About me

My name is Arianna De Stefano, I'm a shoes and accessories designer, from Tuscany, Italy.

I started developing my passion for contemporary and leather footwear during my time at a language focused High School in Castiglion Fiorentino. After graduating, I decided to follow this fascination and the love for drawing, therefore I enrolled in IED (Istituto Europeo di Design) in Florence. In their three years Bachelor course in Fashion Design - Shoes and Accessories, I was able to cultivate technical skills studying the Adobe softwares and the patternmaking of shoes.

Right after the Bachelor's degree, I had the opportunity to strengthen my knowledge on the subject thanks to an Internship in the Production Office for shoes of the Italian company Idee Partners srl, in the area of Florence. This experience allowed me to better understand the production timing, by being in charge of contacting suppliers, organizing and ordering stock materials and checking the quality of samples.

In 2018, I entered the Master course in Accessories Design at Polimoda, Florence. This highly inspiring and stimulating environment allowed me to define my identity as a designer with my collection ITO. Managing every aspect of the project, from the first sketch to the finished product, helped me develop a deeper knowledge of the necessary steps to build a collection. Minimal lines and distinctive details of ITO transmit a sense of modernity and comfort, trying to give a new life and aspect to traditional styles.

A few months ago, my work experience as a Designer at Centro Accessori SpA ended. This company is based in the Marche region, which is famous as a shoe-making district of Italy. Working in their Design Office changed the way I look at hardware and accessories for shoes, discovering their potential and their strong impact on designs. The collection I worked on was focused on the research of new materials and special paints, printing techniques for ribbons and elastics, as well as innovative ways to style hardware and plastic accessories.

Just recently, during 2020, I was able to work as a freelancer, designing a small shoe collection. Another small project I worked on was created for the contest "A Talent for Shoes" by Cercal. I also had the opportunity to make a speech for an online class of the University of Macerata, about "Sustainability and Its impact on the Design Process".