Pliés and thank you: how to update your ballet flats
Dice Kayek haute couture SS16 runway.
Though their wearers appear elegant and weightless, ballerina pointe shoes are far from fancy-free.
The deceptively delicate, blush-hued satin is stretched over a box with paper glued solid at the toe to support the dancer's balance, while the wafer-thin leather sole is accompanied by a shank. This brutal-sounding fit of plastic or burlap stiffens the sole of the shoe - hardly your cosiest pair of slippers.
Designers have certainly taken a turn towards the ballet shoe aesthetic but – mercifully! - kept the focus on the delicate straps of ribbon and elastic that encase the bridge of the foot.
The spring runways were in full balletomania mode, from the criss-cross laced styles at Miu Miu, Proenza Schouler and Celine at the SS16 shows to the thick, ankle-bowed incarnation at Christian Dior.
Even Dice Kayek flouted convention and sent glittered mary-jane flats – gasp! – down the spring couture runway.
With the ability to add instant elegance to a shredded pair of cropped jeans or a floaty summer dress, why not take a pair for a shuffle?
