Celebrities Love Their Kitty-Cat Shoes

For her recent art project, We Think Alone, Miranda July asked her famous friends to share “an email that includes a picture of something you want.” The Rodarte sisters really wanted “all adams surf boards and skate boards” and vintage Pepsi bottles, and Kareem Abdul Jabbar wanted a Sherlock Holmes book set. But the thing Kirsten Dunst most wanted? Matching mother-daughter pairs of Charlotte Olympia’s Kitty Face loafer.

Cat-flat fever has us firmly in its clutches. Vogue writer and self-professed intimate friend of several celebrity cats, Katherine Bernard calls for the end of cat-emblazoned clothing and accessories, because the more we wear them the “less funny, cute, and unexpected they become.” Yes, we never want to see another pair of Maison Michel kitten ears again, but when it comes to Charlotte Olympia’s ubiquitous cat flats, Bernard might as well save her breath.

The Kitty Loafer might be better suited to a 7-year-old (and yes, they barely straddle that line between quirky and grotesquely twee), but there’s something amusing about a cult of celebrities who wear them with pride, as if to say: “Yes, I have several photos of my cat on my phone, but instead of showing them to you, I will invest $600 in this clever, self-referential joke that comes in glitter, satin, velvet, or suede.” Also, c’mon. Cats.

The trend is best exemplified by natural, hip cat women Taylor Swift and Alexa Chung, who manage to wear the cutesy shoe on the street and on the red carpet with equal success. (Olympia also has a heeled version for the moments when cat worship needs a black-tie touch.) Everyone from Donatella incarnate Gina Gershon to boho-hipster Jemima Kirke to (unfortunately) Imelda Marcos is enamored with this trend. Click through our slideshow to see the kitty-loafer groupies.