By Max Berlinger for GQ.
Phillip Lim is bringing his talents to the incredibly cozy (but not always stylish) iconic footwear.
We've seen the rise of Birkenstocks, high-end water socks gain traction, and even the return of square-toed shoes, so when it comes to crazy footwear trends, we're pretty hard to shock. And yet, when we caught wind that Californian brand Ugg — whose boots were most famously seen on trendy teenage girls in the early aughts — was given the nod of approval by New York design whiz Phillip Lim, even we were a little taken aback.
The limited-edition capsule Ugg boot collection will consist of four styles to be sold as part of the brand 3.1 Phillip Lim's fall-winter 2017 collection, to be shown next week in Paris. "As a designer, I am constantly interested in exploring unexpected elements to create new aesthetic propositions," Lim said of his riff on the classic boot silhouette, which has reached icon status in certain circles. "One of the reasons I wanted to collaborate with Ugg is because I felt that together we could create a collection that would inspire a laid back sense of cool. The approach stemmed from my California roots and memories of wearing UGG — a pure expression of unexpected fun and casual elegance.”
Now Ugg boots gaining a foothold (heh) in the industry isn't too surprising. With fashion currently in thrall of a certain 90s vibe and the critically lauded brand Vetements collaborating with early aughts hot brand Juicy Couture (which was often paired with Uggs by the likes of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan), it might just be time to reconsider the shoe, which is, at its heart, the footwear manifestation of the very popular cozy boy style going around. And Lim's zippered revision on the style, is a convincing proposition if ever we've seen one.
And while we know there may still be some skeptics out there, we say keep an open mind and take a good long look at the pictures below. You have a few months before they ultimately hit stores, and by then you might just have changed your mind.
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