Head-turning Must-haves by Espadril and Crystal Birch

Photography: Niquita Bento 

In case you haven’t been paying attention to what’s happening trend-wise, in terms of what’s fashion-forward: the look of the moment is style that’s ready for a getaway, but still doesn’t look out of place in the city. Think look that you’d either wear on a safari resort getaway, a cruise or a staycation by the beach. And the key to nailing a look, even when you want to put in the least effort, is getting the accessories right. So, we have narrowed it down to two absolute must-haves that will make just the right statements and have you bang on-trend this season: hats from Crystal Birch’s latest collection and Espadril’s rope-soled classics which have adaptations that have been created in collaboration with Superbalist. 

Aside from the fact that they are a must-buy because they have been produced locally, with the printed iterations having been customised by the graphic designers at Superbalist, the whole composition of Espadril shoes – from the canvas material to the rope design on the sole – gives them an instant look of leisure. Having become synonymous with sunny holidays in exotic Mediterranean places, it captures the current trend in a way that no other summer shoe does – even if we dare say so ourselves. While you can get away with wearing them with just about anything, swimwear, short dresses, maxi dresses, denim, you name it, do dress them up with high waist paperbag trousers, an understated top and let them take center stage while your beauty look makes the secondary statement. It’s a solid look that says “I may be on holiday, but my foot is still on your neck”. 

If you don’t already own a Crystal Birch hat, it’s high on your wish list. If neither of those are true, you just haven’t witnessed their greatness yet and that’s okay because it’s about to change. Creating hats for the fashion girl that isn’t afraid to stand out and make a lasting statement, the Cape Town Milliner creates her works of art at The Parisian Milliners in Gardens. Not only are her masterpieces fashion moments by design, every piece is handcrafted and of the highest quality. Crystal Birch has adapted some of her latest work in collaboration with Superbalist’s in-house brand to make some of them more easily accessible price-wise, so this is the perfect moment to make that wish list a reality. The warning that comes with wearing these hats is that you need to be ready to cash the style cheque you’ll write with the statement piece with the rest of your look: in short don't compromise your style star status by being sloppy from the neck down. The pressure’s not too high, though; a midi linen shirt dress will do the trick without you having to lift too much of a finger.