Devastating News: Tabis are mainstream now

$14 fashionnova tabi flats have the fashion girls mourning. I would leave too, if I were Galliano

I’m crying. Tabis have been on my mind for a while now, and I was finally going to pull the trigger this Christmas and get a pair of hooves of my own. I even stocked up on some tabi socks when I was in Japan this summer in anticipation of my new cloven shoes.

Unfortunately, I’m too late. Tabis are dead now. I’m going to be honest for a second. They’ve always been kind of ugly. But they were the perfect way to spice up a regular outfit in a way that let everyone know you were more in touch with Copenhagen fashion than they were and also able to shell out a cool grand on some Margiela. The streetwear staple has gone from Bushwick to the red carpet to fast fashion in record time. What does that mean for the fashion girls? What does it mean for the rest of us?

First, let’s take a look at the offending flat:

$14 is crazy. It also comes in a boot version if you prefer.

For the high fashion girls, this means tabis are officially over. They wouldn’t be caught dead in something that has fakes or knockoffs and not just reps. By the time a trend has reached fast fashion, it’s already past its peak. The early adopters have moved on to something cooler that everyone else will find out about in 6-8 months.

For the rest of us, get ready to own tabis at some point in the next six months if you tend to buy-in to microtrends. I don’t think this trend will be very big or long lasting, since a tabi is a pretty polarizing style. It doesn’t exactly have mass appeal the way Sambas did. But wait- if tabis are a semi-ugly, polarizing style with little mass appeal, then why are the Fashionnova tabi boots sold out and the flats on their way there too? Simple. You people will buy anything if enough celebrities or influencers wear it.

Tabis were seen a good deal on celebrities both on and off the red carpet this summer. Dua Lipa, Ariana Grande, Pedro Pascal, Bad Bunny, Greta Gerwig, and Zendaya have all been spotted sporting hooves recently. Other brands see the potential here too. Nike Air Rifts, a tabi Mary Jane that looks athletic(?), are rumored to be due for a reissue and Christian Louboutin collaborated with Margiela on split-toe heels.

Personally, I think I’ll be forgoing the Tabis that I yearned for. It seems a waste to invest in shoes that are going to be outdated within a couple years. I really wish they weren’t trending, because now they’re at the mercy of the trend cycle- meaning soon they’ll be out. What do you think? Let me know in the comments if you’re pro-tabi or anti-tabi.

In the meantime, I’ll be searching for a tabi replacement, scrolling SSENSE.