Hermes Chypre Sandal Women Techno-sandal Matte Mississippiensis Alligator Macaron

Pastel alligator should not make sense, and it is all the more enjoyable for it. Macaron is a soft sugared tone laid over the large square scales of Mississippiensis hide, so the sandal reads sweet from a distance and deeply textured up close, a combination almost nothing else in a summer wardrobe offers.

Everything structural is standard Chypre: anatomical rubber sole with a black outsole, black calfskin insole, adjustable strap, a half-inch heel and the 36 to 41 size range, made in Italy. The black sole under a pastel upper gives the sandal an unexpected graphic edge.

I wore mine to a garden party and then, less formally, to a bakery run the next morning, and it coped with both – the footbed is genuinely comfortable, and the pale scales did not mark from a morning on pavement. The colour looks best against white clothing, where it acts like a second skin rather than an accessory.

It also pairs well with pale denim and with anything cream, and it flatters bare, tanned legs in high summer. What it does not suit is busy prints or other pastels nearby; two soft colours in one outfit tend to cancel each other out, so keep the rest of the look clean.

Care needs to be stricter than with a calfskin sandal: pastel alligator shows dirt, sun cream and water marks, and the hide needs occasional light conditioning rather than neglect. Wipe the scales after wear and store them away from light, and the macaron tone stays soft instead of turning grey.