Ukrainian student wins Cordwainers Footwear Award

Yevheniia Mizevych, a Ukrainian footwear student at the London College of Fashion (LCF), has won first prize in the design category at the 13th annual Cordwainers Footwear Awards, which were held in London on June 11.

Mizevych, who has done internships with Burberry, Phoebe Philo and Hunter Boots, impressed the Cordwainers judging panel with her ‘The Mine’ submission, which drew inspiration from her family’s heritage “with pit ponies and coal mine conveyor belts”. As the winner, she receives 3,000 pounds.

Second place, with a cash prize of 2,000 pounds, was awarded to Ceci Sariol, LCF, for her surreal, sculptural designs, while third place, with a 1,000-pound cash prize, went to Silva Coco, LCF, for her experimental erasable, graphite shoe that leaves a trace as it wears away.

The coveted Stuart Weitzman Award for Creativity was awarded to Anna Boutashkova of the Royal College of Art (RCA), whose submission, ‘Objects of Continuous Gestures,’ was praised for its “fluid beauty,” drawing inspiration from her background in classical ballet and costume. The honour comes with a cash prize of 1,500 pounds.

Cordwainers honour footwear students and Manolo Blahnik at annual awards

There was more success for LCF in the Cordwainers Craft of Shoemaking 2026 award, with the first prize awarded to Matthew Gill, for his exploration of wool and leather boots as “objects of skills, failures, affordances and tactile engagement”. He receives 3,000 pounds and 12 days of tuition with bespoke shoemaker Carréducker.

Second place went to full-time engineer Damon Ma for his metallic green, storm-welted monkey boots, and third place to luxury leather artist Ross Edwin Bell with a pair of riding boots, which were praised for their “elegant simplicity belying a complex handsewn construction”.

There was also a new award for 2026, an ‘Emerging Sole’ award named in memory of the late Daniel Charkow, a young Canadian footwear designer who trained at LCF and worked for Sophia Webster before his untimely death in 2024. The inaugural award was presented to LCF’s Haiyu Bo, who impressed the judges with her “creativity, depth of thought, and conceptual approach,” which they state embodied Charkow’s design vision. Her work is driven by a fascination with forms that “feel fragile, light and full of tension,” and explores the space between material, structure and the body, merging sculptural ideas with the practical demands of shoemaking.

Commenting on the calibre of this year’s submissions, Katie Greenyer, chair of the design judging panel, said in a statement: “Student design awards should always push boundaries. They’re about more than commercial potential, they’re a platform for bold ideas, experimentation and creative expression. The catwalk is where those ideas truly come alive.”

In addition to the student awards, footwear legend Manolo Blahnik was also awarded the Sue Saunders Award for Excellence “in acknowledgement of his dedicated commitment to creativity and craftsmanship”.