Louboutin Redefines ‘Nude’ With New Flat Collection

What shade of pinky-beige comes to mind when you hear the term ‘nude’? Is it your favourite lip colour that’s just slightly paler than your natural lip tone or do you think of your worn out pair of heels that just seem to go with everything you’ve ever owned?

Shoe designer Christian Louboutin is asking us to redefine our narrow understanding of flesh coloured fashion because the reality is, ‘nude’ ought to be a colour range as opposed to an exclusively pale palette.In 2013, he launched a nude heels collection that came in a total of five shades to encompass all women and later expanded it to seven shades. Now, he’s expanding the collection even further by adding a flat collection in colours varying from ‘porcelain’ to ‘deep chocolate’.

Always en pointe. Shop nudes in our bio. @sofiaandmauro

A photo posted by Christian Louboutin (@louboutinworld) on Mar 30, 2016 at 11:04am PDT

In 2013, he launched a nude heels collection that came in a total of five shades to encompass all women and later expanded it to seven shades. Now, he’s expanding the collection even further by adding a flat collection in colours varying from ‘porcelain’ to ‘deep chocolate’.

Granted, these beautiful ballet flats are not as pocket-friendly as they are ethnically apt, they’re €450, but we have to applaud the message the company are choosing to send out. The designer stressed to The Huffington Post?that the range was not about the shoe itself, but how the person feels in them. “It’s great for when you are just thinking of yourself; when you’re not thinking of being dressed. It keeps you undressed in a way.”

A classically Parisian silhouette, the delicate, pointed-toe Solasofia ballerina flat joins Pigalle Follies 100 and Senora 100 in seven versatile shades of nude. Shop nudes in our bio.

A video posted by Christian Louboutin (@louboutinworld) on Mar 30, 2016 at 10:02am PDT

And this second collection proves that diversity is not only en vogue, it’s also profitable. As well as the Louboutin expansion, we’ve seen a distinct movement towards an embracing of global ethnicity in all areas of fashion, beginning with the field’s most iconic figure – Barbie. The German company Mattel announced at the beginning of this year that their dolls would now come in all shapes, sizes and skin tones. They did so not because they felt it was their moral obligation, but because, financially it made sense. As TIME uncovered, mothers are more aware than ever of how they shape their young children’s perspectives and are more likely to part with their earnings for toys that they feel portray a positive and broad body image.

What do you make of that new flat collection? Are you impressed with their financial savviness at capitalising on their hugely successful nude heel collection and all the positive press or does the price take away from their ‘inclusive’ agenda?

Main image courtesy of Christian Louboutin Instagram