There is currently no footwear silhouette too delicate for Harry Styles. After embracing dainty shoes on the Grammy stage, the singer has now made a compelling argument for the male ballerina flat as an airport staple.
Spotted touching down at LAX, Styles leaned fully into the prim elegance of Miu Miu’s Élan ballet flats, a style technically marketed toward women, but seamlessly recontextualized through his fluid approach to menswear. Crafted from supple nappa leather, the flats feature a rounded toe and barely-there bows at the vamp, delivering a coquette sensibility that felt intentionally at odds with the utilitarian setting of air travel.
Rather than tempering the softness, Styles amplified it with white tube socks, a styling nod to the ongoing penny-loafer-and-sock revival — while grounding the look with relaxed bootcut jeans. The result was quietly subversive. Beneath the denim’s flare, the flats peeked out with understated defiance, offering a sharp contrast to the bulk of sneakers that typically dominate celebrity airport style.
Functionally, the appeal makes sense. Ballet flats offer the same slip-on convenience as Birkenstocks or orthopedic sneakers, minus the added heft. For transit dressing, where ease is paramount but personal style remains non-negotiable, the silhouette delivers both comfort and polish without visual weight.
If history is any indicator, Styles’s endorsement could have ripple effects. In 2019, his embrace of pearl necklaces during the Fine Line press tour helped catapult the accessory into mainstream menswear, reframing it as a genderless staple. His ongoing commitment to fluid dressing on stage and off continues to influence a new generation of male performers willing to blur traditional style codes.
Should ballerina flats enter the resale conversation next, don’t be surprised. Styles has a habit of turning the unexpected into the inevitable.
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