Will we ever wear cuissardes again? The over-the-knee boots halfway between countryside and sexside

In a cult scene from The Devil Wears Prada, Andy Sachs enters the offices of Runway with a slow-motion stride worthy of Naomi Campbell and reveals herself to colleagues Emily and Serena after her transformation from clumsy intern to glamorous heiress. With an incredulous and amazed expression, Emily says: «You’re wearing…» and Andy, without hesitation, while elegantly crossing her legs under the desk, replies: «Yes, they’re Chanel boots.» Well, those are not just any boots, but cuissardes. In this ironic scene, which has long been part of the fashion meme vocabulary, one observes the power and bold femininity evoked by these shoes, which allow Andy to get her revenge. The French term cuissardes literally means “that cover the thighs” and refers to over-the-knee boots. Originally, they were armor used to protect the legs of soldiers and knights, but today they are among the symbols of power dressing, periodically revived in contemporary collections.

The most recent manifestation of the return of this trend occurred at the Cannes festival, where actor Alexander Skarsgård wore a Saint Laurent suit with tall leather boots for the premiere of The Phoenician Scheme. These kinky or fetish boots, key accessories from Anthony Vaccarello’s FW25 collection for Saint Laurent, were rebellious protagonists in the year of censorship of nude looks on the red carpet. It’s a kind of return to the original male use of cuissardes in an erotic version that explicitly references the BDSM world. These bold and sexy boots were also worn by Pedro Pascal, paired with a plaid double-breasted suit for the premiere of the series The Last of Us 2. These shoes are often used in equestrian contexts for horseback riding, and drawing inspiration from the English countryside aesthetic and Queen Elizabeth’s outdoor looks, Daniel Lee in his latest collection for Burberry proposed tall brown leather boots worn with classic jodhpurs (riding pants) or peeking out from under pleated and plaid skirts. In the same vein, quintessential old-money brands Ralph Lauren and Brunello Cucinelli have included these shoes in their collections. The former, in FW25, offers riding boots worn with romantic blouses decorated with ruffles and ruff collars. The latter, also in FW25, presents a typically equestrian sophisticated look in shades of brown and cream with tall boots and a feather fur coat.

Many brands featured two particular versions of cuissardes in their winter shows: boots with folded shafts—specifically with the upper part of the shoe folded over itself—and crinkled leather ones often associated with the bohemian and indie sleaze aesthetic. In this regard, Chemena Kamali from Chloé proposes the folded version in Resort 2025, with a heel that looks like wood, paired with velvet shorts and blouses with lace ruffles. These cuissardes, in some ways, nod to the iconic armadillo-heeled boots by Alexander McQueen from the SS 2003 collection, beloved by Kate Moss, often photographed in those years wearing jeans tucked into the boots and holding a Balenciaga city bag. Both Balmain and Sportmax showcased high scrunched boots in their FW25 collections. Olivier Rousteing, leading the French maison, presented a burgundy version with oversized wrap coats. In the second case, we see crinkled cuissardes paired with scarf-coats with fringes. Dolce&Gabbana, meanwhile, brings military green parkas with fur to the FW25 runway, pairing them with lace dresses and over-the-knee boots with repeated side buckles. Again, Stella McCartney combines patent leather cuissardes with geometric dresses, and Alaïa in FW25 designs over-the-knee boots that emerge from the slit of a skirt whose texture recalls the skin of a white crocodile.

Some designers went beyond the classic version of this imposing boot, reinterpreting it in light of the brand’s identity and aesthetic. Maria Grazia Chiuri, for example, in Dior’s recent Cruise 2026 show presented at Villa Albani in Rome, created lace cuissardes worn under a black velvet dress with red buttons, reminiscent of a bishop’s traditional cassock. At Dsquared2, in the brand’s thirtieth-anniversary show, the Caten twins proposed their version of the boots created from tuxedo pants split and tied to the thighs with garters. In the latest Resort 2025 collection by Bottega Veneta, there’s a colorful and woven version of this shoe. Rick Owens, instead, created his personal cuissardes which in the FW25 men’s collection are tall feather boots, while in the women’s show, they are bunches of crumpled leather with deliberately hidden toes.