Although I spent much of the last week at fashion shows, I was also able to check out designers' clothes off the runway—and got a chance to zero in on some of the details. Some of the shoes were particularly impressive, like the wood-grain high-top from Balenciaga (pictured), a polished and exactingly clean take on an idea you'd expect to be messier were it from a skate company. Other highlights? A limited-edition pair of boots from Martin Margiela studded with hundreds of tiny nails (the rest of his accessories have a nail theme, too); canvas shoes by Adam Kimmel that come with a crepe sole; and midnight-blue suede boots from YSL's cruise collection—yes, YSL did a cruise collection—that exemplified the laid-back cool of Stefano Pilati's entire line. Cool, as you know, starts from the ground up.

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