The Big Red Boots

At New York Fashion Week, a select few designer pieces become the favorites of the crowd. Everyone wore The Row’s minimalist strappy shoes and tank shirts with the Prada emblem last year. Nevertheless, one shoe that was meant to go viral overshadowed tiny Manolos this past week: MSCHF’s huge red boots, also known as the Big Red Boot. If MSCHF is foreign to you, they are the experimental fashion company that enjoys leveraging the launch of new products to make a statement (often controversial ones). They’ve created sandals fashioned from Hermès Birkins, Birkenstock boots that mimic surgical casts, and even Devil sneakers developed in partnership with Lil Nas X that included a drop of actual blood in the soles.

Getty Images/ Getty Images Entertainment/ Sean Drakes

The brand enjoys testing the limits of fashion and, more importantly, making news. Today marks the launching of their most recent product, which resembles something Mario from Super Mario might wear. They have a $350 suggested retail price, a TPU rubber upper, an EVA midsole, and a video game-inspired design. During New York Fashion Week, the enormous boots were noticed on famous people and street style icons. Dorian Electra, who dressed them with a graphic coat, small skirt (to completely reveal the shoes), and a coordinating red hat, street style photographer for Vogue Phil Oh photographed them. TikTok celebrity and model Wisdom Kaye dressed them with sports shorts, while model Sarah Snyder wore a shiny red skirt and white tights.

Given how strange and impractical the footwear is, it’s surprising to see how quickly—and widely—the fashion industry has jumped on them, and that’s before they’ve ever been published. They need a lot of effort to put on and take off, as shown in a number of TikTok videos. They are undoubtedly a commitment to wear. But if there’s one thing that fashion enthusiasts adore, it’s a gimmick, and this season, these boots were the talk of the town.