Pre-owned Celine shoes

Celine vintage: archive models and how to recognize them

Céline was born a shoemaker. In 1945, Céline Vipiana and her husband opened a bespoke children's shoe store on Rue de Malte, before dressing mothers and then creating a women's line: no other house we sell has comparable shoe legitimacy. A word of vocabulary, which will prevent you from being fooled: the Phoebe Philo era is not yet vintage, and the informed market says "old Céline."

• Céline Vipiana1945-1997
• Michael Kors1997-2004
• Phoebe Philo2008-2018

Celine archive models

• Triomphe Bit Loafer 1971 pattern still produced

  gold ornament on the instep: two interlocking C's forming a chain link, inspired by the chain surrounding the Arc de Triomphe

• Fur-lined Sandal 2013 discontinued

  two wide flat straps on a molded sole, lined with fur – the pair that launched the trend for "ugly" shoes

• Geometric Heel Pumps and Ankle Boots 2014-2017 discontinued

  blunt square toe, block heel, complete absence of logo

• Madame Ankle Boot 2018 discontinued

  very elongated square shape, 95 mm flared stiletto heel

• Leather and Jute Espadrille 2010s discontinued

  jute sole, suede upper, contrasting grosgrain trim

Recognizing and dating a pair of Celine

• The best indicator in our entire catalog lies in an accent: "Céline" with an accent is before September 2018; "CELINE" without an accent is after. Hedi Slimane removed the accent when he unveiled his logo. A binary, free, verifiable test from a photo.
• Then, the logo tells the story of the era: a clearly visible golden Triomphe chain for the Vipiana era, large silver buckles and square toes for the Michael Kors era, an almost total absence of logo for the Phoebe Philo era — for her, the absence of branding is the marker.
• "Made in Italy" doesn't date anything at Céline: the Florence factory dates back to 1966, Italian manufacturing has been the norm for sixty years. We mention this to save you from a false lead.
• We have not found any reliable source on the marking of the insole: therefore, we do not claim to date a pair by this.

What to look for before buying

• The square toe from the Philo era has two sharp angles, whereas an almond toe has none: abrasion always starts there. We re-dye and reshape the angles; however, a collapsed toe box cannot be reformed.
• The fur on the 2013 sandals felts, loses its hair, and attracts moths—this is the house's most delicate point.
• Molded soles and jute espadrilles delaminate, layer by layer.
• The leather from the Philo era is intentionally thin and lightly lined: the upper marks and splits at the instep crease faster than a traditional construction. We systematically check the heel counter.
• The Triomphe hardware loses its plating on the link edges: we redo it.

What makes a pair valuable

• An attribution to a runway season — that's what separates two identical pairs.
• The Triomphe hardware on vintage pairs: the only visible Céline visual code on a photo.
• The iconic pieces, such as the fur-lined sandals from 2013.
• The condition of the square toe corners on 2014-2018 pairs.
• A common size, and the original box.

Sources: celine.com (histoire de la maison, monogramme Triomphe), WWD (archives de l'ère Michael Kors), presse mode sur le changement de logo de 2018, 1stDibs. Updated on 8/31/26.