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Original poster

Sandals for school.

32 replies

hellymelociraptor · 27/05/2012 16:40

DD1 needs some new shoes for school, don't want to buy her clunky Winter school shoes but I can't find anything Summery and yet suitable (no open toes allowed). DD2 has some that are lovely, a simple classic t-bar type that fit her wide feet but they only come in small sizes and DD1 needs a 13 and a half , wide feet, high instep. I have looked at endless websites, nada! What do your DDs wear to school in the hot weather?

OP posts:
Original poster
hellymelociraptor · 27/05/2012 16:42

Oh she is 7 by the way, so still needs little girl type shoes.

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scummymummy · 27/05/2012 16:55

These? Or these?

lovemygirlivy · 27/05/2012 17:00

With white ankle socks these could look very summery and lovely:
www.startriteshoes.com/girls/school-shoes/amelie

Original poster
hellymelociraptor · 27/05/2012 17:07

She has the "Amelie" shoe already, they are the ones that need replacing as the stitching broke really quickly (startrite quality is going right downhill) and she is also finding them very hot. I bought her some patent ones quite like the ones you show scummymummy, but again, they are very hot now although they look pretty with her Summer dress. Ideally I want the sort of bog-standard sandal that I wore as a child, a famous five type t-bar with punched holes, that is the sort of thing DD2 has. They are supposed to be navy, but grey or blue would probably do.

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scummymummy · 27/05/2012 18:09

I think most closed toe shoes will be pretty hot, sadly. A few holes won't make that much difference. The school are meanies not allowing proper sandals!

Original poster
hellymelociraptor · 27/05/2012 18:21

I did find some that are strappy but the straps are wide and they have a strap that comes down over the toes, so lots of airy gaps but still fine with socks, but they only came in white..grrr...There are some great Angulus ones on ebay but not in her size. I remember my school sandals as being really comfy, I think perhaps as the leather was a single layer, rather than lined, and the holes were over the toes, they were a bit cooler than a regular Winter shoe. The sea of velcro drives me mad too, but that's another story. (old gimmer).

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lovemygirlivy · 27/05/2012 18:33

These - they have white in her size - many schools allow white for summer:
www.sarenza.co.uk/aster-dingo-s784627-p0000010149#req=59232

They have them in navy hear - i know they stock them in onesmallstep aswell
www.zalando.co.uk/aster-dingo-ballet-pumps-blue-as313a006-907.html?wmc=COM_7805&size=7T

I have bought shoes from this shop lots of times - they are excellent quality:

papouelli.com/shop/product/maddie/

These are great for summer in navy:
papouelli.com/shop/product/maud/

startail · 27/05/2012 18:43

It's health and safety gone mad. Fortunately DD1 had left before they changed the rules (I think she may have told them to het lost) and DD2 doesn't like sandals.

Original poster
hellymelociraptor · 27/05/2012 22:21

lovemygirlivy- those dingo ones are just the sort of thing I wanted, but I bought them for her and they were too narrow. (I think they are American and their fittings are the narrowest). I was looking at those angulus ones last night, and may get them if I can't find anything else, but I hate the velcro and think dd will say they are too boyish. The other ones I found were much the same style but white and with a buckle strap- do you really think the school might allow white? I will ask tomorrow as that would give a bit more choice. Anyway I love the look of the papouelli shoes, I had never seen those before.I'm going to browse that site now, so thanks so much for that.( I buy a lot of Angulus shoes as the width and depth fits my dds really well but I've not found anything this Summer and they are also both between sizes in angulus at the moment so the 33 is a bit big on dd1 but the 32 is on the edge of too small. ) Honestly I spend a small fortune on their wide tricky feet and I haven't had new sandals in four years !!!

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ElphabaisWicked · 27/05/2012 22:38

Dd is aged 10 and size 13 wide foot high instep. I'm afraid that she goes to school summer and winter in Start-rite Zoe, Samba or Trilogie style shoes.

Clarks often do slightly more summery,lighter styles but they are not deep enough for her instep.

Am now about to investigate Angulus. Its the instep more than the width which is the problem with shoes I find.

ElphabaisWicked · 27/05/2012 22:44

Gosh they are expensive, but then as dd seems to go up approx half a size every 12 months perhaps worth it.

Original poster
hellymelociraptor · 27/05/2012 23:15

Elphabais- Angulus are usually great for a high instep/wide foot.( I also find the instep the biggest problem, particularly with Mary Jane styles as they cut in around the top). Angulus don't always fit but they fit far more often than any other make. Startrite suddenly got more shallow last year, styles which had fitted were suddenly flatter, and the quality has really gone downhill. the same style can be a different shape and thus fit depending on the colour too, which drives me barmy, so spending twice as much on Angulus seems better in the long run as they are really well made with proper crepe soles and they last well. If you are in London the Red Shoes in Crouch End have a good stock of Angulus and are excellent at fitting. I live in the back of beyond so have to buy all shoes by post which in itself is tricky.

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dancingmummy · 27/05/2012 23:20

Have you tried m & s, brantano, bhs? I often find the odd ideal pair in those places x

dancingmummy · 27/05/2012 23:24

(I hate show shopping for the dcs- ds1 is 7, on his 4th pair of shoes this term & is a size 3.5!!!!!!!!!! Insane.)

dancingmummy · 27/05/2012 23:25

Ah feck- shoe

SE13Mummy · 27/05/2012 23:33

How about these? They are grey and have a closed toe! I buy Umi or Petasil for my DD2 (wide feet, high instep, hypermobile ankles - she wears Kickers the rest of the time on the advice of the physio).

DD1 (aged 7) wears Birkenstock sandals to school in the summer, like these which have the back strap and lots of side support - I would much prefer she have shoes that stay on properly and won't fly off mid-cartwheel than have her toes covered.

Why not e-mail/meet with the Head, explain the trouble you're having, ask about the closed toe sandal policy and provide images of the preferred sandals that only come in white, the hiking sandals that do come in grey but with pink bits and of Birkenstocks/others that come in regulation colours but don't have covered toes. Ask him/her which would meet with school approval - chances are you're not the only parent with a 7-year-old who doesn't want sweaty feet and if enough people start seeking advice on sandal choice s/he may decide that it's time to look at the uniform policy again... I say this as a primary school teacher too - I would far rather have my class kitted out in sensible, comfortable sandals than 30 sweaty-footed, uncomfortable children who might be slightly less sweaty-footed if they'd been allowed to wear white/pink/open-toe sandals.

Fozzleyplum · 27/05/2012 23:38

Lots for wide feet here www.jillybeans.co.uk

They're very helpful and stock various brands including Petasil.

ElphabaisWicked · 28/05/2012 00:17

Am no where near London.

What dd also really struggles to find are more modern shoes, the Angulus look great but are a bit little girly. Dd is 10 and a half but is only a size 13 and the styles her friends wear usually start at a size 2! Plus her feet bulge out of most of them.

Interesting what you say about start-rite being more shallow now. Last time she had new school shoes we had more difficulty than before getting the right fit.

Original poster
hellymelociraptor · 28/05/2012 10:41

Last time they were fitted at startrite lots of styles which had been fine were suddenly not deep enough, and my dds feet hadn't changed in shape. This year the style dd2 has is slightly deeper again, but is a completely different shape at the toe in one colour from another! Last year one colour came a whole cm higher up the foot, which meant a style fitted in grey, but not in brown, mad.
Angulus do have simpler styles that are less girly, they do brilliant simple boots for Winter, right up to women's sizes, (i have some). Bisgaard is another decent Danish make that your dd might like.

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lovemygirlivy · 28/05/2012 11:45

Just had a thought what about rachel riley - i bought these shoes for my daughter in silver to wear to parties - but in navy they would be perfectly suitable for school and are very lightweight.

www.rachelriley.co.uk/index.asp?L1=footwear&L2=slippers&L3=kid_leather&pcode=rrshoe1cpl&pcol=navy

Original poster
hellymelociraptor · 28/05/2012 14:37

lovemygirlivy-they are lovely, dd2 has those in gold actually!! but they only have a soft suede sole as they are meant to be slippers. I had a tougher sole put on through Rachel Riley but they are still thin and slippy, not strong enough for school, although great for parties and indoor things. RR did do some nice sandals last year but no shoes this year for some reason, maybe they didn't sell all that well. I spoke to the woman at the papuelli shop and she told me which styles come up wider/deeper, so I think I will definitely get a pair of those, they look lightweight and simple and as though they are soft. Also dd2's teacher this morning said that open toe would be ok as long as not too strappy and must be worn with socks, so that has really broadened up my choices thank goodness. I forgot to ask about white, but I did see one girl in white shoes today so hopefully you are right and white will also be ok. Smile Am feeling happier now, thanks for all the help everyone, lots of things I hadn't seen even though I'd been browsing like mad .

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lovemygirlivy · 28/05/2012 14:49

I am glad you like the papillion ones. Yeah i bought some of the Rachel Riley sandals for my daughter last year and was quite upset to find they had none this year.

I also bought these for my daughter - quite pricy - but wide and surprising comfortable/not to sweaty:

www.eliasandgrace.com/girls/pepe/dolly-shoes-3379

Original poster
hellymelociraptor · 28/05/2012 16:03

I really liked those Pepe ones, I had seen them on the website. (I think we like the same sort of things!) I do buy things from Elias and Grace as I used to go there when I lived in london. And although they are really expensive I agree they look gorgeous. They only have it up to a 32 though, and she needs a 33. Nice to know they are wide as maybe for my smaller daughter when she needs new ones.

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lovemygirlivy · 28/05/2012 16:09

Yes i think we may have similar tastes. My daughters feet are quite wide and as she is still quite young i thought that rounded type shoes look cuter with leggings and trousers. I mean they are expensive but they are just gorgeous and i have found them to be so hardwearing and fine for british weather where you end up wearing tights one day and socks or bare feet the next.

I absolutely love Elias and Grace i buy most of my daughters clothes from there - we live quite near the store too, so i pop in and get lots of bits and bobs (which my dh is never too happy about)