In which Lauren and Ava fangirl, but mostly just yearn over wearing these heels.
(@badgalriri / Instagram)
Lauren Rousseau is the Online Editor at Rowdy Magazine. She loves watching drug-store versions of The Bachelor and baking cookies at inappropriate hours. You can find her on Instagram at @laurenxrousseau and email her pitches at
After depriving us of her glory, her royal highness Rihanna finally came through — with shoes. Listen, we may be as salty about her vanishing music career as the next person, but this is still huge.
This may not be no.1 hit on the radio, but we got heels from the woman who walks on grates... You cannot tell me that these shoes are not blessed. And that’s the way RiRi intended it.
Rihanna teamed up with legendary designer Amina Muaddi to create four distinct shoe styles for the line: a black mesh mule, a lace up crystal sandal, a clear PVC strap sandal and the caged gladiator pumps of your dreams.
The heels of each shoe are metallic, appearing as if nails are hammered into the shoes’ soles. Each is made with 100% lambskin and leather, so vegan’s note: they may look beautiful, but they’re not cruelty-free.
Designer Muaddi is known for her architectural heels. Her signature style of the flared heel has made Kendall Jenner and Dua Lipa fans. Just by the look of the photos for her newest collaboration with Rihanna, it makes sense. Shot from a lower perspective, the campaign pictures make the shoes look like one of the seven wonders of the world.
The Eiffel Tower wasn’t necessarily her main inspiration, though. She said she wanted to create, “footwear that represents the muse and the brand: strong, refined and feminine.”
Prices start at $490 but range up to $820 (not too bad as far as luxury designer shoes go, but it seems our Fenty shoe dreams are just as far off as Rihanna’s next album.) Many of the styles have already sold out and re-stocked on the Fenty website, but the collection is now also available for purchase on Farfetch.
Read below for a rundown of RiRi’s newest creations and how high they score on our rating system (subjectively opined with love).
1) CAGED IN SANDALS 105
PRICE: $740
In these shoes, leather straps entangle your legs from your ankles to below your knees (even your toes are caged in!) — meaning increased support for the four-inch heel and heightened sex-appeal. We can see these paired with a monochrome mini skirt set and some crisp winged liner. These badass shoes are perfect for your summer night out (with a mask, of course). You can buy them in coco white or candy pink.
Lauren’s rating: 9 / 10 Ticking off one point for wearability. They’re sexy, but the way my feet would tangle trying to put them on turns me off.
Ava’s rating: 8 / 10 They’re Hot, but there’s something I don’t like about the metal-fence style crossing over the foot.
2) BRAID ME UP SANDALS 105
PRICE: $820
Admittedly, I (Ava) did not like these very much, but they are undeniably Rihanna. A brown suede braid snakes up the leg, criss-crossing with a crystal band until mid calf where it ends with a single braided tassel. It comes in one shade, “Brown Sugar,” and features a casual monogram flex on the outer sole.
A double band over the toes adds some extra crystal sparkle that would look great with white toes for summer. They’re perfect for a dressed-up daytime look to hit the town (or take pictures in your backyard). The four-inch peg heel has a slightly wider bottom to balance the lack of platform –– key to delicately stepping over metal grates in the city.
Lauren’s rating: 6 / 10 They’re very Rihanna, but they're kind of average compared to the other heels in the collection.
Ava’s rating: 6.5 / 10 (Okay, they are growing on me.)
3) CODE WORD SANDALS 105
PRICE: $570
These sandals are a more subtle version of the Caged in Sandals. The leather straps are less complicated and user-friendly for my clumsy friends. They even have clear support straps to keep you from tripping (At the end of the day, Riri wants us to strut).
Lauren’s favorite part: they come in beautiful acid green (along with cocoa white, which is also kinda cute). (Ava thinks the white is more than kinda cute.)
Ughh these shoes glow, and I can feel the powerful energy from them radiating through my screen. (Fingers crossed, one day I’ll be able to feel it in person.)
Lauren’s rating: 10 / 10 Perfection.
Ava’s rating: 10 / 10 I have a thrifted lime green blazer dress that just needs some matching heels.
4) MESHY MULES 105
PRICE: $490
These babies are the kind I imagine Rihanna would wear to her business meetings. With a sheer mesh, they skid the lines between open-closed and closed-toes. The mules are available in nude or jet black, making them easy to pair with most outfits. Personally, I think they’d be perfect for business casual fit or a fun brunch with friends.
Lauren’s rating: 7 / 10 I love a good mule. But when the lighting hits that mesh in the wrong way, the sheerness throws me off.
Ava’s rating: 7.5 / 10 I love the black ones, but the nude ones look a little too close to those try-on socks at the department store. I’m sure someone more powerful than me could rock them.
Just like anything Rihanna makes, we could have expected this Fenty shoe drop to wow us. Will we be buying the precious pieces? Our bank accounts won’t allow it. But will we make 15 Pinterest boards with them while blasting ANTI and yearning for the day we can strut in our lime green heels down the city streets? Already in the works.
Final Ratings:
Lauren's rating: 8/10 (Supreme energy radiated from the shoe's I could never afford )
Ava's rating: 8.5/10 (Points deducted because I can only wear them in my dreams.)
Lauren Rousseau is the Online Editor at Rowdy Magazine. She loves watching drug-store versions of The Bachelor and baking cookies at innapropriate hours. You can find her on Instagram at @laurenxrousseau and email her pitches at laurenrousseau58@gmail.com
Ava Loomar is Rowdy Magazine's Editorial Director. She likes red wine, jamming to alt-rock and staying up till 4 to watch Sailor Moon. You can reach her on her Instagram @whosava. If you're interested in writing for Rowdy, please email her at rowdymagazine.submissions@gmail.com