Two decades on, a single line from ‘The Devil Wears Prada’—‘The Chanel boots? Yeah, I am.’—still resonates. Andy Sachs’s sartorial evolution, culminating in those iconic thigh-highs, was more than a plot device; it was a modern parable of armor and identity, themes deeply rooted in lingerie history. The structured confidence Andy gained mirrors the transformative intent of foundational garments, from the restrictive corsets of the 19th century to the empowering silhouettes of mid-20th-century designers like Jean-Paul Gaultier for Madonna.
Costume designer Patricia Field used footwear as the exclamation point to this transformation. The slouchy, black Chanel boots from Fall 2005 served as a sleek, contemporary greave—a far cry from the practical flats Andy first wore. This shift parallels how brands like Christian Louboutin, with his signature scarlet sole, moved from crafting shoes for Parisian cabarets in the 1990s to defining red-carpet power. Each heel and boot in the film, from Giuseppe Zanotti’s gold pumps to Louboutin’s knee-high styles, functioned as deliberate accessories of ascent within the fictional Runway hierarchy.
As a sequel arrives, Andy’s journey reminds us that what we strap, zip, or slide onto our bodies is never incidental. It is a dialogue with history, a statement of intent. Her final, softened suede boots may have signaled a retreat from high fashion’s front lines, but they confirmed a lasting truth: in life, as in cinema, we are always stepping into a character.
Originally reported by WWD