The Most Stylish Summer Shoe Is a V-Neck Ballet Flat
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Otegha Uwagba is a best-selling author and journalist who publishes the monthly culture and style newsletter Add to Wishlist.
A couple of months ago, I was killing time on a long train journey by hosting a spring-fashion “ask me anything” on my Instagram. The responses were both amusing and pleasingly exacting: People wanted to know what to wear to summer weddings (“if you can bear it”); where they could buy good blouses (“NOT shirts”); and where a bag I’d posted a few days earlier was from (it was an S.Joon Mini Tulip bag I’ve had for years). But one question in particular stood out, mostly because I didn’t have an answer.
It was from someone wanting to know where they could buy comfortable summer flats that aren’t sandals — a dilemma I myself run into every summer and had yet to crack. If you’re anything like me, you don’t always wanna have your toes out, you know? Maybe your pedicure’s looking a little busted (guilty), or it’s one of those summer days where it also might rain for a few minutes (I live in London, a city that has been known to experience all four seasons in one day). Maybe you work in an office where having your toes on show feels a little … too casual. Maybe you just have ugly feet!
Loafers are my preferred winter flat, but they feel far too heavy and formal to wear with flirty little sundresses (and yes, I know “wrong shoe theory” is a whole thing over on TikTok, but so is drinking unpasteurized milk and using beef tallow as moisturizer, so … I’ll pass). For the past few summers, the main options on offer have been either a mary jane or some Miu Miu–inspired ballet flats — both solid options, but both of which also skew a little more twee than the rest of my wardrobe. As a result, I often resort to trainers or an espadrille wedge in high summer, but neither of those feel particularly versatile — so I often do end up wearing sandals even when I’d actually rather not. What we need, I realized, was something like a ballet flat or mary jane, but a little more grown-up.
Enter what I now consider to be the perfect summer flat: Le Monde Beryl’s Luna slipper, which I’ve been wearing nonstop since getting a pair last month. They popped up on my Instagram feed, and my immediate thought was, I need those. Key to the success of these shoes is the fact they have a deep vamp, which (a) makes your feet look super slender and dainty (a godsend for those of us with wide feet) and (b) means more of your foot is on show, which I’ve decided is key to locating them firmly in summer flat territory, rather than the full coverage of a winter shoe. Le Monde Beryl has been on my radar for years, but I mainly associated it with its ubiquitous mary-jane style, even though it also makes several alternate styles. I actually bought these lace-up satin cutout flats from the brand last summer (now on sale!), so I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me to suggest them during my Q&A. Still, I hope the person who asked is reading this now.
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They’re made from supersoft leather and are unbelievably comfortable and light — the kind of shoes that arrived feeling like someone else had already done the hard work of breaking them in for me. I was slightly overwhelmed by the number of colorways on offer (as well as textures — besides leather, they also come in suede, mesh, metallics, and satin) but opted for the brown leather in the end for maximum versatility. That said, I plan to add a few lighter colorways to my collection over time — pistachio, perhaps (currently 40 percent off), or maybe these tan suede ones?
Some alternatives in the same vein that I like include:
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A great sub-$100 option … let’s just hope the tariffs don’t come for Steve Madden!!
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The square toe on these gives them a Jil Sander–esque vibe I’m really into.
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The brown python on this Sezane pair provides some subtle interest while still being pretty classic.
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I love the extra-rounded toe and U-shaped vamp on this pair.
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