If You Thought Kitten Heels Were Bad, You're Not Ready for This Shoe Trend

White, kitten heels, sock boots, elastic edges, V-neck courts, slip-on sneakers, glove shoes, cowboy boots, latticework leather—Céline's Phoebe Philo has kick-started almost every big shoe trend of the past decade. There's just no denying it when you look at the pictorial proof (and that's something I do a lot). I recall many of these must-haves started life on the lists of fashion editors almost instantaneously, while many others looked on in dismay. Would we really get the idea of white shoes being trashy out of our minds? Yes. Could kitten heels truly feel modern? Absolutely. Time and again this Parisian fashion house has broken down the preconceptions we've had for certain footwear trends, and here's another one we never knew we'd need to consider: the big-toe-covered high heel.

You read that correctly. Step in Céline's range of "Pirate" shoes: a selection of mules and strappy sandals that play a kind of fetishistic game with your toes, revealing your second, third, fourth and fifth little piggies but covering up your big toe.

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

Australian super-stylist Christine Centenera was one of the first insiders to be spotted in them, taking her white pair for a stroll during July's Haute Couture fashion week in Paris months before many even cottoned onto them.

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(Image credit: The Style Stalker)

Blogger Tamara Kalinic recently picked up a pair of the Pirate mules in black—look closely, and you'll see that this particular style also features a multicoloured snakeskin heel for extra oomph. In addition, we've learnt that the nappa leather of the main shoe means these are super comfy to slip on.

Related: These Boots Were Huge in 2017, But This Autumn, They Have Never Been Cooler

Hannah Almassi
Editor in Chief

Hannah Almassi is the editor in chief of Who What Wear UK. Hannah has been part of the the Who What Wear brand since 2015, when she was headhunted to launch the UK sister site and social channels, implement a localised content strategy and build out the editorial team. She joined following a seven-year tenure at Grazia magazine, where she led front-of-book news, fashion features and shopping specials as fashion news and features editor. With experience in both print and digital across fashion and beauty, Hannah has over 16 years in the field as a journalist, editor, content strategist and brand consultant. Hannah has interviewed industry heavyweights such as designers including Marc Jacobs and Jonathan Anderson through to arbiters of taste including Katie Grand and Anna Dello Russo. A skilled moderator and lecturer specialising in the shift to digital media and e-commerce, Hannah’s opinion and work has been sought by the likes of CNBC, BBC, The Sunday Times Style, The Times, The Telegraph and MatchesFashion.com, among many others. Hannah is often called upon for her take on trends, becoming known as a person with their finger of the pulse of what’s happening in the fashion space for stylish Brits.

Hannah currently resides in Eastbourne with her photographer husband, incredibly busy son and highly Instagrammable cat.