Story & heritage

Lanvin's ballerina was introduced by Alber Elbaz in the early 2000s and became one of the defining flats of the decade — recognisable for its soft, elasticated collar that gave the shoe a gently scrunched look. By the late 2000s it was a bona fide 'it' shoe, worn by a generation of front-row regulars.

The Maison has since relaunched the style, conceiving it as an extension of Lanvin's footwear savoir-faire, rooted in the house Jeanne Lanvin founded in 1889. The collection spans the classic flat, slingback and Mary-Jane versions, with the ribbon motif — a Lanvin signature — recurring across the line.

Materials & craft

The classic ballerina is cut from supple nappa lambskin with a soft, near-unstructured body that moulds to the foot, set on a thin leather sole. The interior is lined in Lanvin Blue — the forget-me-not shade Jeanne Lanvin favoured, said to derive from a Fra Angelico fresco — printed with the LANVIN name. A small gold LANVIN plaque sits at the heel; the sole is stamped made in Italy.

How to choose & style

The ballerina is the easy, elegant Lanvin flat — soft enough to fold into a bag, polished enough for the office. Black nappa is the everyday choice that disappears into any outfit; metallic, satin and mesh versions carry it toward evening. The Mary-Jane and slingback variants add a little structure for those who want more than the slipper-soft classic.