babys shoes sizes

[hermykne]

i am a complete loss to understand babys shoe sizes! i want to buy now for next year - sales!
can anyone please advise , what size do they start at and what age does that size correspond to (approx) and maybe someone has a link to a chart?
many thanks

we've had both clarks & startrite & last pair were buckle my shoe. when dd1 was v small only clarks had wide enough shoes for her (G) and startrite really pinched her high instep. also their leather is often harder than some of the others which means they'll last but when your child's feet are growing quickly that's less important than the fit & them not getting blisters.

Alibubbles you probably don't agree with me but I think there is something a bit sad about letting anyone else take your child for its first proper pair of shoes!
I remember my dear mil took my son to get his first proper Clarks shoes. She was of course being extremely kind but the first I knew about it was when my dh brought him into work and he tottered across the floor in his shiny shoes. I was SO sad that I had not been the one to choose them and can't imagine actually ASKING anyone else to take my kiddy for shoes, but then I am a bit of an old softie about these things! ( this is in no way a criticism of you, by the way - I would love to take anyone's kid for shoes, just can't understand a mum who wouldn't want to do it herself )

Message withdrawn

I thought the same too as both me and DH took DD for her first pair of 'grown up' shoes. Especially for DH as, being at work, he misses more of the firsts than I do.

i did choose my dd1 1st shoes, but my mil bought her next 3 pairs of shoes. they were always blue leather, fiddly buckles, and very very expensive. my dd1 first shoes were pink, my dd2 dirst shoes are purple! i love the colours they do these days, and dont like the blue leather that always got choosen. i am waiting for a lovely pinkish purple trainer type shoes in clarks (with velcro fastening i may add!) to come in in my dd1 ones size. so so girly!!

I acn't help agreeing with you all about taking a child for their first pair of shoes, I too, think it is a special thing and feel honoured that the mum wants me to do it.

It did cross my mind when I posted that there might be some comments, but I knew you wouldn't mean it personally!

Mum felt as though DD would be more co operative with me and I suppose as she is the third child she didn't think it quite so important to experience that 'first' ( rightly or wrongly!)

I have chosen both pairs of DDs shoes, but Dps mum bought the first pair and my mum bought the second. I am getting her feet measured again on monday and will call my mum with the size as she live near a clarks outlet shop so may be able to get the shoes cheaper.

I got an awsome pair of trainers at ASDA for my ds (2.5 yrs) last weekend. They have shiny moving footballs on them. And the best part, they were only £4! I don' t believe that you have to spend lots of money to get good shoes.

Just a word of warning about buying shoes ahead in the sales. I bought my DS1 a lovely pair of Next suede boots in the sale when he was little thinking that he would wear them that winter (just one size up I think) and he didn't fit them until late spring and only wore them once, hardly a bargain!

fantastic information everyone thank you very much! especially oakmaiden; font of all shoe wisdom!

alibubbles I agree about feeling honoured
The parents obviously really rate you.
I suppose some parents are just so busy these days. I am sure thay would not entrust the shoe buying to just anyone!

NEWGIRL: True confessions of someone who doesn't spend a fortune on shoes.....

Charity shops often sell new shoes that are cheap prices -- gift in kind from supermarkets, etc.

My HV told me you don't have to buy those expensive shoes; go for cheap ones in Woolies, just avoid 2nd hand was her advice. To be honest, I kept using so-called "pre-walkers", soft-soled "shoes", on my kids until they outgrew the "pre-walker" sizes (?18 months?; they walked at 9-10 months). I brass straight into shoe shops & measure the kids' feet myself. After a shop obviously didn't know what they were doing thought I'd better learn. My kids wear wellies all winter & sandals all summer, hardly expensive buys. I'm sometimes put 2nd hand nice shoes on the kids for special occasions (weddings). I don't bother with half sizes, but I only choose sandals that are adjustable around the toes. I am extremely careful about checking the fit frequently. I let my kids go barefoot outside all the time (I'm from California; feet wash clean and tuberculosis is no longer rife in this country). I find the British squeamishness about bare feet outside to be very amusing & kind of baffling.

The most I've spent on kid's shoes was £24 for very smart wedding shoes for 18m old DD; she wore them 4x at most! Blech. Next most expensive is we just spend £18 on nearly 4yo DS's shoes. He needs decent black shoes for a wedding, and as a winter alternative to wellies. I hope they last until January.

Is there a British squeamishness about bare feet outside? Not in our family Agree with the others about getting them measured and then going to Woolies etc. Having said that, I have just bought a pair of Clark's trainers for ds - couldn't find black ones anywhere else (I'm just waiting for the flood of posts saying where else I should have looked) and they're the only pair of shoes he'll have for the whole year. I have found that some of the cheaper shoes fall apart quite quickly.

Well we went shoe shopping yesterday for a new pair of boots for DD. We did actually end up with a pair of Clark's first shoes as they had a lovely pair of black shiny ones that not only looked great but fir DD prefectly. She loves them so much she has to be bribed to take them off

Getting her some girlie shoes next weekend as she is going to a party.

When we went to a November wedding last year we bought dd a sweet pair of patent shoes from Next, with silver heart motif - cost about £8.99 - they do very small sizes too. Didn't get a lot of wear out of them but they did do as an occasional alternative in the winter. Bought both a new pair for the autumn at the weekend - we go straight from open toed sandals to winter shoes/boots! Big hole in the bank balance

jude, I mentioned way down that kids are better off barefoot "except when outdoors" - I meant in the street! I don't imagine zebra takes her kids shopping barefoot...

My DS2 has Clarks CICA trainers too, black ones for school, but they are v heavy compared with football ones so he insists on taking a pair of those to change into at break. The black ones will be outgrown before they are worn out!

We have lots of barefeet too - on the balcony and terrace of our apartment, and in the gardens too. Just not out and about in the street. Mind I did walk home from a meal to my hotel on holiday as i HAD SUCH BAD BLISTERS MY SHOES WERE KILLING!

Ooops, sorry for capitals there.

We were sent a postcard recently of a man crossing a road barefoot in NZ, in a town centre. Not really that unusual, IME.

Maybe not in NZ, Sue, but definitely unusual here!

I go barefoot around the house and in the street for short distances (eg to the car when it's parked across the street and I want to fetch something), and so do my kids, but wouldn't recommend going any further afield - pavements are not clean, road surfaces can have very sharp stones, and I would always worry about being trodden on by someone with shoes (ouch).

(Having said that, when I was a long-haired-hippy-type student c 1970 I did go barefoot everywhere, mostly in order to shock old ladies. My feet got calloused like your DD's.)

i took my dd2 to get a new pair of shoes today, as the ones she has had for about a month she had already outgrown. she is now 5.5G, but clarkz or anywhere for that matter only go up to about 4.5 in soft shoes. we tried wellyboots, slippers everything, as i dont really want her in hard shoes as she is only a year old. in the end i managed to get a very flexable pair of trainers from tescos for £1.99. not ideal, she will only really be wearing them to keep her feet warm when we are out, but i'm just upset that i couldnt get her a pair of properly fitting shoes. they offered the 2nd stage shoes, but they were £26 and i dont fancy shelling out that much for a pair if shoes she may only be in for a few weeks.

I took DD to get her feet measured today as she has had current shoes for 8 weeks. Clarks have said that she is still the same size. I am hoping that this will remain te case until next month when I am going to visit mum. There is a Clarks outllet upo there which sell the shoes cheaper.

I agree with those who say that having the feet of your child measured in a reputable shop and then gettting cheap shoes from supermarket doesn't always work, as the sizing seems to be all over the place. Also some "reputable" shoe shop staff don't seem to know how to measure feet properly. A good way of making sure the shoes fit is to draw the outline of your child's feet on a piece of thick paper or light card, and try to fit that in the shoes. That way your child doesn't even have to be there!

I got DD a pair of Next trainers today after having her feet measured for her 'proper' shoes elsewhere. The trainers were much cheaper, and DD loves they 'cos they have flashing lights when she walks.

Claireandeich i had a look at the flahing lights trainers in next, but they didnt have any in my dd size. the shop assisatnt said sorry they couldnt help us, but as we were leaving the shop we heard her say 'i'm not not really sorry, its not my fault is it', cheeky moo!!