Please tell me about decent school bags and school shoes for yr 7

[sleepwouldbenice]

Hi all

just that really - need to get them sorted in the next week or two. For a girl.

Shoes - don't have to be ultra trendy, just nothing that will be seen as "wrong". Budget about £20-30. Will be walking for about 30 mins each day so need to be hard wearing.

School bag - similar lines.... although I haven't a clue re price. Obviously roomy enough for all the books, lunch etc and I assume a rucksack so that its easily carried with all the walking!

Thanks in advance......

Last year we went with shoes from Clarks...They will reccommend you the right pair. The latest fashion etc...

I would go with rucksack. We went with one from playground....waxed so waterproof. It has lasted the whole of year 7. DD says its ok to go for year 8 too...

DD2's Clarks brogues have done pretty well (bit over budget even the kids ones I'm afraid).

School bag, just don't ask, DD1 was had a sensible rucksack for 5 years, DD2 has had 4 different ones in two years. At present she has a fabric backpack from TKMax with daft unpadded straps, while a nice comfortable Animal one collects dust

The trouble with shoes you have to buy good ones to not harm their feet....Yet once you've spent your money.Theybhave grown out of them....

DD has just left yr 8, she has had a pair of Clarks brogues each year like these sorry they are £40+

Last year she had an owl rucksack like lots of others (easy to find on amazon) and it has worn well, only needed one minor mend.

Thanks for the ideas so far. Shoes wise will cope as she has slow growing feet... So far!

Noting phrases for bag such as waxed and padded straps.....

shameless bump

All the Y7s DS/DD were friends with this year had Kickers. Bags were messenger bags.

www.surfdome.com/?_$ja=cgid:1185809292|tsid:24322|cid:35244792|lid:2208085389|nw:g|crid:55913537592|rnd:13503182554500403583|dvc:c|adp:1t1&gclid=COaPr-7B8L8CFSsTwwodzUQAkg

are great for bags.

www.surfdome.com/Girls_Backpacks-421/#lo=3&hi=185&pnum=1&psize=200&sort=PriceLoHi

and I have boys and not girls but people were saying brogues - this sort of thing?

www.amazon.co.uk/Hush-Puppies-Girls-Leather-Formal/dp/B00EZGK2AS/ref=sr_1_48?s=shoes&ie=UTF8&qid=1406843123&sr=1-48

or these?
www.amazon.co.uk/Petasil-Girls-Daria-Leather-Formal/dp/B00CQU9IP0/ref=sr_1_58?s=shoes&ie=UTF8&qid=1406843256&sr=1-58

or these?

www.amazon.co.uk/Start-Rite-Girls-Rigel-Leather-School/dp/B00IXQZDYQ/ref=sr_1_84?s=shoes&ie=UTF8&qid=1406843307&sr=1-84

more brogues:
www.amazon.co.uk/Childrens-Hush-Puppies-Leather-Brogue/dp/B00IRXV7NQ/ref=sr_1_92?s=shoes&ie=UTF8&qid=1406843307&sr=1-92
or
www.amazon.co.uk/Hush-Puppies-Girls-Lace-Up-HKY8020-001/dp/B00KYB0JBU/ref=sr_1_90?s=shoes&ie=UTF8&qid=1406843307&sr=1-90

I'm sure someone will be along to tell you whether those are what hirls are wearing or not :)

Thanks so much for ideas. Will see if they pass the " don't know" test tomorrow!!!!!

Definitely Kickers far more sturdy that Clarks and still look like new. Well worth the money.

My dd (just finishing Yr7) who has a good walk each day too, has had Clarks Brogues - like Clary linked to.
Cost more like £45 (see they are £42 in the link) but did last the whole year, after I tired to economise and buy her some from shoe zone or somewhere and I had to take them back after just 2 weeks wear..... they seemed surprised that 'school shoes' would be worn to school each day

Bag - dd and her mates (and dd1 in Yr10) all seem to have Messenger style bags or back packs.

Sorry I don´t know about shoes but as a teacher the bags by Quiksilver or Roxy seem to be really popular and extremely hardwearing. There are many different designs but you can guarantee your daughter will have a "bag twin" so it´s good to personalise the outside of the bag with her name or nickname and many girls also add little "charms" like keyrings etc. to help identify their bag quickly (I wouldn´t recommend adding any valuable, delicate or dear to her...they can snap off or get damaged by general wear and tear).

Also make sure the bag´s machine washable - most are!

All the girls round here seem to have Cath Kidston bags, I have boys, and we went with a Samsonite messenger bag from TKM. Only about 12 quid. We have a huge nike rucksack in reserve in case he needs something bigger or it is hard to carry with all the books in etc.

Shoes I would steer well clear of Clarks if you have a boy, the quality is very variable, but Start rite and Geox have seen us through years in comparison. Maybe gals don't knacker their shoes so badly!

Watching this thread with interest! I have a girkl who wore stratight through the soles of these:

www.dottielottie.co.uk/startrite-impulsive-black-patent-leather-brogue-shoes.html

in 3 months (she goes through 'normal Startrite / Clarks brougues in 6 weeks or less).... and that was just with in-school wear, no long walk to school.

For year 7, she'll be walking a mile each way to school .... my guess is she'll go through 6-8 pairs of shoes (always the soles, the tops still look immaculate even once the soles have large holes that ou can see her socks through) in a school year....eeeeeeeek.

Teacherwith2kids Does she scuff her feet a lot as she walks? That really does sound excessive wear! Maybe you need something with a thicker sole? states the obvious!

My eldest (boy) has had these shoes and they have lasted really well.

www.sportsdirect.com/lee-cooper-mens-lace-shoes-112113?colcode=11211303

he is not much of a fashion victim, but they look fine on, are leather uppers and first pair lasted him an entire school year until they were grown out of - he got another pair the same and while they were on a deal, I bought the bigger size and put them away :)

Myother- the link is to a pair with soles the thickness of classic Doc Martins - over a cm thick.... the hardest wearing shoes she has had so far, but still ....

She's a dancer, who dances unconsciously (as in, she'll tap dance across the kitchen to get milk for breakfast, and have no idea that she's doing it unless you point it out, or pirouette / chassee from the toilet to the bath....). I suspect that the coincidence of timing between her having those shoes and learning a new tap solo may have been unfortunate (she didn't practise in them per se, but her feet would have been tapping whenever she wasn't actively doing something else IYSWIM - it's quite funny to watch), so I might give those another whirl!

sorry, opened the link now - i'd maybe take her to Kwik fit and get her kitted out with a pair of tyres instead :)

i'm also laughing because on another thread there was a bit of a side argument going on that teenagers were not more expensive than toddlers.