'I would give up my firstborn for a pair of beautiful shoes,' says model turned television host Lisa 'S' Selesner, jokingly, as she chooses her favourite pairs from a collection that's in the hundreds. The entrance hall of the home she shares with her husband, actor Daniel Wu Yin-cho, is a shrine to her shoes, which occupy three-quarters of the wall-spanning cabinet. The remaining space holds Wu's equally impressive sneakers collection.
'My husband and I have had petty discussions about my shoe shopping,' says Selesner, who confesses to returning to Hong Kong with 10 new pairs from a recent trip to the US. 'It's rare for me to buy shoes here because I am a size 40, and the stores almost never carry my size. If they do, they have only one pair and I have to battle it out with every white woman in Hong Kong to get them.'
Though she is a towering 1.8 metres, Selesner still prefers high heels over flats. She has about 100 pairs with four-inch heels or higher. There are pairs from Roger Vivier, Jimmy Choo, Salvatore Ferragamo, Sergio Rossi, Christian Louboutin and Manolo Blahnik. Her favourites are from Miu Miu. 'I think they make the best shoes. It's seldom you find a designer who can do fabulous clothes and amazing, comfortable shoes at the same time.'
Her Miu Miu collection includes sandals with jewel-encrusted heels, strappy leopard prints and classic stiletto pumps. 'I just love the pumps. I had to fly to Los Angeles to get them but they only had them in purple. I still got those, but when I flew home to New York, I went and bought them in black,' she says.
'I think I got my love for shoes from my mother. When she was working in New York, she refused to wear sneakers on the commute like other working women in the city. She insisted on high heels. She was Carrie Bradshaw before Carrie Bradshaw even existed.'
Shoes aside, Selesner describes her personal style as 'casual, comfortable and chic'. She lives mostly in jeans and T-shirts - and her jeans collection, which stands at more than 50 pairs, is testament to her fashion aesthetic. 'I have different fits, cuts and washes. My favourites are the ones from Paige because they hug my body well.