Engineer designs high heel shoe to look and feel great

NEW YORK (WABC) -- It is a love-hate relationship for most women, and perhaps some men, when it comes to high heel shoes.

People love the way they look, but hate the way they feel.

Now an engineer is designing shoes in the way she thinks will look and feel great.

Tiannia Barnes has a thing for shoes, so much so, she decided to design her own.

"I love a stiletto," Barnes said. "A good shoe, it can kind of transform your day."

And while she doesn't have a background in fashion, she's on sure footing with a degree in industrial engineering.

"Engineering is about creating, it's about having as foundation and building off of it I'm not using it in the traditional sense, but in developing a shoe," Barnes said.

Barnes also has a math degree, but she's spent most of her post college years in IT and consulting. Her divorce sparked her to move in a new direction.

"I was in a restaurant eating by myself and I just started sketching on a napkin, started showing my friends and they said, 'Ah this is pretty good,'" Barnes said.

She took an intensive class in shoemaking and in September she launched her line.

"I love this shoe because it is sexy and edgy," Barnes said.

From the edgy to the practical and something in between, she has 10 styles so far all while raising her son and working full-time in consulting.

Right now Barnes sells her shoes on her eponymous website http://tianniabarnes.com/. They retail for $300-$600 a pair and she has several boutiques lined up.

In her spare time, Barnes speaks to female students about the importance of stem science, technology, and engineering.

"I think it's important to show the journey I took," Barnes said.

Because as Barnes has learned, you never know where it will take you.

"I've had time to connect with my inner self, my passion, I'm getting there, I'm walking in my passion," Barnes said.