Rihanna's 2025 Twist on the Nostalgic Jelly Sandal Trend Includes Diamond Anklets and a Backless T-Shirt

The singer celebrated the launch of her new Fenty x Puma collection with a trip to her hometown—and pieces to match.

Rihanna on a boat wearing a silk scarf in her hair and a printed top
(Image credit:  Dennis Leupold)

The candy-colored jelly sandal trend of your childhood just got a flashy makeover thanks to Rihanna's new Fenty x Puma collection. Now, the Grammy winner is showing us exactly how to style them on a fashion-filled multi-day trip to her hometown in Barbados.

The itinerary for the dreamy island vacation included a field day held at the Usain Bolt Sports Complex in partnership with the singer's Clara Lionel Foundation, a tour of RiRi's favorite local spots, and a boat cruise on the Atlantic Ocean. For her relaxing day at sea, the "Diamonds" singer wore an oversize white T-shirt with dolman sleeves and a vivid beach scene printed on the front in lieu of a standard swim coverup. At first, I assumed the shirt was covered in Versace's iconic jungle print, but it's actually a vintage Margiela find from the designer's Spring/Summer 2010 collection. What you can't see from this snapshot is that her top is actually backless, apart from a network of knotted and interwoven cotton straps.

A photo of Rihanna relaxing on a boat in her Fenty x Puma Cat Cleat Jelly sandals.

Rihanna relaxes on a boat in a vintage Margiela tee and her Fenty x Puma Cat Cleat Jelly sandals.

(Image credit:  Dennis Leupold)

Rihanna accessorized her throwback tee with an equally nostalgic pair of lime green Cat Cleat Jelly sandals from her latest collaboration with Puma. The style looks like a standard flip flop from above, but the sole is studded with soccer cleat-inspired spikes in a nod to the athletic brand's heritage. Rihanna's chartreuse color seems to be sold-out, but luckily, the sporty shoe is still available in a neon orange "Pumpkin Pie" hue.

The singer further accessorized her seaside ensemble by wrapping not one but three dazzling anklets around feet and tying a navy blue polka dot silk scarf with an emerald green trim around her head. She also layered tons of '80s-inspired jewelry atop the outfit, including two pairs of chunky gold hoop earrings, a green pavé ear cuff, a giant diamond cocktail ring, a gold pinky ring, a braided blue and green bangle, and a ridged gold cuff bracelet studded with diamonds.

A photo of Rihanna accessorizing her outfit with a polka dot headscarf and a smattering of gold jewelry.

Rihanna accessorizes her outfit with a polka dot headscarf and a smattering of gold jewelry.

(Image credit:  Dennis Leupold)

True to her roots, the hitmaker finished her look with her signature white pedicure—a summer classic—and a swipe of bold red lipstick. For a day of sun and sand, I have to assume she went with a saturated coat of Fenty Beauty's long-wearing matte Stunna Lip Paint in "Uncensored," one of the line's mainstays since 2017.

For now, it seems Rihanna will be passing on the boat shoe trend in favor of a jelly shoe revival. She's in good company: Jennifer Lawrence was one of the first to embrace the throwback style with The Row's viral pair, while labels from Coach to Melissa have embraced it anew. In sailing and fashion, change is the only constant.

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Hanna Lustig
Staff Writer

Hanna Lustig is a staff writer at Marie Claire, where she gets to gab every day about the topics she holds most dear: fashion, beauty, and celebrity. Hanna’s editorial journey began with formative internships at Elle and InStyle, where she was lucky enough to work for some of the smartest women in media while she was still in college at the University of Tennessee. Hanna then accepted a digital culture reporting fellowship at Insider, where she helped carve out a new beat dedicated to covering influencers. Those experiences later served her well as a staff writer at Glamour, where she developed a knack for spinning quick turnaround celebrity news and trend reporting into juicy feature stories. Some of her greatest hits include an earnest ode to the no-pants trend, this meticulously reported feature exploring the rise of endoscopic facelifts, this snappy take on the Chanel-designed fantasy of Sofia Richie’s wedding, this tribute to WAGs past and present, and this timeline of Katie Holmes’s life and career as told through her denim collection.

Diane Keaton once hung up on Hanna during an interview, but thankfully that mishap did not derail what has otherwise been a deeply fulfilling career writing for and about women. As one of Marie Claire's resident experts on style and culture, her current coverage ranges from exploring TikTok's contrast makeup theory and the return of the boat shoe trend to interviews with costume designers for hit shows like Nobody Wants This and The Penguin. When she’s not at work, Hanna can probably be found listening to pop music, talking to her dog, and gossiping with her best friends. For more of Hanna’s perfect opinions on pop culture, you can follow her on Instagram and X.