Instagram to Watch: The Berlin Shoe Designer Cobbling Footwear Out of Furniture

Instagram: @magwoodoo

Founder: Magdalena Woodmann

Current location: Berlin, Germany

Followers: About 2,500

The gist: The Italian-born, Berlin-based artist Magdalena Woodmann at times bears a striking to resemblance to Frida Kahlo. Her lo-fi feed is a treasure trove of elaborate footwear seemingly plucked out of Renaissance-era paintings. Styles include upholstered kitten heels with drape fringe that are bejeweled with cameos, and pairs that are mummified in ribbon and string, complete with exposed insulating foam that’s fastened with a pearl stickpin. The deliciously bizarre and over-the-top account includes footwear-forward followers like cult Instagram account @crimesagainstshoemanity and fashion editor @emanuela_amato.

Woodmann sources her fabrics in an eco-friendly way: “All materials [are] found on [the] streets in Berlin,” writes Woodmann. “I work with fabrics from couches, colors I create myself, et cetera. I use other shoes as [a] base [and] then create from there.”

The process to build an ornate, fit-for-a-king shoe takes time: Woodmann creates the radical bespoke designs by thinking about the person she is making them for, taking into consideration the client’s personality, colors, aesthetic. Sometimes, creating the shoe takes three to four hours but, according to Woodmann, after she’s done, she examines them for up to 20 hours from different angles. “I’m obsessed,” she says.

She got her start in shoemaking early: As a child, Woodmann would skip school to learn how to make shoes from a cobbler who specialized in traditional Sardinian shoemaking.

The most complicated shoe she’s ever made actually has roots in Sardinia: Woodmann flew to the island, touching down in Spiaggia Rosa, which translates to “pink beach,” to gather seashells to make her most complicated shoe yet, a pair of verdant green mules with heels meticulously covered in tiny white shells. “I collected them then I flew back to Berlin to create the shoes,” she says. “I needed a week to make it.”

There’s a religious aspect, as well: A pair of blue-and-green mules, sprouting with wisps of gold thread, have footbeds that boast the images of Mother Mary and the Madonna and Child. Another pair rich pair includes a photo of the Pope.

But there are creations for sneaker lovers, too: Woodmann has been giving sneakers quite the lovely makeover, covering a pair of Nikes in a rich tapestry, replacing the laces with a dainty pink bow, and recreating the brand’s swoosh sign in orange. And for those taking track and field to the club, there’s a pair of heeled trainers in the mix. Calling all sneaker heads in touch with their fancy side.

The shoes have that It, can’t-look-away-factor: Her footwear often attracts an array of onlookers, including people Woodmann herself would never expect a reaction or a stare from, like a random child or a businessman. “So funny, in these moments I can feel the power of my shoes and realize that they are not just a fashion object but something more,” she says.

Fun fact: Woodmann only wears the shoes that she makes. That’s dedication—and great footwear taste, too.