Allbirds wants consumers to take its famous woolen footwear out into the elements, dropping two new styles in a capsule dubbed the Mizzle Collection on Wednesday.
Mizzle is a portmanteau of “misty” and “drizzle,” but the somewhat silly moniker belies a serious commitment to both sustainability and weatherproofing in the brand’s first-ever attempt at a moisture-repellent silhouette.
The Mizzle collection introduces a fresh new style to Allbird’s lineup, a wool high-top sneaker that the brand says is its take on a weather-resistant boot, just in time for autumn’s variable temperatures.
“The Wool Runner Mizzle and our first-ever wool hightop, the Wool Runner-up Mizzle, are all-climate, all-season options that don’t make you choose between function or style,” the brand said in a statement. “With a thicker layer of ZQ-certified Merino Wool and a more substantial SweetFoam sole reinforced with high traction natural rubber, the Mizzle Collection includes two new drizzle-defying takes on our classic Wool shoes that will help you face even the dreariest of dark, damp days.”
According to the brand, “virtually all” weatherproofing requires the use of synthetic fluorinated chemicals, also known as PFAs. These chemicals do not break down over time and eventually find their way into soil and water, Allbirds explained.
After a period of “extensive R&D,” the footwear brand claims to have found a solution to the weatherproofing problem that doesn’t require PFAs, a technology Allbirds calls “Puddle Guard.” This weatherproofing process instead utilizes an Oeko-Tex Eco Passport-certified water repellent that is free of fluorines and combined with a breathable layer of biologically synthesized thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) membrane.
Related Stories
This membrane is an exceptionally thin 100 microns, and embedded between the wool upper and the interior of the shoe to prevent seepage when exposed to water. A Puddle Guard film encased within the wool preserves the shoe’s shape and structure, which is thicker than a traditional Allbird Runner.
Features like rubberized aglets and logo tabs made of the same bio-based TPU mean that every inch of the Mizzle collection is designed to keep water on the outside—along with taking Allbirds in a brand new direction.
The Wool Runner Mizzle will be available in natural black, “Harvest,” natural gray and “Savanna Night,” and will retail for $115 on the Allbirds website while the Runner-up Mizzle will sell for $135 and is available in fog, “Tuke Jo,” “Jackalberry,” and “Savanna Night,” as well.
Earlier this month Allbirds collaborated with Just Water to create a capsule supporting the Amazon Forest Fund project led by Earth Alliance, an organization fighting the widespread fires and deforestation that have devastated the region.