Sophia Webster ‘Kiki‘, £340
At around about this time every year (or even sooner, if I’m completely honest), I decide I’ve had my fill of winter boots and sensible shoes, and start craving summery colours and styles instead. These Sophia Webster sandals definitely say “summer” to me: from the lemon upper to the delicate straps and lace-effect vamp, they’re the kind of shoes that are just begging to be worn with bare legs, on a warm day, although they’d also work just as well as an evening shoe if you want to wear them now, too. The bright colour will contrast nicely against darker shades like black, navy and grey (And there’s always plenty of those around in winter), and it’s not a shade you tend to see a lot of, so it’s almost guaranteed to stand out, too.
These have a PVC upper, which used to be the province of so-called “stripper” shoes, but these days its a lot more mainstream, and has been cropping up fairly frequently, used by designers like Christian Louboutin and Nicholas Kirkwood to create a “barely there” effect. Sophia Webster seems to be a big fan of this technique, and uses it here to great effect, creating a lemony-fresh look with just enough neon to tap into the current trend for fluorescent shades, without being hard on the eyeballs.
I have come to the conclusion that I do not like neon colours. Even when on shoes as pretty as these.