IT’S TRENDING: IMPRACTICAL BALLET FLATS

Largely thanks to Miu Miu and its autumn/winter 2022 dainty satin pumps, the ballet flat is officially #trending. Supermodel of the moment Bella Hadid has recently been spotted on a private jet in black leather Mary Jane iterations of the style by New York designer Sandy Liang, even completing her travel look with leg warmers. It’s all well and good if you’re pirouetting from car to red carpet like Ms Hadid. But how should us mere mortals wear the trend, when we must to trudge through the streets of London leaving the flimsy flats vulnerable to the elements (and god knows what else)? Cast your mind back to circa 2006 when Kate Moss could be seen pounding the pavements of Primrose Hill on the school run, her feet sheathed in a pair of well-worn ballet flats. Well, this unprecious approach to footwear is once again totally en pointe. Draw from Balenciaga’s latest show, held in a giant mud pit, which saw models trudging through puddles in battered ballet slippers. Channel their grungy, down-at-heel demeanour, whether wearing Alaïa’s crystalstudded ballerinas or vintage Chanel Cambon flats. It’s not practical, and nor should it be too pretty.