Most women I know have a pretty decent shoe collection. You have your dressy shoes, your sporty shoes, your casual shoes and of course your wide array of flip-flops and sandals to coordinate with your summertime outfits. One of the big benefits of being an adult is that your shoe size doesn’t really change much!
Kids on the other hand? Kids shoot through shoe sizes faster than you can say “I’ll take that in a 7 1/2, please”.
Not only do their feet go from teensy weensy to big ol’ awkward clown feet in 0 to 60 seconds, but they also need several different types of shoes for different purposes in every size along the way.
Shoes are expensive!
Here are a few tips & tricks to keep your kiddos in stylish and proper foot apparel without going into bankruptcy:
- Remember that they only really NEED one pair of shoes. If you only have the funds for 1 pair of good sneakers, that’s what you need to buy. You can wear sneakers with dresses and you can wear them in the summer/winter. It’s not ideal to only have one pair of shoes, because they will wear out faster, but if you can only afford one pair at a time spend a bit more to get something that will last for the entire time they are in that shoe size.
- If you can afford more than one pair go for a pair of sneakers, a neutral pair of dress shoes (black, brown or white) and boots (for the North) or sandals (for the South). Alternate their uses so you can get more longevity out of each pair.
- Hang on to shoes when your older kids grow out of them, and use them for your younger children. Sneakers tend to have the most wear and tear, but dress shoes are usually grown out of before they can really wear down. If they are scuffed up, try using some shoe polish to buff them back to their prior glory.
- Look for sales and use coupons. Especially around back to school time, you’ll find several shoe stores holding Buy One Get One 1/2 off sales. Sign up for their email lists and mailing lists and try to combine the sales with coupons if possible.
- Finally remember that you get what you pay for, within reason. If you buy a $5 pair of shoes, they will likely not last as long a good quality $25 pair. That said, kids grow out of their shoes way to fast to even consider paying $50+ for a simple pair of sandals. Find a middle ground that you feel comfortable with and plan to spend that much every 3-6 months (depending on the age and speed of growth of your child).
Shoes are a big expense for parents! With these tips, I hope that you can stretch your shoe dollar further while keeping your children’s tootsies as stylish and comfortable as possible!
Do you have any tips for purchasing children’s shoes?
