Even though it’s spring, today we’re going to talk about a black suede boot from Christian Louboutin. The “Monica” is its name; $1,790 is its price; and it is at this point in the season no longer in stores.

Why mention it, then? Well, a couple weeks ago The New Yorker wrote a funny (and blessedly short) article about these boots, which I point you to not as an impetus to purchase, but rather, Margaret-Mead-like, as a case study of the species calceus amator (”shoe lover,” according to some Latin site I found on the Internet). Per the article, these boots are bewildering, hard work, and expensive. It continues: “The Monica comes with some very public fears: of fat, of failure, of flashing.” And, from the boutique manager: “It’s going to take a good five minutes to put them on, and a lot of wiggling around.”

And, yet…they’re all gone. And not because the boutiques sent them back to HQ at the end of the season. No. They sold out two full runs, one in November and one in February.

We do love our fantastic shoes, don’t we?

You can read The New Yorker article in its entirety here.

The Monica is (surprisingly) still pictured on the Christian Louboutin web site, check it out here.