Today, Carrie Bradshaw, the character who once gazed longingly into a store window and cooed “Hello, lover” to a pair of Pepto-pink Christian Louboutin stilettos, was photographed in a pair of decidedly more sensible shoes: Dr. Scholl’s. The photo, posted by Sarah Jessica Parker to her Instagram, showed her mid-filming for And Just Like That … in a massive gingham cloud hat by Maryam Keyhani, Ossie Clark’s “Traffic Light” dress, a nondescript tote with the new Erik Larson book, The Demon of Unrest, peeking out, and a pair of Dr. Scholl’s iconic wooden slides.
Fashion-history buffs will know them as the exercise sandal: First introduced by the podiatrist-founded brand in 1959, the natural-beechwood clogs with rivet detailing, metallic buckles, and a rainbow of color options, earned their name for their specially contoured footbed that made your toes “hang on” (and worked your legs as a result). “The only sandals with the toe-grip that turns on your legs when you walk,” one 1960s-era ad said alongside images of miniskirted models. (And yes, it’s a claim most modern-day podiatrists, and definitely the PT who treats the tendinitis that regularly pops up in my own feet, would dispute.) By 1971, over 1 million pairs had been sold, and in the late 1990s and early aughts (peak Candie’s years) the shoes had another resurgence. More recently, the brand has experienced repeated revivals thanks to collaborations with Burberry, Ganni, Kate Spade, Re/Done, and Issimo (as Alexa Brazilian points out in this week’s installment of The Perfect), among others. Purists will complain, however, that the modern incarnation of the classic sandal just isn’t the same because the footbed now lacks the signature raised toe. “What happened to the toe bump?” asks one reviewer.
While these sandals may not be a paragon of orthopedic support, their clunky yet sprightly appeal endures. You can spot them in the seasonal look books of Anaak, whose founder, Marissa Maximo, told me she wanted to use a shoe that was classically stylish and comfortable (but more elegant than Birks). She found pairs for her shoot at pharmacies in Europe. “They’re worn more regularly there, so I feel like there’s more variety,” Maximo says. So I wondered: Could SJP’s Carrie be hinting at this summer’s orthopedic-shoe moment? SATC buffs know this isn’t the first time she has worn the exercise sandals. While Carrie was primarily a heel loyalist over the show’s six seasons, Dr. Scholl’s made cameos in both white and pink. Take that as proof that the show’s stylist, Patricia Field, did allow for the occasional appearance of something more — literally — down-to-earth. Although as anyone who has walked the very loud walk in a pair of exercise sandals will tell you, clomping down the cobblestoned streets of the West Village may be just as precarious in a pair of Dr. Scholl’s as it is in Manolos.
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