“I can’t wear these!” exclaims Jerry in season six, episode eight of Seinfeld, referring to a pair of cowboy boots Kramer has found hidden in his friend’s closet. “You look like a cowboy,” Kramer says, encouraging his friend to wear them after giving all of Jerry’s sneakers to a local “mom and pop” store. “But I don’t wanna be a cowboy,” Jerry whines, mirroring the iconic pirate line from a few seasons prior.
This exchange got big laughs at the time of filming (1995). Wearing cowboy boots on the streets of New York City? Preposterous! If only Jerry could see us now. Cowboy boots for women are the It shoe of 2022. They’ve made their way from the ranch to the runway and everything in between. I mean, they’ve even become Barbie and Ken-approved!
After Western mania infiltrated the 2000s thanks to young celebs like Taylor Swift and Rihanna, the cowboy boot went into relative hiding for the next decade. Then, in 2018, designers like Louis Vuitton and Fendi dug deep into their archives and brought back the fall staple. Since then, the shoe has slowly risen until the trend exploded on TikTok this past year. Now you can hardly two-step in any direction without spotting them on an influencer, street style star, model, or all three.
That being said, in the words of Jerry, not all of us want to be cowboys. So how can you make cowboy boots look less “rodeo” and more “running errands?” Below, we break down three ways to wear cowboy boots now.
All Denim Everything
Photography by Getty Images
To borrow a phrase from Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada: denim with cowboy boots? Groundbreaking. But why fix something that isn’t broken? Take your cues from influencer Babba Rivera and pair your kicks with a patchwork denim co-ord. It’s an easy way to look elevated without venturing too far into John Wayne territory (read: campy cowboy).
Monochromatic Colour Scheme
Photography by Getty Images
In case you didn’t get the memo, cowboy boots aren’t just reserved for ranches and farms anymore — they’ve become an accepted addition to fall’s footwear lineup. So who’s to stop you from wearing them to the office, provided you style them correctly? A monochromatic moment can never steer you wrong, and we love how model Yoshino Mia paired these white boots with her one-colour outfit.
Bohemian Rhapsody
Photography by Getty Images
The term “Scandi-boho” is usually used to describe the combination of Scandinavian and bohemian interior design aesthetics. Still, we think the phrase also perfectly personifies this blended look worn by a guest at Copenhagen Fashion Week. All you’ll need to copy these clothes is a pair of patterned cowboy boots and a dress with some Western flair. Pro tip: if one of the pieces features a larger motif (e.g. giant florals), make sure the other print is smaller to create fashionable harmony.
Looking to add a pair of cowboy boots to your shoe collection? Here are 10 of our favourite pairs.
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