At last! Our beloved knee-highs are back
Knee-HIGH boots have been languishing in fashion Siberia of late, and as a result, I have been harbouring venomous thoughts about my own collection — so difficult to store and so apt to resemble squashed pitta breads after winter hibernation.
Like most women, I’ve become an avid ankle boot convert. Kitten heel, velvet, Victorian lace-up, those ubiquitous stack-heeled suede numbers — I’ve dallied with them all.
So it was to my great surprise that while sitting at the autumn/ winter fashion shows — watching Roksanda Ilincic’s gorgeous take on grown-up dressing — Red’s fashion director leaned over and whispered: ‘That’s what we’ll all be wearing this autumn — knee-high boots.’ And just to really knock me off my perch, she added: ‘Red ones.’
I should mention here that my colleague has an unerring knack of editing out the pantomime excesses of fashion and zeroing in on what will actually be hitting the High Street. And so, while my inner skeptic rejected her predictions, I also knew that on this, as on so many occasions, she would inevitably be right.
AnDindeed, kneehigh boots are back! ( If I’m a little late getting with the programme, I blame the mental scarring caused by a ruinously expensive pair of Prada knee-highs I bought in the early noughties, but could never squeeze over my calves, despite the attentions of a wonder cobbler and his stretching machine.)
We can attribute the renaissance of knee-high boots to fashion’s rekindled love affair with Seventies style; see also the return of corduroy, maxi lengths and rich, earthy tones. Less Jilly Cooper book jacket, more Lauren Hutton and Mary Tyler Moore in their heyday.
The designers who nailed it were the aforementioned Roksanda and queen of relaxed French chic, Isabel Marant. (There’s a dream pair of Marant boots in bordeaux leather for £520 on mytheresa.
com.) Valentino and Yves Saint Laurent are also championing knee-highs, with the latter reviving the ‘slouch’ — more on which later.
On the High Street, Maje has a smooth leather knee-high (£420, uk.maje.com). Pair it with an A-line midi skirt and sling a tan saddle bag across your body and — ta- da! — you’re looking at an outfit you can wear for ever. ( For a cheaper option, consider Kurt Geiger’s Trance boot, £239, kurtgeiger.com.)
To get the look right you need some heel height, but do seek out a walkable heel. After all, there’s no casual slipping in and out of a knee-high boot in a restaurant doorway.
There’s a good price-friendly pair at M&S (£125, marksand
spencer.com) in rich oxblood leather with a heel that packs the requisite heft.
I also like APC’s ‘Iris’ blockheel knee boot, £ 560 at
matchesfashion.com, which is more of an off-duty option.
So what about slouch boots? A bit of extra width and a relaxed attitude looks perfectly modern, but a full-on ripple is likely to become a one-season ironic joke.
Do check out the fantastic suede Sancia boot in the And/ Or collection, exclusive to John Lewis (£179, johnlewis.
com), for a style that gets the slouch just right.
It won’t have escaped your notice that over- the- knee boots are also in the stores in plentiful supply. Unless you happen to be Brigitte Macron ( petite, chic, French), I’m inclined to say avoid them — they look too try-hard and vampy to my eye.
Which brings us back to red boots. Mixing up shades of ketchup, mulberry and vermillion in the boldest of bold combinations is another super-stylish way to go.
There is a fabulous pair of burgundy knee-highs on La Redoute now (£59.60 reduced from £149, laredoute.co.uk). I’ll be wearing mine on the front row.