Zendaya Steps Into the Controversial Mesh Flats Trend With Two Underrated Basics

As Zendaya makes herself at home in west London, she's also getting familiar with the unending mesh flats trend.

Zendaya's 2024 London street style debut involved a Shakespearean Vivienne Westwood dress for boyfriend Tom Holland's Romeo and Juliet opening night. Her current outfits, captured on a Sunday, July 21, shopping trip, are notably more low-key (and suited to present-day trends). Z ran errands and grabbed lunch Notting Hill with her assistant, Darnell Appling, wearing a cropped AGOLDE tank top and slouchy Beare Park trousers cinched with a wide leather belt. She coordinated a pair of ivory mesh Bottega Veneta ballet flats with the gray-cream tone of her tank top. A fresh maroon manicure—the antithesis of a summer nail polish trend—shined on her fingertips.

The high (price) point of Zendaya's Sunday stroll outfit arrived in the form of Louis Vuitton's Diane shoulder bag. Her flap style is coated in the house's unmissable monogram print. Z is an ambassador for the famed French label—so every time she carries its bags, she's doing some stealthy promo work.

Fans are used to seeing Zendaya collaborating with stylist Law Roach on campy, "method dressing" red carpet moments with assists from Givenchy, Mugler, and Loewe. Now, the Challengers star is quietly showing a different side: One that can fuse an arguable It shoe (the mesh flat) with her tried-and-true, underrated basics (her ribbed tank top and trousers).

Trousers, a tank top, and mesh flats make up one of Zendaya's most casual London outfits since moving to the city with Holland, her boyfriend of over three years. Last week, she casually met fans in a classic trench coat and her same Louis Vuitton bag. Before that, she was enlisting stylist Law Roach for more formal looks: two back-to-back Wimbledon outfits involving Ralph Lauren suiting and the '80s jewelry trend, plus a vintage Dior sweater and the equestrian boot trend for a performance of Slave Play.

Z finds herself in good company test-driving the mesh flats trend this summer. Dua Lipa, Anne Hathaway, and Dakota Johnson have all tiptoped into the style over the past year. Then there's full-on devotee Jennifer Lawrence, whose mesh flat collection includes two pairs by The Row and at least one from Alaïa.

The shoes aren't as controversial as they look; in fact, they're more practical than anything else. “They’re breathable, lightweight, and comfortable, making them an ideal style for sweltering days,” style analyst Kendall Becker previously told Marie Claire. Sounds like the kind of essential that could even win over Zendaya.

Shop the Mesh Flats Trend Inspired by Zendaya