Photo: Filippo Fior / Gorunway.com
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It’s no secret that the natural touch and feel of raffia, a fiber spun from palm leaves, is universally beloved during the warm-weather months when everything appears slightly more undone and imperfect. Take this latest spring 2024 season, for example. Designers like Matthieu Blazy at Bottega Veneta and JW Anderson at his eponymous label clearly had vacation on the brain when dreaming up their latest collections–and more specially, their footwear designs. Completing almost every look to perfection were pairs of au natural footwear–think crochet-adorned slides and loafers to raffia-encrusted wedges and elegant espadrilles. The use of these earthy materials is not just limited to the runways, either—Staud, St. Agni, Mango, and Loeffler Randall have embraced the look as well.
Vogue’s Guide to Au Natural Footwear:
- The Runway Heel: Bottega Veneta Atomic intrecciato raffia sandals, $1,600
- The Crochet Heel: Staud Simone crochet heels, $395
- The Woven Ballet Flat: Mango square-toe braided ballerinas, $100
- The Raffia Slide: Castañer Pat raffia slides, $195
- The Fisherman Sandal: Loeffler Randall Sawyer raffia fisherman sandals, $350
- The Raffia Loafer: Vince Davis flat raffia loafers, $295
- The Strappy Sandal: Loewe x Paula’s Ibiza leather espadrille wedge sandals, $1,100
- The Mesh Mary Jane: J.Crew Mary Jane espadrilles, $178
- The Raffia Mule: JW Anderson leather-trimmed raffia mules, $450
- The Wedge: Zimmermann Sol 95 wedge espadrilles, $475
- The Sleek Sandal: Cult Gaia Ada sandals, $398
Now back to Bottega Veneta: While the brand isn’t traditionally known for its boho-inspired designs, its spring 2024 collection begs to differ. (For proof of concept, look no further than the runway example above featuring a dramatical raffia-accented dress anchored by matching woven mules.) Meanwhile, over at Stella McCartney and Burberry, crochet was on major display, styled alongside tailored pairs of trousers and great white dresses.
Other au natural footwear finds on our radar this season include Le Monde Beryl’s crochet Mary Janes and Prada’s fisherman sandals to woven ballet flats from Madewell and Ancient Greek Sandals. And finally, no au natural footwear roundup could be complete without a festive espadrille or two, whether you choose Toteme’s mesh slides, Loewe’s strappy sandals, or Zimmerman’s lace-up style. As for the ideal handbag pairing? A raffia tote, of course.
Below, celebrate the start of summer in style with our edit of warm-weather friendly, au natural footwear.