Princess Diana’s Little Known Style Secret Is Sweeping 2023

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Princess Diana was ahead of the times when it came to her shoes. We don’t mean the ballet flats by French Sole she wore with her more casual outfits, nor two-tone shoes. In the ‘80s and ’90s, the Princess of Wales was sporting one of the most popular trends of summer 2023: silver shoes.

Indeed, the metallic shoe was Diana’s best kept secret when it came to footwear. Although Lady Di had a radical style evolution after her divorce from King Charles, this shoe continued to underpin her ensembles. In her early days, Shy Di—as she was called by the press—opted for a closed pumps with a sensible heel that she wore to countless events. Whether she dressed in red or blue, Diana made it clear on her tour of Australia in 1983 that silver shoes could be combined with everything. 

She even went so far as to wear an early version of balletcore, with a romantic dress in soft pink with a sequined skirt, paired with the same silver shoes and a matching handbag. In fact, matching her purse to her shoes was an ’80s styling maxim that Lady Di continued to wear in later years. 

Lady Di in 1984.Tom Wargacki

Beyond the classic closed-toe shoe that her daughter-in-law, Kate Middleton, is reviving, Princess Diana was also fond of the slingback. Jimmy Choo, who met the princess in the 1990s, confessed that he had lost count of the number of models he had designed for her. Images from 1992 and 1993 reveal that she also opted for a shiny shoe with a pointed toe and a high heel.

The pinnacle of her metallics was the look that earned her the nickname “Dynasty Di” thanks to the silver pleated Bruce Oldfield dress she wore in 1985 to attend the premiere of the James Bond film Panorama to Kill. She, of course, wore silver heels.

Shop silver pumps inspired by Princess Diana’s style, below.