46 Comments

I’m torn about ballet sneakers. On one hand, the idea of adding arch support and shock absorption to ballet flats is a blessing for anyone actually planning to walk more than a few steps in them. Aesthetically, though, they are giving flashbacks to elementary school Christmas recitals.

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Mesh flats were a thing in the 2010s, and they were cheap and gross then. I cannot imagine wearing them in a city, where city filth would permanently cling to the mesh, and make its way to one’s feet. No.

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I feel like when all the original ideas have been done for a season, desperate designers remake classics into franken-shoes. Even if you like a particular style, you can probably only wear them for a month before they're out like yesterday's trash. This silliness just feels like people are trying too hard to be cool.

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I like kitten heels, but I'm not thinking "FU Amy" while having that opinion! Just to be clear.

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I feel like a lot of these trends are giving 1998 Delia’s catalog.

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Apr 12·edited Apr 12

There is literally no need whatsoever to spend $1,000 on new cowboy boots. You wouldn't even want to because they're uncomfy until you break them in! I walked into 10 Ft by Stella Dallas in Williamsburg this weekend and they had a line of secondhand cowboy boots (like they always do) ready to be bought. I copped a comfy pair for $80 and will wear them to every outdoor party this summer in which I'm worried about my feet getting dirty or muddy. Go to your local thrift store, I beg you.

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LOL wow I was really in a state when I wrote that LRD Strat post...

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I don't care about showing my feet or toes (I'm a Birks all summer person), but the mesh flats are just kind of ugly to me and they look like they have no support... my saying this is how you know I have old lady feet and would rather avoid plantar fasciitis than be on trend :)

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My brain hurts a little since the basis for so many of these were a THING when i was in high school circa the early 2000s, kitten heels, fisherman sandals, ballet flats (or just literal ballet shoes to school), and instead of peculiar mesh shoes it was those mesh granny slides from chinatown with the flowers and rhinestones that were impossible to keep on your feet while in motion.

So its like take the early 2000s but make it...chunkier, or weirder, or just a modern LSD fever dream of the late 90s and early aughts. Here we are. No wonder the bumster is back?

But long live cowboy boots. as a clumsy gal I have lived in nothing but them for at least 5 years now to ensure my toes stay attached to my feet. I'll pretend I'm a trendsetter.

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There is nothing I'm not too fond of more than the constant reinvention of how many toes can be exposed at once in a shoe.

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I took my personal votes way too seriously for someone who just roates between different styles of Birkenstocks all spring/summer

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Some of these trends just read "I don't need to touch the ground" for me...with all the sweat and dirt that comes with summer?? Especially the mesh flats and the fringe...these are shoes that only go into a car and out, no pounding the pavement!

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I do like the IDEA of mesh ballerinas, but they don't look like they have any support AND I have sweaty feet (sorry) so it's a no from me.

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I didn’t realize Onitsuka tigers were polarizing. I really really love mine. They feel a bit more sleek for day sneakers and good to mix it up from chunky sneaks

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I bought into the mesh Alaia ballet flats last summer and I am over them. I think I wore them twice. I just sent them to the real real. Black size 38 if you didn’t get them last year and still want to try the trend.

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When I was a model--yes, it's true--my agent said on my first day in Paris: Wear a low, nearly imperceptible heel, aka kitten heel, and short skirts. It gives the illusion that your legs are longer than they are. He was a total perv. But he was right.

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