Cole Bennett’s first Birkenstock shoe collaboration comes with an unusual prompt: cut and customize the off-white wool upper. The Boston design is part of the model’s 50th anniversary, and the campaign shows Bennett taking shears to a pair. In an interview with Highsnobiety, he describes the project as an opportunity to put his own ideas into a shoe he has worn for more than a decade.
For anyone considering the clog, the practical question is straightforward: do you like its wool-covered look as it is, or is the invitation to alter it part of the appeal? The interview establishes that customization is encouraged, but it does not provide a detailed cutting method or advice on caring for an altered upper.
A long-running connection to Birkenstock
Bennett says he has worn Birkenstocks for more than 10 years and has wanted to collaborate with the company. The relationship also includes a 2018 “Birkenstories” video. This release is his first shoe collaboration with Birkenstock, and it is part of the Boston’s 50th anniversary.
The shoe is a Birkenstock 1774 design, described in the article as a Boston covered in off-white wool. Its instruction manual tells wearers to “cut it” and “customize it.” The campaign makes that suggestion visible: one image shows Bennett cutting into the fluffy upper with shears.
That is a distinctive design proposition, but it is not a requirement to modify the shoe. If the original look works for you, the interview gives no reason to treat customization as a necessary step.
Imperfection as a creative choice
Bennett connects the collaboration to a broader preference for ideas that do not have to look perfectly polished. In the same interview, he discusses a Future music video featuring an animatronic character sourced from a former ShowBiz Pizza Place. He says its face combined two masks, creating an imperfect, strange effect he liked.
The parallel is about Bennett’s approach, not a guarantee about how a customized clog will turn out. The interview does not show a range of wearer alterations or report how the wool holds up after cutting. A personal cut may produce a look you like, but readers should not mistake the creative invitation for specific construction or care guidance.
What to consider before altering it
Start by deciding whether you would want the shoe in its original form. If the off-white wool appeals to you without changes, customization can remain optional. If the alteration is the main draw, review the product’s own instructions before cutting; the interview does not explain a technique or discuss aftercare.
Bennett’s idea is permission to personalize, not pressure to change the shoe. Would you keep the wool-covered Boston as designed, or customize it?
Source image: Highsnobiety.