Hermes Izmir Sandal Men Matte Mississippiensis Alligator Blanc

White sandals divide a wardrobe into people who can keep them clean and people who cannot, and I have learned to be honest about which side I am on. This alligator pair rewards attention: worn in rotation and wiped after use, the white stays white, and it never turns the sort of grey that kills pale leather.

Mississippiensis alligator in a matte finish is the reason it works. There is no lacquer to go chalky, just flat scales with a soft hand, edges cut in clean straight lines, and the cut-out that defines the vamp. The sole under all of it is slim, barely thicker than a centimetre and a half, which is the point of a sandal like this.

Fitting note: sizes 40 to 46, and on this model I went half a size larger than usual, as the maker suggests. The strap then sits exactly where it should across the instep, and the front of the foot clears the edge without any sense of the shoe being loose.

The honest downside of a white upper is that it tells the truth about everything: a scuff, a splash, a fold that holds skin oil and turns faintly ivory over time. A damp cloth and a few seconds of patience handle most of it, and what remains ages into character rather than damage.

Worn with tan or navy in high summer, a white flat sandal is the calmest way to look dressed. It is the pair I choose when I want my feet to look deliberate rather than bare.