Ah, the satisfying crunch of Velcro sneakers!Its very onomatopoeic crumpled It means easy, breezy, no-nonsense comfort. But while the sound may suggest orthopedic bliss, what about the shoes themselves? Virtually visual contraception for your hooves. (Maybe that’s why it’s preferred by children and the elderly.)

I first got into Velcro sneakers thanks to a boyfriend who, while not his age, is known for conveying nursing home chic in his style. His Velcro His sneakers aren’t just clunky, they’re a well-worn oatmeal color and feature two large Velcro his straps. But there is something appealing about its simplicity. No painstaking lace tying, no shoehorn needed. And boys are comfortable. It’s like he slips his feet into a cloud and massages his heels with thousands of angelic fingertips.

I found the latter particularly intriguing given the condition of my feet, which were sore from wearing too many flimsy flip-flops and bruised by summer heels, so I started investigating. We spotted a great photo of Mariah Carey wearing knee-high Velcro boots outside MTV in 2006, but few celebrities wore Velcro sneakers even on the streets. TRL. another fan? Hailey Bieber wearing a pair to LAX in 2017.

Curious to find out why, I sent a general question on Instagram asking if any of my fellow fashion friends were wearing the shoes. Naturally, I received dozens of “nos”. Her Brynn Wallner of watch hub Dimepiece jokingly said, “I’m responsible for all the ugly clothes in New York.” Her stylist, Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, provided a similar but more layered analysis, noting that Teva was the lone exception. “Velcro shoes haunt me like Salomon haunts me,” she said. favorite, number. You don’t like hiking shoes. ”

Kalefa Johnson, I understand. I don’t want to cosplay in the Velcroverse as a painful senior or be trapped in a very uncool Sisyphian nightmare in the podiatrist’s waiting room. While there are heavy soles with thick tongues, etc., there are also some incredibly fashion-forward, quirky Velcro sneakers out there right now.