Towards the tail end of 2022, a surprising footwear collaboration was revealed: Paraboot x The North Face.
On one side you had a brand steeped with mountain heritage, while on the other you had a French family business known for handcrafting traditional footwear. Brought together, they produced one of the most talked about shoes from that year: a formal puffy mule.
There was one issue, though, it was almost impossible to get a hold of a pair.
Limited to only 30 pairs worldwide which were never released to the public, even now you'll struggle to find any on the second-hand market. But the good news is that a second iteration looks likely to arrive soon.
Keeping everything the same as the first time around (if it ain't broke don't fix it, right?), the shoe is a take on TNF's puffy Thermo Traction Mules made more formal through a handcrafted rubber sole and Norwegian welt construction courtesy of Paraboot.
The only difference is that this time the black, matelassé full grain leather leather upper has been switched to beige, as has the sole unit.
Shared online by the designer of the first Paraboot x The North Face mule, Basile Lapray, there's little information about the new colorway so far.
The hope is that this time around it will be easier to find a pair of the winterized mules than it was for the previous black version but there's nothing to indicate that they will be getting a wider release.
Slipping into a pair of cozy, puffy mules during the current cold snap is a tempting proposition so, please, TNF and Paraboot, give the people what they want.
