Melissa + Gaetano Pesce .jpgLondon's Design Museum today announced its long list of nominations for 2012 designs of the year, and we were interested to see Brazilian footwear label Melissa had made it on to the list, for the collaboration with Italian architect and designer Gaetano Pesci. Pesce created the bobbly ankle boots pictured above, which were rendered in squelchy rubber with a bugglegum scent for the full Melissa treatment.

What makes the boot original is the fact that it is fully customisable by the wearer, as the pebble-like discs are easily removed. Don't like the hi-top silhouette? You can cut it down as low as you want it to go. Want to create an open sided sandal for summer? Just grab some scissors and remove a few discs. Even if this avant-garde look is not your usual style, you've got to admit it's a clever design.

The boot now goes up against Vivienne Westwood's Africa collection A/W 11, Mary Katrantzou's A/W 11 collection, Alexander McQueen's Savage Beauty exhibition, Kate Middleton's wedding dress and a handful of other design heavyweights in the fashion category, and a host of other designs and objects in the wider list, which includes Kinect for XBox 360 and the Olympic Torch. All of the nominations will be on show at the Designs of the Year exhibition at the Design Museum from 8 February - 15 July 2012