

Welcome to Is This Shoe OK?, an infrequent column about shoes that may or may not be good, as determined by me—an authority, because I own shoes—and you, in the comments below. In today’s installment, we’re looking at boat shoes. Preps, get psyched.
Last week it was brought to my attention that boat shoes—the kind of shoe worn by boy bullies when they retire to their summer homes while you pick up an extra shift at Dairy Queen—are experiencing a revival. Esquire published an entire article on this phenomenon, in which writer Scott Christian pointed out that there have been a handful of “popular boat shoe collaborations over the past year” which includes “a much-hyped union between London skate brand Palace and British shoe company Kickers. The maritime silhouette has also recently popped in the designer fashion world, with Prada, Saint Laurent, Polo Ralph Lauren, and Gucci all releasing their takes on the classic shoe.” Fashion often takes historically ugly and/or boring styles and updates them, pulling from past shoe icons (JFK? Who wears boat shoes?) for inspiration. I usually respect this move, especially when it requires the wealthy to wear really dumb shit. In this case, I simply cannot.