Fashion’s love affair with weird footwear has led to unlikely trends for clogs, wellies and even the much-derided Crocs flourishing during coronavirus lockdowns. The latest may test even the most style-devoted: split-toe shoes.
Toe-curling for some, split-toe shoes have recently been seen in the most high fashion places. This week, Rihanna wore Balenciaga’s “five-finger” boots with an individual “sock” for each toe.
This month, Matthew Williams included a pair of high-heeled sandals with three loops around the toes in his first Givenchy collection, a look that was compared on social media to Scooby-Doo’s paws, while Vogue described the trend as “status toe”.
The tabi boot, a design with one split at the front, which was first designed by Martin Margiela in 1988, is being discovered by a new generation, and featured among the eye-catching costumes designed by Sex and the City’s Patricia Field for Netflix’s Emily in Paris this month.
The designs recall the 1970s trend for divided toe socks and fit into a wider interest in that decade in fashion. But it is 90s nostalgia that could be responsible for the resurgence of the split toe.
Tabi boots were popular with the fashion crowd in the 90s. Williams’ sandal was a homage to a 1997 Alexander McQueen shoe.
Split-toed trainers released by Nike and Reebok also recall the decade, and the Air Rift trainer, which was released in 1996.