Revealed: the full skinny on nude shoes

THEY sold out immediately after royal fashion icon Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge was photographed in them as her footwear of choice.But now, the true secret of this year’s sought-after pair of nude heels has been uncovered by retail experts – who have revealed that a formula to create the modest heels that give the illusion of the wearer instantly dropping a dress size.

The shoes have been flying off the shelves of high street stores since the duchess – and her sister Pippa – were spotted wearing them on a number of occasions around the time of the royal wedding.

A string of other celebrities to be seen sporting a similar shoe in recent months includes Victoria Beckham and Ed Miliband’s wife Justine, as well as other members of the Royal Family. Princess Beatrice aped the Duchess of Cambridge’s style to don the footwear for Zara Phillips’ wedding in Edinburgh in July.

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Now department store Debenhams has claimed that the right pair of shoes – with an exact combination of colour, platform, height and heel width – has a dramatic slimming effect on the wearer.

When asked to guess the dress size of the same woman in two images, people shown the image of her wearing the slimming shoes gave an average of one dress size smaller than those shown a picture of her without the magic shoes on.

“If followed to the letter, this formula gives women the chance to walk in the shoes of the famous tricksters of our time – creating a slimmer silhouette in an instant,” said Natelle Baddeley, head of accessories for Debenhams.

Although they have been available for a number of years, nude shoes became an instant hit earlier this year, after the elegant duchess teamed them with a number of outfits.

Her LK Bennett pumps were so popular after she wore them to the Epsom Derby, shoppers desperate to get their hands on a pair crashed the shop’s website and the stock sold out within hours.

The formula – (C + P + H + HW) – AS = S – which translates as (colour + platform + height + heel width) – ankle strap = slimming, claims a combination of tricks that give the impression of lengthened legs and tighter thighs while encouraging the torso to be pushed out, in turn flattening the stomach.

“This is a diet in a shoe,” added Ms Baddeley. “Once you have found the perfect pair all you need to do is slip on your shoes to instantly transform your silhouette. It’s the perfect party cheat.”

Fashion expert and the founder of Scottish Fashion Week, Tessa Hartmann, said the shoes had been popular since 2009.

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“Christian Louboutin was among the first designers to feature them in his collection and now every designer has them,” she said.

“Although the fact Kate Middleton has worn them is definitely a factor in the high street, as she is a real fashion icon for that market, people have been wearing them for a lot longer than she has.”

She added: “There is no science in this. Nude is a popular colour because it goes with everything, but the colour palettes which will be popular are being worked on by fashion designers long before they find themselves in our wardrobes.

“The reason this trend has been so enduring is that it is versatile and flattering – nude tones go very well with skin tone and they have been very popular in Scotland as well as elsewhere in the UK.”

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