Do you want jelly with those shoes?
Fendi black jelly ballet flat. Melissa blue wedge from Allyson’s Closet.
Remember plastic jelly shoes from the 1980s?
Well, they’re back but with a big dose of style. Details include buckles, crystals, even cork heels. Word on the street is that this new generation of plastic shoes is much more comfortable than its predecessors.
Probably the most noticeable change, though, is the price. Oh, you can still find inexpensive jelly flip-flops and sandals for $25 or so, but the best-looking shoes on the rack will cost upwards of $100 or more.
Yes, for a plastic shoe. And you’ll be surprised which brands are pushing the look.
* Melissa continues to do well with colorful wedges and sandals. Many styles are in the $65 to $85 range. Melissa, the Brazilian shoe brand known for its molded plastic, claims to be the original jelly, born in 1972. Melissa has callaborated with several fashion designers, including Alexandre Herchovitch, and this season Vivienne Westwood, the queen of British fashion. (Lindsay Lohan has been photographed often in a Melissa.)
* Stuart Weitzman offers clear slides, sandals and thongs accented with Swarovski crystals. My daughter bought a pair of the slides about two years ago, and she says they’re some of the most comfortable shoes she’s ever worn. They conform to the foot as it warms. The price: $115 to $145.
* Kors Michael Kors jumped on the trend with jelly thongs and toe-ring styles. $95 to $110.
* Fendi offers a jelly ballet flat with removable strap and faux buckle detail at the peep toe. $175.
* J. Crew entices shoppers with a jeweled ballet flat. $59.50.
My most memorable jellies moment was at Six Flags Over Texas. It was the middle of summer, and I saw this woman sitting on a bench. She had on pink jellies, and her feet were beet red and swollen so much they appeared to be spilling out of the little cut-outs in the shoes. I wondered at the time why she chose plastic shoes on a day when it was 100 degrees. Of course, I also wondered why I was at Six Flags when it was 100 degrees.
Some of the new plastic shoes do look like fun. And they would be perfect on a rainy day. Let’s see how many woman slip into them.
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Yuck. I just cannot get with the whole plastic shoe look. Last season it was Crocs and it seems it was only a matter of time before this abomination happened. I will conceded that the jelly thongs are comfortable, particularly for a trip to the beach or pool.