Best known for his trademark use of unique materials, including cork, vinyl, Lucite and wallpaper, and his creation of one-of-a-kind, "million dollar" shoes for Oscar nominees to wear at the Academy Awards (including the diamond-encrusted platinum sandals worn by Laura Harring in 2002), Stuart Weitzman's own private collection of historic shoes, features a similarly eclectic range of styles and materials.

An introduction by Weitzman explains why his collection is both a celebration of unusual and elegant detail and construction, and an inspiration in the creation of his own designs. This is followed by an exploration of how 20th-century design and culture-architecture, popular dances, Hollywood, politics and the emerging feminist movement-influenced shoe design and manufacture, wonderfully illustrated with examples from the Weitzman collection and contextual images.