This season’s polka dot revival has been spearheaded by celebrities, street style stars, and luxury labels’ spring 2025 collections alike. This year alone, we’ve spotted Olivia Rodrigo donning a polka dot midi dress under a wool coat; Kate Middleton inverting Rodrigo’s white-dots-on-black-background dress pattern with an Alessandra Rich number that accentuated her waist; and Sarah Jessica Parker taking a more color-happy approach to the print via pencil skirt and blazer coordinates featuring white dots on a sky-blue background, not to mention dozens of other celebrities stepping out in dot-clad pieces of their own.

On its spring 2025 runway, Carolina Herrera embraced an overload of black-and-white polka dot patterning on striking minidresses and two-piece sets, providing regular palette cleansers by interspersing the looks with flashes of pink, red, and blue. Similarly, Jacquemus tapped into the trend by covering outerwear and pumps in this playful design, and the fact that the fashion house did so for its fall 2025 collection gives us hope that the dots are here to stay for a while. Amidst all of the opulent furs, glittering sequins, and rich leathers showcased during Fendi‘s fall 2025 presentation, the brand also managed to squeeze in some polka dot action —  by way of a long-sleeved dress whose dots were big, red, and seeped onto a similarly dotted handbag carried.

According to data from the trend forecasting platform Trendalytics, searches for the term “polka dot” skyrocketed by 260 percent in January of this year compared to 2024, while queries for “polka dot dresses” specifically rose by 52 percent. As for the flip-flop trend, the second part of Carpenter’s masterful styling equation, some of summer’s most popular styles have been elevated through subtle height boosts in the form of kitten heels or platforms and jelly-sandal hybrids that unleash hearty doses of Y2K nostalgia.

Of course, we can credit The Row for jumpstarting this flip-flop renaissance: transforming the once controversial shoe into a luxe, covetable status symbol. Since The Row’s three-figure, minimalist, logo-averse thong sandals entered the scene, other brands followed suit with their own reinterpretations of the classic silhouette: granting us gold hardware detailing, fringe add-ons, crocodile or snakeskin fabric makeovers, and beyond. And while plenty of luxury iterations exist in today’s market, it’s all too tempting to take a trip down memory lane, which is where Old Navy’s affordable flip-flops come in. In the ’90s and early 2000s, they were the quintessential rubber pair to own during the flip-flop’s prime — seen on every beach once summer arrived.

Luckily, the brand has kept its original flip-flops intact two decades later, and shoppers are now treated to more even more design options than ever before: courtesy of Gap’s creative director Zac Posen, who has ushered in some not-to-miss, fashion-forward takes since joining the brand (Carpenter’s polka dot choice being one of them). In fact, Posen shared the singer’s flip-flop photo on his own Instagram, with the hashtag #mademyday. Same.

Ready to level up your summertime shoe game with a celebrity-approved closet staple that will show the world you’re in the know of the latest and greatest fashion trends? Shop Carpenter’s favored style, plus other versions of the shoe that are every bit as darling.

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Meet the Author

Stacia Datskovska is a Senior Commerce Writer at WWD and FN. Previously, she worked at ELLE DECOR as an assistant digital editor, covering all things luxury, culture, and lifestyle through a design lens. Her bylines over the past five years have appeared in USA Today, Baltimore Sun, Teen Vogue, Boston Globe, Food & Wine, and more. Prior to joining ELLE DECOR, Datskovska learned the ins and outs of e-commerce at Mashable, where she tested products, covered tentpole sales events, and curated gift guide roundups. She graduated from NYU with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and international relations. Datskovska frequently covers celebrity style and trending footwear worth shoppers’ time.