New Balance's latest 996s are a rare breed of dad shoes.

For one, these sneakers aren't just aura-maxing. They're texture-maxing, too. They feature a combination of buttery leather, smooth suede, and satin touches across the upper. Oh, and they also have satin shoelaces.

It's a pleasant surprise for many reasons. One, who doesn't love satin shoelaces? They're so cute. Second, New Balance doesn't do this often.

You might catch silky-laced New Balances on the DIY side of TikTok. But the brand itself doesn't do lace swaps frequently. It'll switch things up with techy toggle shoelaces and sometimes leather lace-ups if you're a Miu Miu sneaker. But other than that, New Balance keeps its dad shoes very normal, down to the shoelaces.

Sometimes, it'll even go lace-free.

But today, the New Balance 996 is laced up tastefully.

The newest sneaker arrives in black, white, and brown colorways, some of which are now up for grabs on Billy's website for ¥12,980, or around $83.

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