When Alix Earle arrived at the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue Launch Party on Thursday evening, her feet told a story as old as the lingerie itself: the art of revealing just enough. The TikTok star and one of four cover models for the 2026 issue stepped onto the Hard Rock Times Square carpet in Gianvito Rossi’s “Gwyneth” sandal—a 105mm stiletto wrapped in metallic gold lamb leather. The name, a nod to Gwyneth Paltrow, recalls an era when celebrity style began dictating footwear trends, much as 19th-century corsetiers once influenced the shape of the body beneath the dress. Rossi’s design, with its knotted multistrap upper and crisscross ankle lacing, echoes the delicate, architectural boning of a 1920s girdle—functional structure disguised as ornament. At $895, the sandal is a modern-day version of the silk stockings and garters that, a century ago, were the only “strap” a woman dared show. Earle paired them with a sheer, metallic crochet Roberto Cavalli dress from spring 2026, a garment that channels the same daring transparency that made early 20th-century “step-ins” scandalous. Fellow cover star Tiffany Haddish chose Flor de Maria’s crystal-embellished heels—asymmetric straps that recall the intricate strapwork of a 1950s longline bra—while Nicole Williams English stepped out in Tom Ford’s canary yellow satin sandals, their double straps a direct descendant of the adjustable bands on Victorian corsets. These shoes, like the lingerie that preceded them, frame the body as both sculpture and secret. The launch, held at the former site of a theater where Ziegfeld girls once paraded in feathered teddies, proves that the allure of the barely-there strap—whether on a garter belt or a stiletto—never truly fades.
Originally reported by WWD