Haters be damned, Erika Girardi loves white heels — or “hooker shoes,” as she affectionately refers to them on social media.
“I’m really fascinated by a white pumps — I know they are trashy,” the “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star admits to Footwear News. “It’s so wrong, it’s right.”
The singer wrapped her season six debut on the Bravo reality series on Monday and will be channeling her onstage alter ego Erika Jayne on several forthcoming concert dates.
When Girardi becomes Jayne, she hits the stage in customized thigh-high boots from cobbler-to-the-stars Andre No. 1, the shoemaker responsible for the late Prince’s heels and boots for the band Kiss, among other boldface name entertainers.
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When she’s not behind the mic, Girardi prefers to wear heels from Christian Louboutin and Giuseppe Zanotti. “I like really, really high heels,” she says. “Shoes change a woman’s silhouette and finish the look. When I’m not working or being crazy, I wear sneakers — Nikes or Adidas.”
Here, the admitted “shoe addict” who estimates she has “north of 300 pairs of shoes” shares with FN her favorite shoe styles.
Footwear News: What is your favorite pair of shoes?
Erika Girardi: “My white Louboutin So Kates. I’m really fascinated by a white pumps — I know they are trashy. I look at certain pairs and they make me feel like a certain character. It’s so wrong, it’s right.”
FN: How did you determine the design of your closet?
EJ: “My interior designer Joan Behnke and I decided on a sexy opium den, red-themed dressing room-closet. Kind of Shanghai-inspired and moody-moody. I traveled all over Asia, so that was it.”
FN: What’s the trick to staying comfortable in heels all day?
EJ: “Shoes are not meant to be comfortable, especially the ones I wear. You’re going to be a woman or a mouse. RuPaul said, ‘Flats are for quitters,’ and I tend to agree.”
FN: Describe your shoe style for concert performances.
EJ: “I have a show for gay pride and the costuming is Erika Jayne — over the top. My footwear is black patent over-the-knee boots for the show. Every now and then I break my boots. I like to be covered over the knee because I get kicked by the [dancers]. It also creates a beautiful line along the leg.”
FN: What’s your earliest shoe memory?
EJ: “It was during the ‘Saturday Night Fever’ craze, and my mom would take disco lessons with my father. She had these wrap dresses, and they had these tall shoes — they were thick, chunky in the ‘70s, and I remember getting into the closet putting them on and standing in thinking I could never stand in them. I was 7 or 8 when I put on real pumps. I’m 44, almost 45 now.
FN: What’s the priciest footwear in your closet?
EG: “Some of my Louboutins are around $5,000.”
FN: What boutiques do you frequent?
EG: I get a lot of them online. Sportie LA is good for sneakers.
