‘Hip-Looking,’ ‘Unusually Quotidian’: 13 Fashion People on Birkenstocks
Photo: BFA
Last night at the CFDA Awards, we took advantage of having so many fashionable people in one place to solicit opinions on one of the summer’s more polarizing trends: Birkenstocks. Previously relegated to crunchy Vermonters and men, the traditional two-strap style has been gaining increasing ubiquity. “We’re at 97 percent, at least in the fashion crowd,” asserted Whitney Port when asked about the comfy sandals’ current saturation point. The Cut’s informal poll of attendees seemed to support this consensus: With a few exceptions, nearly everyone we talked to admitted to owning a pair of Birkenstocks or similarly styled mandals. Click through our slideshow to hear how Blake Lively, Leandra Medine, Joseph Altuzarra, and more, feel about the comfy slides.
Heidi Klum How do you feel about Birkenstocks? Well, I’ve designed many Birkenstocks in the past and I still love wearing them. Will we see you i...
Heidi Klum How do you feel about Birkenstocks? Well, I’ve designed many Birkenstocks in the past and I still love wearing them. Will we see you in Birkenstocks? Of course. You probably see me in Birkenstocks every summer, and my kids too. We love them. Is there a way you style them to make them work, or do they work with anything? I don’t think they work with [just] anything. I like them with jeans, or I have tan ones you can wear with little shorts. Plus, I have a size-11 foot, so they look huge.
Photo: BFA NYC
Leandra Medine Is there a summer trend you’d like to go away? I feel like Birkenstocks have become unusually quotidian. I’m trying not to use the...
Leandra Medine Is there a summer trend you’d like to go away? I feel like Birkenstocks have become unusually quotidian. I’m trying not to use the word basic. How so? The problem when a piece like Birkenstocks becomes so trendy after being so “basic” (and they actually are basic, like, the fundamentals of someone’s wardrobe) [is that] they’re so easily co-opted, so when they start to be worn the wrong way, they start to be ruined for everyone. Is there a right way to wear them? Yeah, I think you need to wear them like you own a surfboard, with low-slung board shorts and a crop top, and some, like, reflective-lens sunglasses and messy hair, and look around and pretend like you don’t give a shit, or you actually you don’t give a shit.
Photo: BFA NYC
Gia Coppola How do you feel about Birkenstocks? They’re comfortable. I just got a pair. Do you have a plan for how you’ll style them? I just wore...
Gia Coppola How do you feel about Birkenstocks? They’re comfortable. I just got a pair. Do you have a plan for how you’ll style them? I just wore my Birkenstocks today, and I had a silver skirt by Elizabeth and James and then a vintage T-shirt. Do you think there’s a secret to the look? I think you’ve got to do whatever would be the opposite of what you’d expect to pair with a Birkenstock, maybe, but not too extreme. Just whatever feels right.
Photo: BFA NYC
Zoe Kazan What do you think about the Birkenstock trend?
I have feet so big for my body that I think if I put a Birkenstock on I would just imme...
Zoe Kazan What do you think about the Birkenstock trend?
I have feet so big for my body that I think if I put a Birkenstock on I would just immediately look like a capital L. So I don’t know that I’ll be wearing Birkenstocks, but never say never. Photo: BFA NYC
Blake Lively How do you feel about Birkenstocks? I’ve never worn them. They’re comfortable, but that whole normcore thing — it’s hard for me to g...
Blake Lively How do you feel about Birkenstocks? I’ve never worn them. They’re comfortable, but that whole normcore thing — it’s hard for me to get behind, because I like dressing up, I like a sparkle. But more power to the people that can.
Photo: BFA NYC
Steven Kolb How do you feel about Birkenstocks? Actually, my feet don't allow me to wear Birkenstocks. They just don't work. But I think they're ...
Steven Kolb How do you feel about Birkenstocks? Actually, my feet don't allow me to wear Birkenstocks. They just don't work. But I think they're cool. I am a little of a hippie deep inside so I'm all for a throwback to the '70s. Why don't your feet allow you to wear Birkenstocks? I thought they worked for every foot. Not my foot. I’m a little bit of a klutz — you have to be a little bit smoother in shoes like that.
Photo: BFA NYC
Joseph Atluzarra How do you feel about Birkenstocks? I sort of love Birkenstocks. I have a pair. Will we see you in them? Maybe, if you see me on...
Joseph Atluzarra How do you feel about Birkenstocks? I sort of love Birkenstocks. I have a pair. Will we see you in them? Maybe, if you see me on the weekend. What’s the trick to styling an outfit with Birkenstocks? I don’t know that the Altuzarra woman wears Birkenstocks, but I think Birkenstocks are just easy, so it’s nice.
Photo: BFA NYC
Greta Gerwig and Zac Posen What do you think about the Birkenstock trend? Gerwig: I grew up in Northern California, so I was born with Birkenstoc...
Greta Gerwig and Zac Posen What do you think about the Birkenstock trend? Gerwig: I grew up in Northern California, so I was born with Birkenstocks on. So I’m into it. Posen: There are some hip-looking Birkenstocks. Céline made some good ones and Zara made them even better. Photo: BFA NYC
Whitney Port Do you think you’ll be investing in a pair any time soon? I saw someone in a pair of gold ones the other day, and I thought they wer...
Whitney Port Do you think you’ll be investing in a pair any time soon? I saw someone in a pair of gold ones the other day, and I thought they were cute. Also, once a trend gets too trendy, then I sort of stay away. What saturation point are we at with Birkenstocks right now? We’re at 97 percent, at least in the fashion crowd. No one in Missouri is wearing Birkenstocks right now.
Photo: BFA NYC
Monique Lhuillier (with Chanel Iman) How do you feel about the Birkenstock trend? I’m okay with it. I think they look really comfortable and if y...
Monique Lhuillier (with Chanel Iman) How do you feel about the Birkenstock trend? I’m okay with it. I think they look really comfortable and if you wear the right outfit with them, it’s cute. What would you wear with a Birkenstock? I would do a really short short and a pretty top with a Birkenstock, because it’s less frumpy, and a little more put together.
Photo: BFA NYC
Kenneth Cole What do you think about the Birkenstock sandal trend? It’s not an elegant trend, but it’s a very comforting one. People kind of wear...
Kenneth Cole What do you think about the Birkenstock sandal trend? It’s not an elegant trend, but it’s a very comforting one. People kind of wear things that make them feel good and invariably they will often look good, so it becomes self-fulfilling. Will we see you in Birkenstocks? Not likely. Certainly not this week.
Photo: BFA NYC
Stacey Bendet (with Beth Behrs) What do you think about Birkenstocks? I like making a woman look sexy — that’s part of my job and mission in life...
Stacey Bendet (with Beth Behrs) What do you think about Birkenstocks? I like making a woman look sexy — that’s part of my job and mission in life — and those are not really sexy. They kind of give me bad ‘90s memories. People like them; it’s just not my thing. Uggs weren’t my thing either, and they were really big for a very long time. So I can be wrong, and I can admit that.
Photo: BFA NYC
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