSquared tricked out booties to Balenciaga gladiators with shin-guards, one thing you won’t find in her ever-rotating shoe wardrobe: boring black heels.

Anne Hathaway

Actress, The Devil Wears Prada

“Shoes are it for me . . . A designer can have 12 completely different pairs of shoes within a season so you really just need to go by the individual shoe, but I do love Marc Jacobs for shoes a lot.”

Eva Mendes

Actress, The Women

When asked if she were to sell her soul, and what would it be for, the sultry actress quipped, “A billion dollars and I would buy lots of shoes!”  ShoeMinx is pretty sure Giuseppe Zanotti and Salvatore Ferragamo would give them to her gratis.

Gwyneth Paltrow

Oscar-winning actress, Shakespeare in Love

After Madonna’s gal pal traipsed red carpets across the globe for “Iron Man” press junkets in a selection of vertiginous skyscrapers from Alexander McQueen and Giuseppe Zanotti, she can officially be nicknamed: Queen of the Sky-high Stilettos.  The “Gwyneth effect” caused a huge surge in the sale of the fetish style shoes, especially the pair she wore to the London premiere. Super-high heels by the likes of Balenciaga, Christian Louboutin and Yves Saint Laurent also got the Gwyneth bounce in sales.

People’s fashion favorites also include My Best Friend’s Girl star Kate Hudson, “Project Runway’s” Heidi Klum, and “Dutchess” singer Fergie.

No best dressed look is complete without Christian Louboutin’s signature red sole. Shop for covet-worthy Loubs to go with your LBD here.