Manolo Blahnik Mules Will Always Be Famous

The classic kitten heels are having a renaissance, thanks to celebrity fans.

Stylist Jamie Mizrahi saves footwear for last when she dresses clients like Jennifer Lawrence, Jessica Alba, and Riley Keough. “I usually pull together the outfit and then see what shoe brings some interest to the look,” she said. Lately, Mizrahi and her clients are in agreement that a vintage-leaning Manolo Blahnik mule is the correct finishing touch.

The three aforementioned stars are just a sampling of the celebrities seen wearing Manolo Blahnik’s Maysale kitten mules for their off-duty street style and official, SAG-AFTRA strike-compliant appearances. Over the past few months, Meghan Markle wore a light camel pair to the Invictus Games with a monochromatic pantsuit, Hailey Bieber wore a red pair with a little white dress for a Rhode beauty event. She also wore a similar and equally chic pair with a more balletic look, the Manolo Blahnik Ballerimu mule, to New York Fashion Week.

Since then, it’s remained in constant rotation at the house, with a range of neutral suede iterations and seasonal updates with contrasting buckles.

In the present day, celebrities have slipped on their Maysales for interviews, dinners, and runway shows. The style is also a choice favorite within the halls of Manolo Blahnik headquarters, where CEO Kristina Blahnik said she wears them “from morning up until midnight.” “It is so understated that it’s elegant in any situation,” she added.

Stylist Karla Welch told Bazaar she dressed clients like Bieber in Manolo’s mules most frequently over Fashion Month and Mary Jane styles also got a shout-out. There’s no limit to the dress codes where they’re suitable. When we asked Welch which genre of her clients’ events or occasions were best suited to a Manolo mule, for example, she replied, “All of them! The range is so huge.”

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For the style’s namesake designer, it’s been extraordinary to see the shoe embraced by another generation of well-dressed women. Wearing the Maysale isn’t just about the look, he said. “I have always adored the sound a mule makes when you walk in them. It’s one of my sexiest shoes, as the ankle and heel are completely unrestrained.”

Sexy, but not to the point of discomfort. These mules are so low that they’re verging on a flat; whatever the wearer’s occupation, they can be worn for an entire day. At a moment when people are leaning into the ease of flats, Mizrahi added, “Who doesn’t love being comfortable and looking good?”