As someone who doesn’t like open-toe sandals (unfortunate toes) or platforms (laziness), this couldn’t have been better news.
Killing Eve star Sandra Oh chose a black pair for Queen Elizabeth’s funeral, while celebrities Katie Holmes, Sienna Miller and the Hadid sisters have barely worn anything else since spring.
So, what kick-started this trend?
It began with Miu Miu, which sent silky pairs teamed with scrunched socks down the runway for autumn/winter 2022, followed by Alaïa’s almond-shaped, toe-embellished ballet flats with a Mary Jane strap across the top. Loeffler Randall followed suit with a slightly see-through embellished design, and we were hooked.
Gen Z have this year discovered the indie sleaze era – you know the look: a mid-noughties Amy Winehouse in her messy eyeliner, tight miniskirt, bomber jacket and slightly stained satin ballet pumps, or Kate Moss in skinny jeans and leopard-print flats. And by referencing this period, brands – and new-found ballet-shoe lovers – injected the look with something subversive, which negated a decade of preppy associations.
The ballet slipper renaissance is also helping forge closer ties between the worlds of fashion and dance – a move that Vogue has named “balletcore”.
Designers such as Penelope Chilvers – previously known for cowboy boots and espadrilles – are making ballet shoes part of their core collection.
“The ballet pump is barefoot elegance itself, following the silhouette of the foot, nothing more, nothing less,” says Chilvers. “Our own Rock and Roll pump is this season’s softest style.
“Cut with a high vamp, out of craquelure bronze and silver leathers on flexible leather soles, it offers comfort and feels supremely feminine and light-footed.”
Chilvers notes that in the past, women would often tuck a pair of ballet shoes into their handbags for dancing at events like a wedding. Now they are wearing them in luxe materials from start to finish.
Jane Frances, the designer behind shoe brand Dear Frances, agrees. “Keep your ballet shoes chic and classy for parties, finished in an elegant (preferably shiny) material that’s not leather. Satin works beautifully for weddings, as do sheer materials such as white mesh or open weaves.”
In fact, fashionable women are – for the first time – more likely to be in ballet pumps than heels at parties, weddings and black-tie events, a trend that is likely to continue into autumn and even winter in warmer parts of the world.
“I think there’s something very Carolyn Bessette about a stylish woman in a beautiful dress and a pair of ballet flats,” says stylist Annabel Hodin. “Much better than sinking into the mud in high heels in a field somewhere.”
As a ballet-flat lover, comfort and convenience are certainly factors in my ongoing obsession with them – two words not usually associated with anything fashionable.
“The ballerina is always popular as it’s the closest to being barefoot without being barefoot – the softest leather gently embracing the foot,” says Pretty Ballerinas founder David Bell.
“Also it’s the perfect footwear for the busy woman with a million things to do every day – it works with her lifestyle, not against it.
“You always look smart wearing ballerinas – it’s the casual shoe for the well-dressed woman.”
I’ve always found them to be one of the most flattering shoes on the market, thanks to their low cut, which lengthens the leg in a way that loafers and other flat shoes do not.
The current trend for square-toe ballerina flats gives them a particularly French feel, whether you are pairing them with jeans, a straight skirt or a dress – try Pretty Ballerinas’ Camille design.
For almond-shaped shoes, few designers do it better than French brand Repetto – although fashion editors will always hanker after Chanel two-tone pumps.
As for me, I’ll be wearing ballet pumps for the rest of the year – or, at least until London weather forces them off my frozen feet.
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