Pumice stones at the ready … from the arty mule to the holiday slipper, here are some of the best examples of the heel-flashing trend

Getting ready for that summer pedicure? No, me neither. But there is good news for those who identify as lazy when it comes to their feet. This season, toes will be a rare site in fashionable circles, and toe cleavage is practically illegal, according to the denizens of the front row. This year’s look is all about the closed-toe mule, you see. A quick swipe with the pumice stone is all you need. Here are four of the most fashionable heel-flashers around.

The woke ballerina flat

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Flat mules with bow, Stradivarius, £19.99.

When Maria Grazia Chiuri came to Dior in July 2016, she put feminism front and centre of her own new look. Ballet flats, it’s fair to say, are a bit too cutesy to scream intersectionality or any other zeitgeisty term. Instead, Chiuri gave them a rework by tweaking the bow to the side of the shoe, adding a point to the front and emancipating your heels. Other brands have followed suit. Meet your take-you-everywhere summer shoe - that includes marching on anti-Trump protests, obvs.

The holiday slipper

Facebook Twitter Pinterest XL pompoms at the Carven show, Paris fashion week, SS 2018. Photograph: Peter White/Getty Images

Asos has a whole category entitled “holiday shoes”. We like its style. The backless loafer introduced by Gucci – complete with shearling – in 2015 has morphed into the kind of shoes that demand attention, or at least a rooftop and a caipirinha before lunch. Maximalist styles ranging from XL pompoms to rainbow stripes are all invited, and all on the high street, too.

The arty mule

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Juniper ball heel mules, £62, Topshop. Photograph: Topshop

Anyone who follows Simon Porte Jacquemus on Instagram will find not employing the adjective “adorable” tricky. Paris’s golden boy, who posts videos of tulips on bicycles and donkeys on the beach, along with himself in oversized picture hats, has also had a hand in making shoes with heels that could quite easily pass in a Ettore Sottsass exhibition. Topshop and other brands are exploring other heel shapes. Expect ball-heeled mules at gallery openings this summer.

The Seven Year Itch slingback

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Slingback checkered shoes,

£49.99, Mango. Photograph: Mango

It doesn’t get much better than your shoe of choice enjoying the Marilyn Monroe seal of approval. The actor wore slingbacks in that 1955 subway grate scene in The Seven Year Itch. OK, those were open-toed, but 2018’s version has all the mid-century charm without any toe issues. Prada’s came with punk attitude but gingham gives a bit of classic wholesomeness that the 50s would totally get. It also looks great with that other Monroe fashion favourite, denim.

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