The rise of the no-heel wedding

And the bride wore… flats. So did her mother. At one of the year’s most stylish weddings – actress Margaret Qualley married music producer Jack Antonoff – flats were the footwear of choice for almost all in attendance.

It is notable that the mother-of-the-bride in question was Andie MacDowell (in jewelled thong sandals) and that the guests included the supermodel Cara Delevingne (in polished brogues). As for Qualley, her bridal shoes were neat white Mary Janes – she practically skipped through the streets of New Jersey, beaming as she held hands with her new husband. Well you would, wouldn’t you, if your shoes were so comfy that you felt you were walking on air?

Flats, particularly for summer weddings, make a lot of sense. These are long days with hot sun (if you’re lucky), conditions that can make high heels feel particularly uncomfortable, at a faster rate than usual. Is wearing flats to a wedding (especially your own) a sign that you haven’t made an effort, or misread the dress code as “casual”?

It’s certainly chicer to arrive and last in a pair of fancy flats, than to be the person who wilts before the reception starts. Why kill a perfectly curated outfit by limping sadly across to the basket of complimentary flip flops?

“I didn’t want to be wobbling down the aisle,” says Tessa Vermeulen, founder of the London-based fashion brand Hai, who married gallerist Gennaro Leone in July. The couple celebrated in the gardens at Bosco Capodimonte in Naples, and ran through the fields as their friends and family doused them in confetti.

“I love heels, but I simply can’t walk in them properly,” she explains. “I tried on a few pairs of heels at the Chanel store but I felt very much like myself wearing flats as I’m in loafers or Mary Janes most days.”

Even in a kitten heel, at a wedding last weekend I found myself dancing barefoot – the bride in that case had also ditched her skyscraper show shoes for trainers at the soonest opportunity (à la Line Of Duty star Vicky McClure, who was back in her Nikes swiftly after saying I Do last week). I observed guests who had brought their own flats to put on for dancing – including one who had slipped a pair of Hermès sliders into her handbag ready to make the change without losing any designer kudos.

Bringing a pre-planned shoe swap is one way to go about it. But – revolutionary thought – what if we all had already picked shoes that we actually could endure and enjoy wearing?