To think dd4s school shoes should last longer than 3 weeks!

[Thedarksideofthemoon30]

I bought these for Dd4 (reception). She’s worn them for 3 weeks. They cost me £40 from an independent shoe shop, they are the Male petasil.

Shouldn’t they last longer than 3 weeks? Dh doesn’t think so as she plays a lot.

What would you do? Buy more?

DS managed to get a dent in a pair of new shoes on first day of wearing them by putting his foot under a chair leg! Never managed to get the dent out.

The soles on his shoes always wore out before he grew out of the shoes, no matter how thick the soles were

I think most of the problem is that they are "girls" shoes and therefore more flimsy. "Boys" shoes for that age group are usually more sturdy and tend to have a bumper over the toes to protect them against all the scraping and abuse that small child shoes get.

There's nothing wrong with them? They just need polishing with black shoe polish, they don't look like they've been polished regularly.

I have a DD the same age and actually had no idea about polishing shoes! I feel really thick now 🙈 Am ordering some now!!

Some polish is better at dyeing the underlying leather than others.

@GertrudeKerfuffle

I don't think you should write them off just yet! They're not unwearable.

On a side note I bought DS some Treads shoes this year and they look as good as new so far. We usually go to Clark's but the queues for measuring were ridiculous. www.treads-shoes.com

we have treads too and they have lasted as well as the previous doc martens did. Can't praise them enough {bought back in February half term}

Unless you have money to burn you buy new school shoes when the old pair are outgrown or falling to bits.

Do you throw away dirty clothes?

I always buy patent shoes... leather ones don't last 2 minutes. My DD9 can make a pair last all year but DD13 goes through them at 6 pairs a year but is only allowed leather not patent!!!

@Elsa8

I have a DD the same age and actually had no idea about polishing shoes! I feel really thick now 🙈 Am ordering some now!!

Do you mean you have never polished shoes? Ever? Sorry, I'm not being mean, I just can't fathom not knowing about shoe polish. The Kiwi one, pic below, is good - my dad used to heat it gently on the stove, I would recommend this though because it's highly flammable!

@TonytheDog

There's nothing wrong with them? They just need polishing with black shoe polish, they don't look like they've been polished regularly.

That takes me back, my Dad would polish our school shoes every Sunday night, he always told us it would make them last longer.

They look fine! Agree with the polish.

I spent £50 a pair on blooming shoes and 3 weeks in the rubber bumper has begun peeling off a pair and the patent has split on the other pair 😖 Bloody kids and their shoes!

They look intact? She has scuffed the toes, they just need polish. Unless they had rubber toe caps then I don't see how the manufacturer is meant to stop a child scuffing shoes?

@Scotinoz

They look fine! Agree with the polish.

I spent £50 a pair on blooming shoes and 3 weeks in the rubber bumper has begun peeling off a pair and the patent has split on the other pair 😖 Bloody kids and their shoes!

I would take bakc the peeleing one. I took back my ds shoes which had started to come apart after 3 weeks, and the shop refunded them without a murmer.

Shoes shoudl be fit for purpose and kids shoes should withstand the playground.

unfortunately my dds have done the same as OP and scraped their shoes by using them as brakes on their bikes. That I don't think the shop should replace!

And patent leather will not withstand this scraping either, and you can't polish them up, so unless you kids really really don't scrape them, do not buy patent!

My 4 year old is the same! Its crazy.

ViciousJackdaw my dad did too and lined them all up in the hall. I do it to my DC's shoes too.
I've still got the same brushes that my dad used 8,000 years ago. One's got 'on' written on it and the other 'off'. DC are old enough to do it themselves really but I like doing it, it's really satisfying.

my dad used to heat it gently on the stove, I would recommend this though because it's highly flammable!

I've done that too, the heat source melts the polish right into the minute indentations in the leather, so when you buff them with the polishing brush (the "off" one a PP mentioned) they come up with a deeper gleam and the leather has more protection than just applying the polish then buffing it.

In my dc's junior school they took in a spare pair of old trainers to change into for playtime outside, maybe infants are considered a little young yet to be doing this? It does save a lot of wear and tear!

If ds had had shoes like that they would have been destroyed on day 1. Which is why he was always bought chunky shoes with an enforced rubber toe.

Girls fashion shoes never look practical for the daily wear and tear of playing in a concrete playground.

Kiwi parade polish is pricey but does the job. My 14 year swears old blind she picks up her feet etc but still she comes home with scraped shoes. The liquid polish is shite, the hard waxy stuff is much better,.

If they fit and they are waterproof they are absolutely fine! Don't buy more just for cosmetic reasons!!

Two brushes; one to put the polish on, the other to polish the shoe, then a soft duster to really bring up the shine. My husband was a Hush Puppy man, so I did the shoes. It gave me great pleasure to see 4 pairs of gleaming Clark's shoes lined up on the mat each evening. ( I'm easily pleased!).

@WeAllHaveWings

If ds had had shoes like that they would have been destroyed on day 1. Which is why he was always bought chunky shoes with an enforced rubber toe.

Girls fashion shoes never look practical for the daily wear and tear of playing in a concrete playground.

I think that's the problem with girls shoes. They're utterly crap compared to boys. I've tried to steer mine towards more 'boy' styles but at 5 and 6, they want to fit in 😖

Shoe designers seem to think wee girls don't run/play/grub in the dirt/etc. Finding practical shoes for school isn't an easy task!

Someone mentioned treads earlier on this thread. I don't have little girls any more but some of these look like they might be acceptable?

www.treads-shoes.com/girls/school-shoes

The shoes really are indestructible and they have an inner sole that you can take out if they become a bit tight so they last longer. I'll never go back to Clarks!

I get school shoes from Asda, hard wearing and nowhere near £40 a pair! (Usually about £12). Obviously can’t buy the flimsy rubbish ones but they sell some more appropriate for running about in, even in the girls section, which is a novelty

Shoe designers seem to think wee girls don't run/play/grub in the dirt/etc. Finding practical shoes for school isn't an easy task!

It is a vicious circle, shoe designers make shoes that sell, these are the cute designs parents buy. There are more robust girls shoes available, but they don't sell as well.