Today we’d like to introduce you to Yvonne Liao

Hi Yvonne, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.

From a very young age, I dreamed of becoming a fashion designer. I remembered always being inspired after watching the annual Miss Universe competition on television. The contestants’ colorful and fancy evening gowns led me to spend countless hours sketching models in elaborate outfits. I would draw on any blank surface I could find, including the backs of old calendars and notebooks. In school, I even organized fashion sketching competitions with my classmates, where we judged each other’s designs during our free time.

My passion for fashion took a pivotal turn during a visit to a shoe factory in China, owned by a friend’s father. I was about 15 years old, and witnessing the shoe-making process firsthand on the factory floor was an eye-opening experience. The highlight of the trip was choosing shoes from the factory’s sample collection. I even had to buy an extra suitcase just to bring all the shoes back home. This experience deepened my fascination with footwear, as I found that while people often judged my clothing choices, they could never make the same judgement about my bold and colorful shoes. This allowed me to express my fashion individuality in a way that felt both fun and liberating.

In my late twenties, I finally found the courage to pursue my passion and left Singapore and enrolled in Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) to study fashion management. During my first year in school, a vacation to New York with my sister made me fall in love with the city. I knew right then and there that New York was where I wanted to be after graduation.

I officially moved to New York in January 2013 and was fortunate to gain diverse working experience in the fashion industry over the years. However, as the years wore on, I became increasingly uninspired by the fashion scene, especially with the lack of fun, vibrant and colorful shoes on the streets in a city known for its fashion-forward reputation.

So in 2018, I decided to learn shoemaking to create fun and colorful shoes for myself. I initially wanted to design bold and colorful high heels, but after years of running and wearing fashionable but uncomfortable high heels and pointed sandals, I developed plantar fasciitis and bunions. The harsh concrete streets of New York did not help either, and I found myself searching for fun, colorful and comfortable shoes to alleviate my painful heels for everyday wear but was frustrated because I could not find any footwear (other than boring sneakers and running shoes) that met my needs. It was not until I started sharing my shoe problems with other women that I was surprised to discover that many of them also preferred comfortable, stylish shoes over high heels. This realization inspired me to create vibrant, comfortable footwear that they could wear from day to night.

Therefore, I decided to launch my footwear to fill the need and void in the marketplace for bold, vibrant, and comfortable footwear that the urban fashionistas can wear every day and anywhere – from boardroom meetings and dinner parties to lazy Sunday brunches and relaxing beach vacations at Bora Bora.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

To be brutally honest, I have often found myself to be my greatest obstacle. Despite my deep passion for designing and making my own shoes, I struggled for a long time with a lack of courage and confidence to fully commit to shoemaking. My fear of failure frequently held me back, preventing me from taking the bold steps needed to turn my dream into reality.

However, there is a saying in Buddhism that “nothing is ever wasted.” Although it took me longer than I had hoped to realize my goals, this time was not spent in vain. It allowed me to refine my ideas and develop a clearer vision of my designs. Additionally, my experience working in various facets of the fashion industry—particularly in sales, production, and operations—provided me with invaluable insights that have significantly contributed to my growth as a designer.

This journey has not only shaped my approach to footwear design but also reinforced my commitment to creating shoes that blend style with comfort, reflecting both my personal vision and the needs of modern women.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?

I design and make my own shoes from scratch! Compared to many other established shoe designers and shoemakers in the field, I am still learning and honing my craft as I continue to make more shoes.

I love making bright and colorful shoes for women and love to add bejeweled hardware like rhinestones and metal studs on my shoes for extra bling. I also tend to use a lot red, gold and silver colored materials because of my Asian cultural influence. These colors symbolizes good luck, great fortune and opulence. Life is already boring enough, why not wear a pair of fun and colorful shoes that brighten up your day?

I am different from other shoe designers in that I like to design and make shoes from scratch. Many people might not know this, but making a pair of shoes from scratch is a very laborious and time-consuming process that takes many hours! On average, I take about 20-30hours to make a pair of covered shoes like Mary-Janes or pumps, beginning with hand drawn design sketches to making the uppers, midsoles and outsoles, and putting everything together. Some processes like cutting and fitting the outsole can take hours to make sure it fits the shoes.

How do you think about happiness?

I lead a very hectic life juggling multiple hats, so I am the happiest when I get to sit down and do nothing in solitude, such as savoring the first cup of coffee in the early hours of the morning when the neighborhood is still asleep. This is the moment where I feel the most refreshed after a full night’s sleep and get the best ideas or solutions for issues that I am facing at the moment.

I am also the happiest during my morning runs with my 85 pound mutt dog. Over the years we developed a steady jogging rhythm together, with him close by my side. I enjoy every moment seeing his ears flapping in the wind, as well as his relentless but futile efforts in running after all the squirrels, birds and deers in the forest.

Last but not least, happiness to me is making sure that I spend quality time with my family and friends, and being able to spend time on creative projects like painting and making shoes. I often get lost in the flow while I am painting or making shoes, and it makes me happy when I completed a painting or a pair of shoes as I envisioned in my mind.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.yvonneliaonyc.com
• Instagram: @yvonneliaonyc
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yvonneliaonyc