I finally got to test drive these groovy new Gladiator sandals last weekend thanks to the beautiful, warm weather. Here’s hoping the weather cranks up again so I can take them for another run!
They are super comfy and I said at the time that I would show you some different ways to wear them over the coming months. So, rather late, but here they all are in one place.
First, the only rule that really matters
Gladiators cut your leg wherever they stop. That is the whole thing. Everything else is detail.
A sandal that finishes at the ankle leaves your leg reading as one long line. One that finishes mid-calf chops the leg into two, and one that climbs to the knee chops it into three. None of those is wrong, but each asks something different from whatever you put above it.
So the rule is simply this: the higher the sandal climbs, the more leg you want showing above it. A knee-high gladiator under a midi skirt gives you a sliver of shin between two heavy things, and that sliver is what makes you look shorter. The same sandal with a short skirt looks fantastic, because the eye runs all the way up without interruption.
Ankle-strap gladiators, like these, are the easy ones. They go with everything and they never shorten anyone.
Fringing, and why it earns its keep
Burberry is leading the way with all things fringing and it’s exactly what you need if you want to run with the fashion pack.
I’ve been wearing this Navajo skirt, from French Pony boutique in Brighton, right through winter with tights, boots, blouses, belts and fur. That is the real test of a good piece, not whether it looks wonderful in the shop, but how many months of the year it actually comes out of the wardrobe.
Fringing works with gladiators for a simple reason: they are both movement. Fringe swings when you walk, straps do the same, and together they read as one deliberate idea rather than two competing ones. Put fringe with a stiff, structured shoe and it looks like an accident.
Six ways I have worn them
With a short flippy skirt. The obvious one, and the best. Leg on show, sandals doing the talking.
With denim shorts and an oversized shirt. The most-worn combination in my wardrobe over summer, and the one I would recommend to anyone nervous about gladiators. Nothing about it is trying hard.
Under a maxi dress. Barely visible, and that is the point. You get a flash of strap as you move. It stops a floaty dress looking like a nightie.
With cropped jeans. The hem needs to sit above the top of the sandal, not on it. Even a centimetre of overlap looks like the jeans are too long.
With a romper or playsuit. Gladiators and a romper are practically the same idea. The luxe boho version of that outfit is one of my favourites.
With a fur vest over the top. Which brings me to the layering.
Layering in fickle weather
Layering with a fur vest is perfect in this fickle weather, and Melbourne in September is nothing if not fickle.
A vest is the most useful layer you can own precisely because it refuses to commit. Sleeves make a decision about the temperature; a vest does not. You get warmth through your middle, your arms stay free, and the outfit underneath still shows.
Try layering accessories for even more fun. Which I do, constantly, and possibly to excess.
What to check before you buy a pair
Gladiators either live in your wardrobe for years or get worn once and resented. The difference is nearly always made in the shop.
The ankle strap. Sit down, stand up, and see whether it digs. It will only get worse over a day out.
The sole. A hard flat sole with no give will punish you by lunchtime. Bend it in your hands before you commit.
Where the straps land on your calf. Try them with bare legs in a full-length mirror, not the little one by the shoe rack. This is where the leg-line rule earns its money.
Adjustability. Buckles beat elastic every time. Feet swell in summer, and a fixed strap that fits at ten in the morning will not fit at four in the afternoon.
Why they are the summer shoe I reach for most
A flat sandal has to survive an entire day or it is useless, and most flat sandals cannot.
Thongs give you nothing to hold on to, so your toes grip all day and you end up with sore feet from a shoe with no heel at all. A slide has the same problem. A gladiator is the opposite: the straps hold your foot in place, your toes stay relaxed, and your foot stops doing the work of keeping the shoe on.
That is the practical reason they keep coming back, quite apart from the catwalks. They are one of the few genuinely walkable flat sandals, which is exactly what you want for a Melbourne summer spent going between places rather than sitting in one.
They also solve the problem of a summer outfit looking slight. A floaty dress with a delicate sandal can float away entirely. The same dress with a bit of strapping and hardware at the ankle suddenly has a foundation under it.
Are they still worth it?
They come back around every few years, which people mean as a criticism and I take as a recommendation. A shoe that returns is a shoe you are not throwing away.
Mine went through several summers and showed no signs of retiring. Buy a plain leather pair in tan or black rather than something loaded with hardware, and you are buying for a decade rather than a season.
(These are from 2015 and that exact pair is long gone. Everything above still holds.)
If you are staring at a pair of sandals wondering what on earth goes with them, that is the sort of thing a styling session sorts out in an afternoon, usually with pieces you already own.
You’ve almost made it to the weekend guys. Will you be wearing Gladiators this spring/summer?
“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.” Psalm 24:1-2