It was the fashion hack you never knew you needed. But when Zara Tindall wore a pale pink satin dress to the Buckingham Palace garden party this week, it was her feet that made the fashion headlines. Battling the sodden grass on a wet day, she had placed plastic protectors on the heels of her pink suede shoes.

The practical trick is one non-royals might be keen to follow in the run-up to the summer wedding season to avoid sinking into grass in heels. Similar protectors are available online, and are very affordable. Woman & Home published an article titled “Zara Tindall’s £5.99 trick to protect her favourite shoes is something we’ll be doing for all outdoor events this summer”.

The protectors can be traced back to Clean Heels, a company based in Hampshire. Its founder and CEO, Ally Stevenson, patented her design in 2006 and in 2015 went on Dragon’s Den with them. The company sells thousands of the £3.99 clear protectors each week online and at outlets including Timpsons.

Stevenson said that while Tindall’s protectors were not, on this occasion, bought from Clean Heels – “they have gaps in the heel where mud can go in, ours is all concealed” – they do illustrate the usefulness of the idea.

“We have had ours [used] on Downton Abbey, on Hollyoaks, we’ve had good celebrities wearing them,” said Stevenson. “But at the end of the day, all I want to do is please women out there and give them a good day out without sinking in the grass.”