The National weekend Friday, July 29, 2016 www.thenational.ae 03 style Comfort and trend style finally combine 1 fashion notes 10 Hafsa Lodi igh heels can cause can be found in neutral shades many woes for women. of suede at H&M. Online re­ Cracked heels, pin­ tailer Asos also has some great ched toes and redness offerings, in printed, plain and all roundH is a lot of ache for one backless options. Speaking of person to deal with. To dismiss backless, mules are another it as sore feet doesn’t do the example of wearable heels that pain justice. Worse still, there’s have resurfaced, though I much no cure – aside from boycotting prefer the sleek, black options high heels altogether, taking to the wooden clog styles that extreme surgical measures or some brands (such as Gucci injecting your feet with Botox. and Alexander McQueen) have Don’t scoff – some women re­ tried to repopularise. Gucci, sort to these procedures. It’s a however, did bring a clever shoe 2 3 problem we have had to suffer style to the market this season for many years. But things are when it introduced loafers with taking a positive turn, with the leather back panels that fold in, fashion industry’s latest fixation turning them into mules. For on heels that are more comfort­ all of us who resort to sticking able and wearable. plasters onto the backs of our Take the cult shoe of the mo­ heels so shoes don’t cause blis­ ment: the Chanel slingback. ters or worse, this new style is Its neither too­pointed nor quite a genius solution, as is the 9 too­rounded toe, small block decision to go with square toes. heel and slingback strap cele­ For women such as me, who brate a new era in fashion – one are cursed with wide feet, ultra-­ that doesn’t include foot tor­ narrow pointed styles are tortu­ ture. Sadly, the Dh2,800 shoe is ous to fit all five toes in, let alone sold out in most Chanel stores walk around in for five minutes. 4 across the globe – even in its lat­ A sign of the working, profes­ est grey­and­black colourway, to sional woman used to be an en­ my dismay. If you have neither viably high­heeled shoe – often the savings nor energy to hunt with the signature Louboutin around personal shoppers’ red sole. But with varying defi­ Instagram pages for coveted nitions of feminism influenc­ Chanels, don’t despair, because ing trends, and man­repelling the high street has caught on to becoming an increasingly pop­ the trend. ular style statement, traditional Sock­style heels are anoth­ notions of feminine footwear er type of comfort­over­looks are changing, too. Slowly but shoe currently on the market. surely, women in the workplace 5 Niche New York­based shoe are shedding the sexist conno­ designer Maryam Nassir Zadeh tations that place them in tight pioneered the rise of this trend. suits and uber­high heels. We Her retro renditions, which have kicked off our uncomfy cost Dh1,000 to Dh2,000, also pumps, replacing them with gained recognition when luxu­ lace­up ballerinas, flat­form ry leather label Mansur Gavriel sandals, relaxed espadrilles 8 was accused of copying her shoe and, if your office is super­le­ designs (particularly the colour­ nient, sporty trainers. As I type ful mules) when it launched a this in our office, which abides footwear line. by quite a professional dress­ The autumn/winter stock code, my feet sit happily inside slowly trickling into Zara takes a my latest shoe splurge from lot of inspiration from high­end All Saints. They’re black, open­ designers, shoes included. Lace­ back, bow­adorned canvas flats up ballet styles, à la Miu Miu, are that are somewhat reminiscent in the collection, as are cap­toe, of house­slippers. Office appro­ block­heeled renditions of the priate? I will let you decide. Chanel slingback. Sock­style heels, meanwhile, ĝ [email protected] 7 6 Styling by Hafsa Lodi / The National; photo by Mona Al Marzooqi / The National Pumped up From slingbacks to mules and granny-chic styles, shop these ‘it’ shoes 1. Black sock shoe, Dh79, H&M, Yas Mall, 02 492 6534; Dubai Mall, 04 419 0346 and elsewhere. 2. Pointy mule with straps, Dh2,230, Malone Souliers at Boutique 1, Yas Mall, 02 566 8848; Mall of the Emirates, 04 395 1200 and elsewhere. 3. Rust block heel, Dh179, Mango at www.namshi.com. 4. Black pointy mule, Dh150, Qupid at www.namshi.com. 5. Grey and black slingback, Dh1,680, Paul Andrew at Left to right, slingbacks and two examples of mules, which are Boutique 1. 6. Reflective block heel, Dh145, New Look at www.namshi.com. 7. Python block heel, Dh179, H&M. 8. Crystal block heel, becoming popular, comfortable yet fashionable footwear staples. Dh179, New Look at www.namshi.com. 9. White sock shoe, Dh1,670, Robert Clergerie at Boutique 1. 10. Gold mule, Dh349, Topshop, Yas Edward Berthelot / Getty Images; Christian Vierig / Getty Images (2) Mall, 04 492 6572; Dubai Mall, 04 339 9802 and elsewhere. trend-ometer this week’s ups and downs Suede blues Taking the Steve Madden, take Mickey note: suede just Sorry Coach, but doesn’t fair well in we wouldn’t splurge our desert sand. on a bag stamped with a Mickey Mouse emblem. Maxi match-up A healthy glow Wrap up This shimmering Achieve the ultimate A chic bomber jacket maxi is the show- summer shine with from Zara is your stopper from the this Marc Jacobs solution to chilly air Rachel Zoe x Net- Beauty Spotlight conditioning in the a-Porter capsule Glow Stick. office. collection..