Flip flops get a bad rap. Usually reserved for beaches and pools only, flip flops are generally frowned upon in most formal contexts. Restaurants? Borderline. Office? Ultimate faux pas. Well, maybe not anymore.
The ‘90s thong sandal got a fashionable makeover a few years back at Copenhagen Fashion Week when Danish It-girls (and masters of making practical looks posh) began styling them with floaty dresses and dapper suits. They showed us that maybe there’s nothing inherently wrong with the flip flop—it’s just about how to style them.
Then on the spring/summer 2025 runways, fashion designers began embracing the humble sandal too. From Sportmax to Alaia, luxury brands have put an elegant spin on flip flop, mostly by giving them a tiny heel or reimagining them in elegant fabrics, but the way they’re styled on the catwalk follows the same rules as the Scandi style set.
Given the ultra-casual nature of the shoe, the way to make them corporate or cocktail appropriate is to overcompensate in the rest of the look. That means wearing your flip flops with crisp suits, bold dresses or satin skirts. Ultimately, the appeal of the thong sandals lies in their minimalism, making them the perfect barely-there shoe to go with an OTT outfit, so you can lean into maximalism for the rest of your look.
Accessories also play a huge role here. What earrings or bags would you wear with a cocktail dress? Go for those. Just as a slip dress can easily be transformed with the right accessories (giant gold earrings and an architectural clutch, for example), so can a pair of flip flops.
Of course we know not every office has the same dress code (please respect your office’s policies on appropriate workwear) but in more flexible environments, with the help of some creativity the inspo below, these flip flop ‘fits could be your answer to heat wave work dressing.