The 25 Craziest Shoes to Ever Hit the Runway

Designer Feng Chen Wang continued her runway partnership with Ugg at her spring 2025 show, debuting four “crackled” versions of the Tasman slip-on. But what caught everyone’s attention was Wang’s new removable molded sole that can be added to the Ugg style. Dubbed “The Feng Sole Series 1,” the sole is an other-worldly concept shaped resembling an alienlike platform sandal. When styled with the Tasman, the integrated shoe becomes on major statement-making shoe moment.

Scottish designer Charles Jeffrey’s signature claw shoe series — which first made an appearance for fall 2019 in conjunction with British footwear maker Roker — returned in his fall 2024 presentation in the form of chunky Wellington boots. The most whimsical version was a bright yellow pair that sprouted into a peeled banana at the top of the wearer’s calf.

Mikio Sakabe debuted his fall 2024 collection during Tokyo Fashion Week. On the runway, models walked in over-the-top shoe styles provided by his footwear brand, Grounds. Founded in 2018, Grounds quickly became known in the fashion scene for its exaggerated outsoles, which often resemble giant bubbles. This time, at Sakabe’s fall 2024 show, the brand pushed the concept even further while updating classic footwear silhouettes, such as oxfords, Mary Janes and loafers. One of the most eye-catching styles introduced on the runway was a white leather dress shoe with a bubble-like platform sole that reached at least 4 inches in height.

Former Comme des Garçons designer Kei Ninomiya added versions of the Reebok Instapump Fury for his fall 2024 collection. In one, the “Kumo,” the sneaker has flower-shaped plastic pumps piled across the upper. In the Citron colorway, those flowers are neon with a black pump at their center on a black, red and yellow. That collaborative design is also available in all black and all white.

Rick Owens is never one to disappoint when it comes to new and interesting footwear innovations. And the American designer did just that at his fall 2024 men’s show in Paris. The shoes that caught everyone’s attention came via multiple pairs of inflated rubber pull-on stretch boots that Owens said is a collab with London designer Straytukay. The style was featured on the runway in black, forest green, eggshell, burgundy, and brown animal-print colorways.

Walter van Beirendonck is no stranger to larger-than-life designs. Spring 2024 was no exception when the Belgian designer showed dress shoes with an elongated pointed toe and signature teeth motif. For an added quirky touch, Van Beirendonck added a pair of yellow eyes to the upper, offering a cartoon-ish, crocodile-like take to the style.

Technically, the viral MSCHF Big Red Boots, which gained notoriety for their odd shape and cartoonishly large size, didn’t debut on the catwalk. The Brooklyn, N.Y.-based art collective launched the boots online and via social media in February 2023. However, they had some notable runway (and runway-adjacent) moments that year. MSCHF and Crocs photobombed the Rick Owens spring 2024 show at Paris Men’s Fashion Week to unveil their Big Yellow Boot collaboration. And at Tokyo Fashion Week in August 2023, BAPE sent customized pairs of the “Astro Boy”-inspired boots down the runway adorned in its signature Cloud Camo print.

Giuliano Calza, the creative director of Italian fashion brand GCDS, first unveiled the Morso design in his fall 2022 “Dracula” collection. The shoe features a distinctive heel in the shape of a teeth-bearing mouth and is one of the brand’s most iconic motifs. There are now numerous iterations of the Morso heel, offered on boots, sandals and pumps, retailing for $900 to upwards of $2,000. In 2023, Calza criticized Chinese fast-fashion company Shein on social media for copying his signature creation.

For the fall 2021 collection, Schiaparelli artistic director Daniel Roseberry looked to redefine the concept of power dressing with a series of bold accessories — all in keeping with the label’s surrealist history. The collection’s footwear gave a whole new meaning to the statement shoe, with several showcasing a shiny molding of a foot cast in gold.

The Paco Rabanne spring 2021 collection by creative director Julien Dossena juxtaposed feminine silhouettes with medieval armor (a la Joan of Arc) to explore the idea of modern warrior women defying gender stereotypes. His footwear also brought the theme to life by setting skin-tight leather boots atop cage-like silver metal heels.

Thom Browne, the self-styled Dali of the fashion world, offered up a trompe l’oeil platform brogue as part of his spring 2020 women’s presentation that resembled a dolphin. However, the art pieces were apparently more decorative than practical. During the show, four models stood like statues in the towering shoes, while others strutted down the runway in other footwear designs, like heel-less pointy-toe brogues. It’s unclear exactly why Browne decided to feature the stationary dolphin shoes. And they apparently weren’t made for comfort. According to WWD, one model had to step down from her pedestal before the end of the show.

British shoe designer Nicholas Kirkwood staged an edgy, see now-buy now show — featuring Rose McGowan — to present his spring 2019 collection of “protective” footwear aimed for a technologically dystopian future. The collection included these “wired” shoes made with tangled computer cords, as well as futuristic light-up boots with an architectural heel. Most of the looks were one-offs created exclusively for the show, which was intended as a conversation starter for a retail industry that Kirkwood felt was playing it too safe.

In his fall 2018 Y/Project show at Paris Fashion Week, designer Glenn Martens took sheepskin boots to new heights — quite literally — by sending high-heeled Ugg boots down the runway. They came in both chestnut and black colorways, with a pointed toe and hiker sole. They were executed in a bottom-skimming wader silhouette that could be worn turned down or ruched. That season, Y/Project also created a flat-soled version of the thigh-highs for men.

Jeremy Scott collaborated with 47-year-old Italian footwear brand Moon Boot for his fall 2018 collection, sending uniquely designed snow boots down the runway. Metallic silver and neon green comprised the colors of one thigh-high style, while all-over pink fur was the case for another. FN fashion editor Shannon Adducci described it at the time as a surprisingly “sensible winter footwear choice” from the often-impractical designer.

Chinese designer Guo Pei is perhaps best known for creating Rihanna’s showstopping yellow gown for the 2015 Met Gala, but her couture designs are a constant source of amazement. For her fantastical spring 2018 Haute Couture collection, she sent models out teetering on decorative shoes with translucent circular heels. Each was adorned with glittering floral elements tied to the show’s theme of “Life.”

Designer Demna Gvasalia also linked with Crocs for Balenciaga’s spring 2018 collection, sending models down the catwalk in colorful Crocs on a 10-inch stacked platforms with cartoonish Jibbitz charms that included flowers, shooting stars, peace signs and the Balenciaga logo. The styles sold out in record time. It was the start of a beautiful friendship that has yielded other memorable creations like high-heeled Crocs and versions covered in faux fur and metal hardware.

The spring 2017 collaboration between Vetements and design legend Manolo Blahnik astonished fashion audiences during Haute Couture in Paris and proved that opposites do indeed attract. The starting point for their collection was Blahnik’s iconic Hangisi silhouette. But the shoe designer told FN in 2016 that Vetements had a specific vision: “They told me they would like to destroy it,” Blahnik said with a laugh, “and they destroyed the beautiful silk satin with brutality.” The collection included six styles, but the thigh-highs proved particularly popular, especially among style setters like Rihanna and Kim Kardashian.

Hood By Air’s Shayne Oliver was the talk of New York Fashion Week when he featured double-faced Western boots for spring 2017. The experimental style, designed in collaboration with Frye, was debuted in embossed leathers such as sprightly red and yellow, and even teal green — and featured pointy toes on both the front and back. The double-sided symbolism helped to reinforce the collection’s focus, which aimed to flip gender norms.

As previously mentioned, the furry shoe trend found a welcome home at Gucci. In his first official collection as creative director for the luxury house, Alessandro Michele steered Gucci into what could have been questionable territory by showing shaggy-haired slides, as well as mink-lined horse-bit loafers. The result is now the stuff of legend.

As an early innovator with 3D printing and design, Iris van Herpen has brought forth numerous unbelievable footwear designs. As just one example, her fall 2015 couture collection defied gravity with its Hacking Infinity heels, created in collaboration with Japanese shoe designer Noritaka Tatehana. The duo used traditional craftsmanship to make the leather laser-cut upper, while a cluster of “crystals” (made of photopolymer and resin) was 3D scanned and printed to form the floating heels. United Nude and 3D Systems also contributed to the project.

Founded in the early 1970s in Tokyo by Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo, Comme des Garçons has produced many memorable shoe collections — and collaborations. But one of its wildest footwear looks were these Jugo boots from the Comme des Garçons Homme Plus spring 2015 show. Referencing traditional Mexican “guarachero” boots, Kawakubo extended the already-super-elongated toes even further to create a dramatic and dangerous scenario.

Drawing comparisons to children’s character Big Bird, Phoebe Philo’s yellow mink-covered pumps were polarizing when they debuted as part of Celine’s spring 2013 show in Paris. Daily Mail called them “outlandish” and questioned whether they were the “ugliest shoe trend ever.” But other fashion insiders applauded Philo’s bold vision. And her furry interpretations of pool shoes and orthopedic sandals (also part of the collection) helped established a new trend. Two years later, Gucci debuted its fur-lined loafers. And four years later, Birkenstock added shearling to its own Arizona sandal.

Miuccia Prada brought to life an optimistic, 1950s-inspired post-modern world for her spring 2012 show. In this world, she used cars as, well, a vehicle to drive home that message of hope, transforming them into unforgettable Hot Rod shoes. Sculpted wedges, stick-thin stilettos and pumps were given premium vintage car-inspired treatments, like a glossy paint job, teeny-tiny exhaust pipes, polished chrome accents and, most notably, cutout leather flames that trailed from the heel. They were met with instant fanfare, which reignited in 2018, when Prada plucked her flame-detailed heels from the archives to offer a statement about feminism.

Designer Alexander McQueen’s spring 2010 presentation, titled “Plato’s Atlantis,” was the final full collection before his death and is now one of his most widely acclaimed. A truly standout element of the show was his Armadillo heel. With a height of almost 12 inches (30 cm), the boots are simultaneously frightening with their claw-like effect and as elegant as a ballerina en pointe. McQueen created them mainly as a showpiece, but they generated so much interest that some samples were sold to loyal fans. Lady Gaga and Daphne Guinness have famously worn the shoes. And in 2015, three new pairs of the shoes were auctioned by McQueen’s label and Christie’s to raise money for UNICEF. Actor Taylor Kinney paid $295,000 for the shoes, which he gifted to then-fiancée Lady Gaga.

Punk-rock fashion queen Vivienne Westwood created many crazy shoes, but her most famous is perhaps the Super Elevated Gillie heels, which debuted in 1993 and were set atop a whopping 12-inch Louis heel with a 4-inch front platform to balance out the steep height. Adding to their notoriety, model Naomi Campbell infamously fell on the runway while walking in the towering heels. As an ode to Westwood following her death in December 2022, husband and brand creative director Andreas Kronthaler revived the OG platform boots in the label’s fall 2023 presentation. The house still sells versions of the Ghillie heel, though with a more manageable 4.7-inch heel.