Any vintage lover would immediately see the value of a beaded item, whether it be a jacket, a pair of pants, or shoes. Just the amount of time and effort that goes into the skilled art of hand beading automatically increases the worth of that piece of clothing, and when you get something as beautiful as these, you’ll understand why they’re prized (and priced) so highly:

Beaded satin wedding shoes circa 1890

Edwardian rhinestone beaded silk dress shoes

Bronze satin evening shoes with beaded buckles circa 1927

The intricate patterns, the bead color matching, the fine craftsmanship – details like these make vintage beaded shoes evoke a feeling of richness, luxury, and glamour. But the knowledge of how much work went into each beaded shoe also evokes a sense of gratitude, honor for being able to wear such a beautiful pair of shoes someone painstakingly labored over.

Beaded shoes we have now are mostly made by automated systems, high-tech equipment and heavy machinery. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a shoe brand that still employs traditional hand beading methods; they have to resort to automated beading in order to remain competitive.

Although the sense of gratitude is lost somewhat, the good thing about that is they have duplicated the sense of luxury in modern beaded shoes at a fraction of the vintage shoe’s cost. Here are some modern beaded shoes in various styles:

Toe Loop Sandals

Donald J Pliner Garnet, $295.00

D’Orsay Pumps

Nine West Janika, $71.06

Gladiator Sandals

BCBGeneration Uma, $78.95

Wedges

Charles by Charles David Mosaic, $89.95

Booties

Fratelli Rossetti 62602, $580.00

Which do you prefer? Vintage beaded shoes or modern beaded shoes?

All of these beaded shoe styles are available for purchase at Zappos.com.

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