first walking shoes

[ch1134]

I'm sure this has been done before but...

Current advice on first walking shoes that don't cost 30quid please!

So annoyed, Clarks wouldn't actually sell me any in the sale after Christmas as he wasn't walking yet. Now he is. Does he have to have the proper walkers with proper support, and is there anywhere that sells them for less than 30quid? I cant find anything online.

All advice gratefully received, as I went to Clark's got measured (3E a few weeks ago), and they were no help. She said that no shoes is best, but clearly not practical for this time of year! And wasn't clear on whether soft or supported is needed.

Thanks

I just got dd2 a pair of doodles from clarkes as her first pair of shoes - they're cheaper than their other ranges but the assistant I had said they were ideal for first walkers as they are light but supportive. They cost £18.

I'd go for the proper walkers. I don't know where to get them for less than £30 unfortunately though! DD's were £32, typically they didn't have any in her size in the clarks sale after Christmas.

Cruisers will be just fine for walking, for that width you might have to get them from Clarks tho but check ebay if you know the size!

Ij fact a woman in Clarks tried to make me get hard walking shoes for DD, she didn't want me to get cruisers, saying she would damage her feet. Obviously I bought the cruisers online after emailing Clarks and getting a reply which confirmed it was indeed horseshit the lady had been spouting!

Happy Little Soles

Brantano regularly have 25/30/40% discount codes if you sign up to their emails, they don't have a big range of Clarks instore but you can order to store for collection without paying until you have checked the fit of the shoe. Or try hush puppies some of theirs are pretty narrow. Or a local independent shoe retailer if you've one nearby. Online, brands like Bobux are narrow fitting and if you can order and get free returns just buy online. Hth. I get cross about shoes, can you tell

I got a beautiful pair of bobux in the sale for less than £30, they're a second pair of shoes for my son and he loves them. Happy little soles is a good bet for these, I think John Lewis sell them too.

brantano sell clarks shoes and voucher codes often have vouchers for them. they do 15% student discount too if i remember rightly if u know anyone with an nus number.

My DSs first proper walking clarks shoes were trainers in the sale (they were size 5 and a half though) prior to that they had no shoes other than soft things to keep their feet warm when in the buggy. All these cruisers etc just seem like a way to make money for nothing.

I hate the way they try to guilt trip you into buying expensive shoes when a lot of cheaper ones are equally supportive and you can check fit yourself.

Personally I found the European brands, Ricosta etc a much better fit and quality. Not much cheaper though unless you are lucky in the sales.

Have you got a Clarks outlet near you? They are much cheaper than their shops.

what about something like this if you could get him measured?

www.startriteshoes.com/flexy-soft-air-blue-leather-boys-riptape-first-walking-shoes?gclid=CPCN-_jf38MCFayWtAodU3gAmA

or these?
www.startriteshoes.com/start-rite-super-soft-sam-navy-blue-leather-riptape-first-walking-shoes

www.startriteshoes.com/fitting/measure-at-home

I totally agree the crawling and cruising shoes are a waste of money, with the purpose Clarks intended them for. And yes babies shouldn't be wearing shoes imo except for when they are actually walking around outside. What I meant was we used the cruisers for walking outside - they are still rubber soled, a just walking 13 month old child will not wear them out by the amount they walk, and they're very soft and flexible. We needed shoes from size 3.5 and used cruisers right through til size 5.5, when we switched to the softer range of regular shoes that Clarks do.

Glad I asked, thank you! Not many shops near us, we have to make a special trip, but we're going to Oxford next week.
Will check out the links and advice when I get to the computer. Many thanks.

sorry Daryl, picked you up wrong - yes, sounds good to me, you just need something to protect their feet. Mine both had their first shoes at 1 year and 1 week at size 5.5 and went from non walkers to mental runners within a week - lead boots would have been helpful :o

OP - that last link from startright gives you a facility to upload pictures of their feet and they will give you a size from home - i didn't know they did that. as DSs are adult size 10 and 11 now, it's probably not any use to me anymore :)

So helpful thanks!
Just to clarify, he is nearly 13months. Took his first steps 2 weeks ago and can now confidently walk/run across a big room. Not let him loose outside yet - too afraid he'll fall and hurt himself!
So... soft or supported? I'm tempted to go soft until spring as proper walkers probably won't get much use before new season/better weather shoes.
Thanks again!

I'd recommend Happy Little Soles, too. I get all the shoes for both dds there, and have always been happy.

For this time of year and a new walker, I'd personally go with Stonz and thick socks - much cheaper per wear because they fit for ages (I got two winters out of them, and they're still going strong on a friend's toddler). And impossible for a child to remove by themselves, unlike wellies.

Hard to say what he'll need, mine both started walking in the summer so were running about straight off but if he isn't going to be about on the pavement too much then I guess it gives you more flexibility - quick tip - buy ice poles to put in the freezer for bumps - it's amazing how quickly they stop crying when they realise that they get to eat the ice pole when it's stops hurting!

I got some of these www.attipas.co.uk for DS2 age 15 months and I think they are great. Very soft and comfy and nearly as good as having bare feet.

Soft for as long as possible - they don't need 'support'. Their feet are perfectly designed for walking and only need protecting from the elements/sharp objects on the ground.

Happy Little Soles is an excellent website and talks a lot of sense. Mothercare actually do a fantastic set of what they call 'crawling' shoes which go up to a size 5 (but tend to be on the small side). They are gorgeously flexible, large toe box (important for tiny toes) and nice and wide - important for developing feet. They only cost £12 and are so much better for little feet than the stiff clarks versions. Highly recommended (no I'm not on commission - maybe I should be?).

Other excellent infant shoe brands include Bobux, Startrite and Geox. I personally wouldn't and don't touch clarks with a barge pole - though actually their 'cruisers' range isn't terrible, just pricey and their instance on width-fitting is unnecessary (and IMO potentially damaging).

Not an expert but I've done a lot of research into this

Wow, thanks nightfall! Saved me some work there! Reassuring too, as he's in mothercare crawlers now. The clarks woman did actually say his current shoes were 'perfectly adequate'. Maybe she did me a favour after all, refusing to sell me their sale shoes!

How damaging Nightfall? Not disputing it at all, just interested to know! My parents couldn't buy me shoes from Clarks when I was little as apparently my feet were too narrow for any of their shoes! DD on the other hand has just been measured as 3G .

Basically a child's foot changes width by up to 20% over the course of a day - I believe this is because it's still growing it's mostly cartilage and thus not as rigid as an adult foot - so it's impossible to accurately measure the width - are you measuring it at its widest, narrowest or somewhere in the middle? There is no way to know and if you've measured it at its narrowest it could easily by 2 - 3 width sizes wrong by the time they are running about. This means that the foot is restricted, squashed and can't move naturally.

As an aside your narrow feet would probably have been fine in the wider clarks shoes then :) A shoe should be as wide as possible as long as the foot isn't flopping around in there...