Bailey's raises a glass to charity

The holidays are all about giving — and the makers of Baileys Irish Cream are getting into the spirit of the season by selling unique, Bailey's-inspired designer shoes to benefit Clothes Off Our Back, a charity that auctions items donated by celebrities to support various causes.

The liqueur giant recruited Alejandro Ingelmo, Farylrobin, Rafe Totengco, Shree Moni and Vanessa Noel to design the unique shoes based on the Baileys brand. Some drew inspiration from the brand's palette of maroons, tans and browns, while others envisioned the signature liquid-over-ice look of Baileys' ads.

There is a Swarovski crystal-encrusted heel from Noel, a caged patent leather heel designed by Totengco, a suede-and-snakeskin bootie from Shree Moni and a buttery brown heel from Ingelmo with embossed Baileys double Bs. Farylrobin produced the most interesting shoe, made out of creamy velvet and leather with a low-slung, plexiglass heel made to look like ice cubes splashed with caramel. One quick glance and you might think real Baileys is swirling around in there.

There is a downside to Baileys charity effort — the one-of-a-kind heels come in only one size, and anyone who is not a size 6 or 7 will miss out on the chance to wear these unique shoes. The solution? In a press release, Baileys made a suggestion: "Any shoe lover knows that shoe stretchers, foot pads, or even specially crafted display cases were designed for moments like this." Larger-footed women must ask themselves: Is bidding high worth admiring the designs through the glass instead of on my feet?

Baileys auctioned the shoes to the 21-and-over demographic on the Clothes Off Our Back website until Dec. 2, beginning each bid at $75. All proceeds went to the nonprofit organization.

The liqueur brand also opened two temporary shoe stores in New York and Los Angeles for a few days in November, with proceeds also going to Clothes Off Our Back. Labels like L.A.M.B., Sergio Rossi and Barbara Bui joined collaborators Farylrobin and Noel to participate in the massive sale, which marked the designer shoes — which could run upward of $600 — down to $75 a pair.

Bailey's charity kick isn't just helping out —it made for a lot of happy wallets and happy feet this holiday season.