How many pairs of shoes?

legalbeagle1

How many pairs of shoes do you really need for littles?  L is like a size 21 now and I have one pair for the next size up and one pair after that.  At $50 a pair one seems like enough to me, but I was thinking that maybe I'd get him a cute pair of Sperry's for the summer for dress up occassions.  Am I just frivolously throwing money away on my only?

JackoftheBox

legalbeagle1 said:

How many pairs of shoes do you really need for littles?  L is like a size 21 now and I have one pair for the next size up and one pair after that.  At $50 a pair one seems like enough to me, but I was thinking that maybe I'd get him a cute pair of Sperry's for the summer for dress up occassions.  Am I just frivolously throwing money away on my only?

SAY WHAT>?!! Um I have never spent that much on a pair of shoes for DS yet.... 

kristennd

I don't think I've spent more than $10 on any of his shoes. I even buy them used.

He usually has two pairs that fit.

KatieB19

DS has had at most 2 pairs of shoes at a time. He usually has one pair that has flexible soles (which I like) and another pair that is more water resistant. I don't really care about the fashion aspect, although he does have a really awesome pair of chucks. Well, did. They don't fit anymore

At your LOs age, we did only robeez shoes. Most recently (age 3), the chucks were the flexible soled shoes, but the canvas made them not great for puddles

Helenahhandbasket

What size is 21???

Right now, we have a lot of shoes-- 3 pairs of sneakers, 2 pairs of dress shoes, one pair of casual boots and a pair of snow boots.  I reconcile in my head that her feet are really slow growing-- she's been a size 5.5/ 6 for about 9 months.

For normal, not shoe shopping addicts, I think one "play" pair and one nicer pair is right.

 

Helenahhandbasket

kristennd said:

I don't think I've spent more than $10 on any of his shoes. I even buy them used.

He usually has two pairs that fit.

I do this too.  So another way to rationalize my shopping.  We got DD a pair of mary jane style suede Stride Rite shoes for 4.50 at OUAC.

harleygirl07

I have to admit, my DD has way too many shoes!!

Like KatieB19 said, we also did Robeez Mini Shoez when she was your LO's age. 

eyenigh

We've got nine or ten pairs of shoes. I'm not a huge fan of used shoes just because of the fact that people all tend to walk slightly differently so insoles break down and wear occurs in a pattern that doesn't always match the next kid to wear them. In a time of development, I'd prefer him to start with a solid platform to break in himself. That and I just love buying him shoes.

tifdaski84

$50 a pair seems crazy high to me!  I don't even spend that on my own shoes.

At $5 - $15 a pair, LO usually has 2 or 3 per season.  Right now, he has his winter boots, a pair of sneakers (which were both hand-me-downs so $0 - woot!), and a pair of more dressier boots.  I just bought him a pair of casual shoes for spring/summer that are a bit too big for him.  Hopefully they make it through till fall.  He'll need a new pair of sandals for summer too but I'll be keeping them under $15.  I'm also debating buying him a pair of rubber boots.  I saw some cute ones at Walmart the other day for $10.  

So, yeah, long story short, 2-3 pairs per season.  I bet if he were a girl, I would buy a lot more (but still in the same price range).  Girl shoes are just too cute

TittsMcGee

Right now he's in size 8 and he has about 6 pairs of shoes.

I feel dumb for buying all those shoes in one size because he will be moving to size 9 soon. He has  2 pairs of Converse (which I love), Nike sneakers, Vans slip ons, Nikes (birthday gift) and snow boots.

He already has a pair of Nike's in size 9 (they were a gift) and I plan on buying him sandals for the summer and that will be it as far as size 9 goes.

 

TittsMcGee

@legalbeagle1 I love buying shoes for DS as well and I definitely spend too much money on them.

TittsMcGee

Where do you buy shoes for $5 a pair? I love OUAC but I can never find a decent pair for DS.

I've scored shoes for him for about $12 but that was the cheapest I got.

Helenahhandbasket

eyenigh said:

We've got nine or ten pairs of shoes. I'm not a huge fan of used shoes just because of the fact that people all tend to walk slightly differently so insoles break down and wear occurs in a pattern that doesn't always match the next kid to wear them. In a time of development, I'd prefer him to start with a solid platform to break in himself. That and I just love buying him shoes.

True, but babies aren't really walking / using their shoes the way older kids/ adults do, so the wear is usually so minimal.  I have thought about this though!

TiffanyBerry

DH and I are both picky about footwear, and having it be appropriate and always fit.  DD usually has at least two pairs at a time - one that is suitable for wet (we live in Seattle, after all), and one that most likely isn't.  With consignment finds and handme downs from friends, she usually has way more than that, but she also doesn't actually wear shoes that often.

I should add, though; DD has small feet.  She's almost 4yrs old, and wears a toddler size 8.5.  She's been wearing this size for... a long time. Her feet grow slower than the rest of her.

JackoftheBox

legalbeagle1 said:

How many pairs of shoes do you really need for littles?  L is like a size 21 now and I have one pair for the next size up and one pair after that.  At $50 a pair one seems like enough to me, but I was thinking that maybe I'd get him a cute pair of Sperry's for the summer for dress up occassions.  Am I just frivolously throwing money away on my only?

SAY WHAT>?!! Um I have never spent that much on a pair of shoes for DS yet.... 

TittsMcGee said:

Where do you buy shoes for $5 a pair? I love OUAC but I can never find a decent pair for DS.

I've scored shoes for him for about $12 but that was the cheapest I got.

WHAT IS OUAC?

Helenahhandbasket

@jackofthebox- Once Upon A Child-- it's a chain second hand store.  Prolly 75 % of DD's wardrobe is from there.  All of her fancy dresses are for sure.

Helenahhandbasket

TittsMcGee said:

Where do you buy shoes for $5 a pair? I love OUAC but I can never find a decent pair for DS.

I've scored shoes for him for about $12 but that was the cheapest I got.

RE OUAC- it's so hit or miss.  Sometimes, there's so much stuff for her and we leave with 3 bags.  Other times-- nothing.

JackoftheBox

OH we have children's orchard I think its basically the same.

tifdaski84

TittsMcGee said:

Where do you buy shoes for $5 a pair? I love OUAC but I can never find a decent pair for DS.

I've scored shoes for him for about $12 but that was the cheapest I got.

I usually buy shoes on clearance or from places like OUAC, garage sales, Value Village, etc.  The pair of shoes I bought him for summer were $7 at Old Navy.  We've been fortunate that we've only had to buy him the cheaper shoes (light-weight sneakers, sandals, etc) and that the more expensive ones like snow boots have been handed down from cousins.  I don't imagine I'd get snow boots for anywhere near what I usually pay.

JackoftheBox

I LOVE getting things from children's orchard that still have the tags on it. I feel like I cheated the system! 

eyenigh

Helenahhandbasket said:

eyenigh said:

We've got nine or ten pairs of shoes. I'm not a huge fan of used shoes just because of the fact that people all tend to walk slightly differently so insoles break down and wear occurs in a pattern that doesn't always match the next kid to wear them. In a time of development, I'd prefer him to start with a solid platform to break in himself. That and I just love buying him shoes.

True, but babies aren't really walking / using their shoes the way older kids/ adults do, so the wear is usually so minimal.  I have thought about this though!

It is also something I just like to tell myself to make excuses for why I need to buy yet another pair.

Ecy

My DD is pretty tiny. She doesn't go through clothes very often. I just have to buy a few things here and there with the season changes, which isn't much here in Central TX. It's either really hot or cold.

From this, I have created an obsession of shoe shopping for her. I don't know what my problem is but there are so many cute girl shoes out there. She has about 13 pair of shoes right now. This includes sandals, three pairs of tennis shoes, three boots, and three dressy shoes. I know I have a problem but I most likely won't stop.

Ago

I'm a bit of a shoe snob.  I hate cheap shoes for myself because they hurt my feet, and so I do the same for DD.  Every time I buy her cheap shoes, they chew up her feet.  However, I get them consignment or on sale as much as possible.  DD's feet are like @TiffanyBerry, where DD is 4 and about a size 8.  She usually has one nice pair of sneakers (Saucony), her "happy shoes" (Sketchers Twinkle Toes), Brown dress shoes (winter)(either Buster Brown or Stride Rite), black dress shoes (Stride Rite or Buster Brown), sandles (summer), snow boots (winter), cute boots (mostly winter).

hopefulmom81

We usually have 3 pairs in rotation.  I just got DD a pair of Sperry's.  They are so cute and they were on sale for $25.

I would spend $50 if there was a cute pair that she would get use out of.  That is the point of being OAD, right?  

TiffanyBerry

Ago said:

She usually has one nice pair of sneakers (Saucony), 

I love the Saucony Crossfires for kids.  They're awesome, and - as I am also a shoe snob - I am willing to pay the price for them.  Having proper footwear affects SO much of your body - ankles, knees, hips, and spine; I can't stand putting her in sneakers with ridiculously large/heavy soles.

kristennd

TittsMcGee said:

Where do you buy shoes for $5 a pair? I love OUAC but I can never find a decent pair for DS.

I've scored shoes for him for about $12 but that was the cheapest I got.

We buy all our shoes at OUAC and they're usually $7-8. I regularly go overboard with DS's clothing (Tea Collection, Mini Boden, Janie & Jack) but for whatever reason don't care about his shoes. I did buy one of those at-home shoe sizers. We learned the hard way that he won't speak up when his shoes are too small and sandals are only possible about four months out of the year.

legalbeagle1

Um I love how this thread generated so many comments! You guys rock! As I mentioned in the other thread, I have very few pairs of shoes for myself and those are mostly flats and running shoes. I bought these today at the Gap kids factory store and L loves them (his don't have the sock top and look more like a slipper): https://m.gap.com/product.html?dn=gp694074002&dv=0&kwid=1&referrer=http://www.gap.com/products/bear-slippers-P694074.jsp?pid=694074002&vid=0&locale=en_US&sdReferer=http://www.gap.com/products/baby-slippers.jsp&pid=694074002&sem=false&vid=0

Also ordered the Sperry's. How freaking cute are these? https://m.zappos.com/sperry-top-sider-kids-billfish-a-c-toddler-little-kid-dark-tan

I guess I didn't know $50 was expensive. The pedipeds I bought were about that much. The Gap shoes I bought for the next size up and after that were about $30 I think... I need to get better deals clearly!