Need advice about first shoes for new walkers

[TickleMe]

DD has jsut started walking four weeks ago. She has a pair of inch blues which she wears in the garden and to toddle about in the park.

I think its soon to get her proper first walkers as they are too structured but need something that can deal with wetter weather, can she wear wellies or are they bad for her feet?

Anyone?

I don't knows if wellies would be a great idea tbh. DOn't really know why though!
You can buy crawler shows from Clarks that are very soft but would still be OK outside- my 1 year old wears their Cruiser shoes

Wouldn't it be great if there was somewhere where you could get definitive independent advice.

There are other brands better than the Clarks first walker things (crawlers or whatever they're called) imo. For dd1, after she was walking for a couple of weeks I needed something more suitable than Inch Blues for outside and for nursery playtime so we got her feet measured in a lovely independent shoe shop and bought some Umi Puggle shoes - very very flexible soft sole but suitable for outdoors. Didn't affect her walking at all and she was able to wear them for about 4 or 5 months before progressing to the next size of shoe.

I found a link to them at Amazon though as I said, I do think it's worth getting your dd's feet measured and the shoes tried on first if you can. They are very soft though so it's easy to tell yourself how well they fit.

How do I find an independant shoe shop near me? I have never seen one, only clarks and such

When can they start wearing wellies then?

I was advised by a very good childrens shoe fitter (not in Clarks) that after 6 weeks of proper walking, they are ready for proper shoes.

Wellies aren't good as they slop around on the foot, and so tend to catch as they walk, meaning they fall over more.

DS has some lovely Ricosta boots that are waterproof leather, and have been great for splashing in puddles

Find an independant shoe shop, and they will be more than happy to give you impartial advice

What about John Lewis, are they good for shoe fitting?

IME, JL not very good, and I've seen complaints on here about them. They are effectively a Clarks/Startrite concession.

Look in your local Yellow Pages for shoe shops. We go to an outstanding one in Rugby, but have also had good experiences at one in East Grinstead and Wallingford if that helps

Oh yes, the one in Wallingford would be great for us

I forget what it's called, but is a childrenswear shop, nearly opposite the George. They had a nice range of European brands

Fab thanks cmotdibbler

FWIW we bought DD her first shoes before she was walking properly because it was winter and she liked walking holding on to our hands so we needed something to put on her feet outdoors. We got her first cruisers from Clarks and they actually helped her get walking - it seemed as if the flat sole gave her extra stability. I think they need to be fairly proficient walkers before they can cope with wellies because they're so bulky.

very useful thread. our ds 16mths is taking a few steps (reluctantly!), cruises all of the time, but seems to have tried it and decided he prefers crawling!
i'd like to be able to let him crawl/cruise around on grass outside on a nice day .
thanks for info!

LoL @ nice day - Whats then then