Ankles Beware: Platform Heels Are Trending, Thanks To Carrie Bradshaw

With lockdown behind us and nearly half of the country vaccinated, going out is once again a viable option. To do so in style, you need little more than a good party dress and a pair of show-stopping shoes. It’s no wonder that in the past two weeks alone, searches for platform heels have spiked 21% on global fashion shopping platform Lyst. Whether you’re ready or not, it’s time to trade in your house slippers for a pair of sky-is-the-limit heels. 

The person responsible for the rise in demand for heels that look divine but could easily result in an ankle brace, is a fictional character whose popularity traces back to the late '90s. You guessed it, we’re talking about the one and only Carrie Bradshaw, central figure of the Sex and the City pandemic rewatch and reboot, which is currently filming in New York City. Carrie’s alter ego, actress Sarah Jessica Parker, was spotted on set on two occasions in July, wearing precious and precarious brass-colored Saint Laurent platforms. The show’s costume designers Molly Rogers and Danny Santiago paired the vintage heels with a rainbow sequin dress and Carrie’s signature purple Fendi baguette bag. (Off camera, the actress toted around a WNYC tote bag.) And Just Like That… the teetering shoe style went viral. 

But while the Carrie craze was the catalyst behind the recent spike in searches for platform heels, countless icons have been teetering in the style since lockdown ended. Already this summer, we’ve seen Dua Lipa model lemon-yellow Versace platforms in the Italian brand’s fall ‘21 campaign, followed by Ariana Grande and Florence Pugh in the same pair (though Pugh’s were hot pink instead of yellow). There was also “Good 4 U” singer Olivia Rodrigo, who rocked a pair of Giuseppe Zanotti platforms with a vintage Chanel suit at The White House. (She also wore a teal pair to the prom she threw for her new album.) 

Even with a combined 344.1 million Instagram followers across the accounts of Lipa, Grande, Pugh, and Rodrigo, their influence over our footwear choices doesn’t even come close to Carrie’s. Only her collection of Manolo Blahniks and Jimmy Choos has lived rent-free in our minds since 1998. And if she says that it’s time to go platform, we can’t help but wonder... who are we to argue?

Shop this Carrie-approved footwear trend, below.