A while back, self proclaimed ambassador to all things stylish, Olivia Palermo hired a freelance writer blogged about the biggest challenge a woman can face: finding the perfect flat.  Her solution?  Stubbs & Wooton‘s exquisitely embroidered slippers, that you can have monogrammed… in silver or 18k gold.

Suede loafers, the Stubbs & Wooton version

Love the idea but don’t have a spare $400 to burn?  Monogramming loafers doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg, and you can still have a beautiful pair of personalized flats.

I came across these 14th & Union plain black suede loafers at Nordstrom.  They were the perfect canvas to try my monogramming experiment.  Once I had the shoes, I did a little bit of research into finding someone who could embroider shoes.  I was surprised, but many places that do embroidery won’t do it on things beyond shirts or bags.  I finally came across a gifted stitcher who said she would give it a try.

I came by the shop and went about picking a style and thread for my monogram.  I wanted something simple that would go with a lot of different color combinations and styles.  So I picked Shangri-La which was a nice light color somewhere between sand and coral.

I didn’t want to do anything too bright, or choose something too plain like white.

Next, we had to place the loafer on the machine.  See that metal bar on on the bottom right?  The shoe has to fit onto that bar in order for the machine to monogram it, so if you want a huge monogram or a monogram on the side, you’ll have to get it hand monogrammed which is significantly more expensive, unless you’ve got a super talented Grandma waiting in the wings somewhere.  Getting it done on a machine like the one above, cost me $20.

In the end you’ll have a pair of fabulous looking flats.

A close up of the monogram.

Aside from getting yourself a pair, they’d be a perfect personalized gift for a sister, mother, niece, or close friend!

Happy monogramming!

-L