Latest news with #Pescura
Daily Mail
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
'Ugly' orthopaedic shoes are back in fashion - but would YOU splash out £600 for a pair?
They may have been designed to help with painful bunions and other foot-related maladies, but so-called 'orthopaedic' ugly shoes are back in style. Footwear from brand like Dr Scholls and Crocs will be the top choice among fashionistas this Summer - despite their lack of aesthetic appeal. According to the Telegraph, the practical footwear is coming back in vogue as part of the 70s boho revival. Shoes that were once born from pharmacies for being practical are set to become highly desirable as a style statement this Spring and Summer. The most recognisable style of Dr Scholls is the Pescura design, which features a flat wooden sole and a leather strap across the toes. They retails for around £117. And some pairs are selling for eye-watering sums, as designer brands are cashing in on the style. In a bid to attract high fashion lovers, Dr Scholls has teamed up with major fashion houses to create pricy new options. Among the designers to partner with the orthopaedic brand are Balenciaga, which created a line of 'ugly chic shoes'. There are six different pairs in the line, including high heeled versions of the Pescura design - with the most expensive pair from the Scholl x Balenciaga line costing a staggering £625. According to Demna Gvasalia, the former creative director of Balenciaga, she wanted to create 'the most comfortable heels ever made'. The result was a twist on the Pescura - heels were added to the traditional style, with a stiletto version and a lower heeled option, which boasts a cork sole. According to a description on Balenciaga's site: 'This Balenciaga product is part of a collaboration with Scholl. Combining creativity and savoir faire with technical expertise, this series of products aims to propose the most conformable shoes ever made. ' Another designer crossover is the Scholl x Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini option. Philosophy is a diffusion line from the extremely upmarket Italian label Alberta Feretti. Among the options available in the range is the Mary Jane Clog Philosophy x Scholl, which has a RRP of £600. Inspired by traditional Mary Jane strap shoes, the clogs come in multiple colourways including black and brown. They boast a thick wooden sole with an enclosed toe and double strap with buckles. The description on the brand's website says: 'Mary Jane Clog in polished abrasive calfskin made in collaboration with Scholl. Characterized by a wooden structure and a leather upper with double strap, it features a design reminiscent of the seventies. 'Available in two color options: a total black version for a more glam-rock style and a leather variant for a more bohemian vibe.' The most famous Dr Scholl style - the Pescura - was designed in 1956. Old advertisements for the shoe say wearing them will 'shape, tone and firm your legs with every step you take'. This is due to how wearers are forced to grip onto the shoes with their toes, as they only have a strap at the front. Before their recent renaissance, the Pescura was considered a shoe for hippy-types, and desperately unfashionable. Fashion editor and ceramicist Deborah Brett told the Telegraph that when she was growing up, her mother wore Dr Scholls, specifically the Pescura model with a cream coloured strap. She said: 'Even as a child, I understood they were uncool. There's a German word: oko. It translates to 'eco', and basically means that you're a bit crusty.' However, she has now changed her opinion, and wears her mother's Scholls - which she has not yet had to get resoled, as they are so hardwearing. Describing how she likes to style them, Deborah said: 'I love Scholls with capri pants. You see a little bit of an ankle and they look really cool. Same with an A-line skirt – the shoes give you a bit of height, which you need with that silhouette. You can also pair them with a white linen suit in the summer, elevating your look from classically elegant to fashion-forward elegant.' Despite their utilitarian appearance, the Pescura is set to win over a legion of new fans, after actress Sarah Jessica Parker was spotted wearing on the set of And Just Like That last year. Perhaps surprisingly, the casual sandals received a lot of positive reviews as something fans seemed to definitely want to emulate when an image of the Sex and the City star was posted on Instagram. 'Loving the Dr. Scholls,' wrote one. 'The Dr Scholl's! I'm so jealous ❤️' said another.
Telegraph
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Orthopaedic sandals are now sexy (yes, really)
Arch support and bunion relief aren't exactly synonymous with the terms ' sexy ' and 'stylish'. And yet, in the spirit of the current 1970s boho revival, one of the buzziest trends for spring and summer 2025 is orthopaedic footwear. You read that right: the wooden sandals your mother used to buy at the chemist, the ones the hippies made free love in, are now bang-on trend. Perhaps the most famous model from this era is the Pescura, designed in 1956 by podiatrist-founded brand Scholl and still available today on the company's website from £117. With its ergonomic beechwood soles and supple leather strap, the toes are forced to grip onto the shoe – which, in a series of vintage advertisements, the company claimed would 'shape, tone and firm your legs with every step you take.' The likes of Jean Shrimpton and a young Martha Stewart were on board, and more recently, Sarah Jessica Parker in both the original Sex and the City series and its reboot – rare occasions in which Carrie released her feet from their Jimmy Choo and Manolo Blahnik vice grips. Fast forward, and the now-115-year-old Scholl is dipping its (muscled) toes into the world of high fashion in efforts to continue expanding its reach beyond the podiatrist's office. Last summer, it teamed up with Milanese label Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini on a collection of surprisingly elegant Mary-Jane clogs, and this month, launched a collaboration with Spanish fashion house Balenciaga, a label more known for its controversy-courting campaigns and avant-garde designs than its comfort credentials. The result is a six-piece collection of so-called 'ugly-chic' shoes, including a glossy leather mule with a comfortably wide footbed and a breathable mesh-and-wood clog – though far and away the standout is their high-heeled take on the famous Pescura, available for a cool £625. But before planet fashion flew the flag for wood block-based comfort, the Pescura style was deeply unfashionable. 'Growing up, my German mum had a pair of cream-coloured Pescura Scholls,' recalls fashion editor and ceramicist Deborah Brett. 'Even as a child, I understood they were uncool. There's a German word: öko. It translates to 'eco', and basically means that you're a bit crusty.' Fifty years later, however, Brett has changed her tune. She's still wearing that exact same pair of her mum's, and they're so sturdy she's never had to get them resoled. But how to wear the orthopaedic look in current climes without looking, well, öko? 'I love Scholls with capri pants. You see a little bit of an ankle and they look really cool,' enthuses Brett. 'Same with an A-line skirt – the shoes give you a bit of height, which you need with that silhouette. You can also pair them with a white linen suit in the summer, elevating your look from classically elegant to fashion-forward elegant.' Whether you're of the bunion, plantar fasciitis or just plain want-to-be-comfy camp, you're spoilt for choice this season: other popular styles in the orthopaedically-chic canon at the moment include FitFlop's Shuv clogs, Crocs' Dylan platform and Miu Miu's studded wooden slides. To provide the final word on how foot-friendly these trending shoes are, we've called on the expertise of Ron McCulloch, consultant principal podiatric surgeon and director of the London Podiatry Centre, who puts all walks of footwear through its paces at his cutting-edge gait analysis lab. Mother might always be right, but does the professional endorse her love of the wooden shoe? A podiatrist weighs in on the trending ugly-chic styles Pescura mules, Scholl £117 Turns out, the original 'exercise sandal' might not be as good for your toes as originally thought. McCulloch explains: 'Any shoe that has no fastening at the back is always going to have some negative effects. The wearer claws their toes to keep them on, creating a greater risk of developing toe deformities.' According to McCulloch, this 'clawing' can also increase the risk of developing certain conditions like plantar fasciitis, a common cause of heel pain. Now for the positives. McCulloch notes that because of the rigid sole, the toes won't be able to flex as much as usual: 'if the patient has any arthritis in the toe joints, or any forefoot pain, it might help.' Overall, he's a fan of the style, adding that 'it's certainly not one of the worst I've seen, I quite like it. I think it would be comfortable for most people.' Scholl x Balenciaga heeled sandal £625 Balenciaga's former creative director Demna endeavoured to design 'the most comfortable heels ever made,' and thus, the stiletto Pescura was born. In its granola-meets-Jessica-Rabbit form, it's neither fully orthopaedic nor glamorous: 'This is by far the worst of the shoes here. The height and narrowness of the heel are major issues,' McCulloch says, explaining that because of the spindly heel and thin strap, you're more likely to curl your toes to keep them from slipping off. 'The forefoot pressure becomes extremely high, predisposing you to all sorts of potential injury.' That said, he is a fan of the cork footbed: 'This material conforms to your foot over time, like a comfy old armchair.' The line also features a lower-heeled version of the Pescura, which McCulloch likes for its cork footbed ('this material conforms to your foot over time, like a comfy old armchair') and reasons that it's much better than the heeled version. Scholl x Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini clogs £600 An offshoot line of ultra-luxe Italian label Alberta Feretti, Philosophy is celebrated for its romantic designs – and its collaboration with Scholl yielded these charming Mary Jane-clog hybrids, which even McCulloch's wife is a fan of. 'She's also a podiatrist,' he explains. 'I showed her the styles in this article, and she loves this shoe.' He points to the 'rocker' sole as a positive feature, meaning that the front is slightly lifted, preventing the wearer from feeling like they're lugging around two wooden bricks as they walk. 'It should be quite a comfortable clog.' Crocs Dylan platform clog £65 Ah yes, the ever-polarising Crocs. Love them or hate them, they are fashion's most notorious ugly-chic shoe. This sleek-ified version of the original perforated design feels elevated, yet it doesn't quite get McCulloch's stamp of approval: 'It does have a rocker effect, which is good, but a shoe like this doesn't allow for normal foot function. The sole is extremely thick, meaning it won't allow for proper bending of the toes, and we'd expect to see some shortening of the stride as a result. They should be worn sparingly because of these limitations.' FitFlop Shuv leather clogs £130 Having recently collaborated with contemporary label Roksanda to boost its coolness credentials, FitFlop is firmly back on the fashionista's radar this summer. 'FitFlop was a brand I regarded, somewhat unfairly, as a relic of the Noughties-moms-at-Zumba era,' writes Joy Montgomery, commerce editor in her recent article singing the praises of the label's new Shuv style. 'As a sneaker-ambivalent individual and long-standing sufferer of uncomfortable-but-pretty shoes, this addition to my collection has made my feet very happy indeed'. On the podiatry front, McCulloch is a fan of the brand: 'I generally recommend FitFlop's Lulu style, and am less inclined to recommend the Shuv because it has no back strap which will cause toe clawing. However, because it's a clog and the upper is fairly high, it will keep the foot more stable. Generally, this would be a shoe that I'd be happy for my clinic patients to wear in moderation.'
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Balenciaga Opts For Comfort With New Scholl Collaboration
Balenciaga has unveiled a new shoe collaboration with Scholl Shoes. The luxury label's latest tie-up was born from 'Demna's desire to create the most comfortable heels ever made, infusing the house's footwear silhouettes with the unparalleled comfort of Scholl products.' More from Footwear News Jhené Aiko Shows off Bold Saint Laurent Platforms With Green Reptilian Balenciaga Ensemble at Lakers Game As Demna Heads to Gucci, Here's a Look Back at Some of His Most Iconic Shoe Creations for Balenciaga Debuting as part of the brand's summer 2025 collection campaign, the new collaboration features heeled mules, booties and boots, as well as flat sandals and mules in Nappa sheepskin with concealed cork Scholl footbeds. What's more, calfskin sandals with exposed cork soles and Scholl's distinctive metal buckles—paying homage to the original 1956 Pescura—are offered in both heeled and flat variations, alongside beechwood platform clogs with perforated uppers and co-branded renditions of Balenciaga's signature Pool Slide Sandals. Balenciaga's new collaboration with Scholl follows other recent tie ups with sportswear brands including Puma, Under Armour, Adidas and even Crocs. Its most recent collaboration with Puma was revealed last month as part of the brand's winter 2025 show during Paris Fashion Week. As for the collaboration's footwear, Balenciaga took on Puma's Speedcat sneaker. Originally launched in 1999 with a distinctive flat sole designed for responsive pedal feedback, Balenciaga's take on the Speedcat is reimagined in worn-out suede. And just days later from revealing its collaboration with Puma, Balenciaga creative director Demna announced his move to fellow Kering-owned brand Gucci to become its artistic director. Ever since Demna took the creative helm at Balenciaga ten years ago, he has made it his business to create viral shoe moments. Some of his first releases were seen everywhere including the Speed sock sneaker, the Triple S and the Track model. More recently, Demna is opting for oversized shoes like the 3XL and 6XL sneaker silhouettes. Select shoe styles of the new Balenciaga x Scholl collaboration are now available in select Balenciaga stores worldwide and on Best of Footwear News Allen Iverson's Reebok Deal: The Details of His Lifetime Contract NBA All-Star Weekend's Most Iconic Sneakers of All Time Super Bowl Halftime Show Shoes Through the Years: From Michael Jackson's Loafers to Rihanna's MM6 Maison Margiela x Salomon Sneakers
The Guardian
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Balenciaga and orthopaedic brand Scholl team up for ‘Frankenshoe' hybrid
With Birkenstocks and Crocs now ubiquitous, fashion's so-called ugly shoe trend was in danger of losing its shock factor. So the arrival of Balenciaga's collaboration with the orthopaedic brand Scholl couldn't have come a moment too soon. The collection, which launched this week, includes a 'Frankenshoe' style that combines the buckle and front strap found on the classic Pescura Scholl sandal with a cork sole and a spindly high heel. It is priced at £625. The collection also includes a £525 white clog mule, which resembles the Scholl designs often worn by nurses and cleaners, and a pool slider with logo for £315. Balenciaga's collaboration is confirmation that Scholl is the latest sensible shoe to gain its moment in the fashion spotlight. Celebrities including Lily-Rose Depp and Sarah Jessica Parker are wearing the shoes and Scholl report that sales this year are up, with those in the 29 to 45-year-old age group buying the designs with a higher price point. The Cameron – a heeled version of the Pescura – is now the most popular style, retailing at £200. Emma Davidson, the fashion director of Dazed, has a pair of the Balenciaga heeled Scholls. She says the appeal is 'the weird contrast … an old maid type of shoe with the addition of that spindly heel'. Davidson is a fan of ugly shoes in general. 'Even though I am a bit scruffy, I always like to feel a bit glam,' she says. 'The shoes contrast with what I wear and I think it adds an edge.' The Scholl Manufacturing Company was founded in 1906 by the American podiatrist Dr William Scholl. The current US-based company Dr Scholl's now largely sells comfort-first trainers, the brand's UK focus is on footcare products and Scholl, which sells the Pescura and collaborated with Balenciaga, is based in Italy. The Pescura was first released in 1956 and Audrey Hepburn, Twiggy and Jean Shrimpton wore the shoes. They became popular in the 70s, when they were known as the 'exercise sandal', owing to benefits such as improving posture and muscle tone. Rebecca Shawcross, a senior curator at Northampton's Shoe Museum, remembers people wearing them because they were 'doing you some good. It's the idea that they were outdoorsy, carefree … In some respects, Scholl were quite ahead of their time.' If the clog mule is most associated with Scholl, it has also been taken up by other brands. Ancient Greek Sandals have a version for summer, and they were on the catwalk at Miu Miu's runway show. The Balenciaga collaboration is not the first, either – the brand also worked with Ganni and the DJ and designer Honey Dijon in 2022. Yves Guy Coulter, Scholl's chief brand officer, says the brand is taking advantage of newer footwear fashion. 'Scholl's resurgence is definitely part of a wider trend toward comfort-driven footwear. More and more people – especially younger consumers – are rejecting the idea that fashion has to come at the expense of comfort.' However, describing the Pescura as a healthy choice is not entirely straightforward, says Dr Helen Branthwaite, the chief clinical adviser for the Royal College of Podiatry. 'The wooden sole can help but that is counterbalanced by an open slip-on design,' she says. 'This style provides no support for the foot and makes the foot work harder.' They are, of course, preferable to long-term wear of pointed toe high heels – a shape that Shawcross says has dominated 'the last 400 or 500 years'. The curator says Scholls may be the latest in a line of shoes that take a bit of time to become accustomed to. 'So many people now wear Crocs,' she says. 'But at one point there was a bit of: 'Oh no. Why would you wear those?''
