I’m sure we are all familiar with this Australian (or possibly New Zealand) innovation in footwear that comes in the form of a sloppy sheepskin boot that has somehow passed for fashionable for the past few years. As a nineteen-year-old university student I am the perfect target for this atrocious accessory, but I have so far managed to avoid its sloppy and shapeless grasp. Although I realize that many people will read this post and continue to wear Uggs, I hope that some Ugg wearers will see the light and put their boots away in the closet forever.

The ultra-sloppy "tucked-in sweatpants" style.

Uggs appear to have originally been used by aviators in the First World War to keeptheir feet warm in their unpressurized planes, however the boots have also been identified with sheep shearers in the 1920’s and surfer’s and swimmer’s who used them to keep warm out of the water, before finally becoming a fashion trend in the USA in the early 2000’s. In my opinion, until Uggs became fashionable they seemed to be very practical, so the fact that their reputation has been tarnished is very unfortunate.

A few months ago Sean and I performed a stakeout at the mall to photograph these monsters in their natural environment; in a mall being worn by fashionable young women (but many middle-aged women were caught too) as part of a carefully calculated “carefree” and messy look that is so popular these days. In a perfect demonstration of the popularity of the Uggs, Sean and I happened to be at the mall on one of the most dead weeknights in history, but we still managed to get a dozen pictures due to the fact that every second person that walked by was wearing them. My all-time favourite Uggs were definitely the pair with the illustration of some kind of character, as if that adds some kind of originality to an otherwise completely unexciting boot.

An attempt to make a hopelessly ugly shoe prettier.

In short, I hate Uggs. I think that no man, woman, child, or anyone in between should ever have to gaze upon these shapeless shoes that should have stayed in the cockpit in World War One. Although I’m sure they are the most comfortable article of clothing on the planet (next to the sweatpants that people also insist on wearing in public)  they are only appropriate as a slipper in one’s house, or as a therapeutic shoe for someone with trenchfoot. Please do yourselves a favour and open your eyes to the brainwashing the fashion industry has done: just because Sarah Jessica Parker wore them, does not mean anyone else should.