31 Genuinely Chic Ways to Shop Fall’s Western Boots Trend

My relationship with cowboy boots is nothing short of complicated. Having grown up in Nashville, the country music capital of the world, cowboy boots summon mental images of honky-tonking (country karaoke), tourism and a specific brand of bachelorette party. Often paired with sundresses, denim mini skirts or boot-cut jeans, cowboy boots have never skewed particularly fashionable—at least, not in the recesses of my mind.

But here we are. In 2018. And cowboy boots are officially en vogue.

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Sometime this year, Western clothing became the thing. Fringe-covered button-downs pervaded retailers. So did belts with huge buckles. And jackets fit for cowboys. Hemlines were frayed, pockets grew increasingly angular, and anything that could get embroidered or embellished did. Of course, the most obvious manifestation of this trend (at least, to my Tennessee-born-and-raised heart) was a widespread acceptance of cowboy boots—occasionally called Western boots to fit the sartorial theme.

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Western fashion—boots and all—took 2018’s affinity for maximalism and made it edgier, in a rustic kind of way. You know your leather jacket looks cooler covered in studs and fringe—just like you know those clunky Western boots you slipped your feet into can offer some much-needed weight to even the most delicate of outfits.

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There’s no denying it: Cowboy boots have gotten the fashion treatment—100 times over. And I’m still not sure how I feel about it.

But even given my dissonance, I have to admit: It’s pretty damn cool to see a once-symbol of country roots become transformed into a full-blown fashion must-have. Watching the classic cowboy boot silhouette get reiterated in myriad creative and colorful forms has been incredibly fascinating—enough to make me consider buying a pair (something I’d always sworn I’d never do).

I’m still not completely sold, so instead of shopping shopping, I settled for a little window shopping. And in the process, I gathered 31 of the most eye-catching pairs of “Western boots” around. Rest assured, these high-heeled, metallic and color-blocked beauties are far from what you’d find on the streets of downtown Nashville, but they’re fun to look at, just the same.