To set shoes apart from each other and the competition, heels do come in different shapes, but it is not often they get a companion. Nicholas Kirwood, has paired a pearl to the slender heel of its Maeva pump, forming a rather fetching ‘10’, with the pearl as a superscript zero.

It’s hard not to be attracted to the shiny globular gem. In fact, its probable you’ll want to take a close look at it than the shoe itself, which is a rather classic scarpin with pointed toe, very much a style you’d associate with Sabrina Fairchild or Jo Stockton, both aka Audrey Hepburn. That’s, of course, not a bad thing.

It is truly the pearl that pulls. But it may also repulse. To superstitious Chinese, a single pearl held between two planes may bring to mind the one placed in the mouth of the deceased as symbol to ensure safe passage through the netherworld. Or, by other beliefs, to prevent the spirit from returning to dwell among the earthly.

Nicholas Kirkwood likely did not consider superstition when he placed the pearl in front of the slightly curved—condensed C—Maeva heel. In fact, aesthetic appeal held court since pearls and Nicholas Kirkwood heels are almost synonymous. Although it is not certain if the pearls are authentic (likely not), they have appeared in other of Mr Kirkwood’s heels, such as those of the Casati loafers.

The quirky elegance of the Maeva Pearl Pump cannot be denied even when, for many women these days, its conventional shape may not hold tremendous allure. Perhaps that’s a blessing in disguise, since in a transaction the brand could potentially avoid casting pearls before swines.

Nicholas Kirkwood suede Maeva Pearl Pump, SGD1,100, is available at Pedder on Scotts. Photo: Nicholas Kirkwood