Shoes for Toddlers

Archived Q&A and reviews ▼

Archived Q&A and Reviews

Questions

Toddler Girly Shoes

Nov 2005

What are the other stores to look for good toddler girly shoes (purple, flowers, glittery is best)? I did check the website first, and didn't find quite what I'm looking for. My very particular and very girly toddler needs some shoes for the winter. We got a great pair of sandals that she's worn all summer at Nordstrom rack, which is hit or miss in terms of style & size, and same thing with Payless Shoes and Ross, which often have nothing that works, surprisingly, and they aren't convenient so I can't look all the time. I went to Cotton and Co on College Ave, thinking if I was willing to pay the $$ we would at least get good service and a good fit, but I had to ask to get her feet measured, and 2 salesgirls came up with 3 different possible sizes for her shoes. I can't really do on-line, since she needs to try them on, and seems to have difficulty with the way many shoes fit. And most of the shoes at Target, for some reason, don't seem to work; the sneakers have never been a hit regardless of how pretty or girly. I'm also interested in the used places, since her favorite shoes seem to be primarily those she has found at rummage sales. Places like livie & luca would be great if they had larger sizes (currently she is about 7-8). Those girly Elefanten mary jane styles or something equivalent would work, if they fit (which is why I tried cotton & co.). Any other good shoe stores out there, or have I covered it? Or, ok, any online places with cheap shipping rates and good return policies? Any favorite used places?

I'm so suprised to hear about your experience at Cotton and Company. I've always been well treated there. Maybe you caught someone on an off (ok, WAY off) day? While at the fruitvale day of the dead event I noticed a shop on E14th that had some over the top girly shoes. they're a little grown-upy in a baptism/special event shoes kinda way but your child might really love them. I'm not sure of the name of the store or the actual address but its on E14th somewhere between Fruitvale and 34th. There are some frilly special dresses in the window along with the shoes. good luck! S

Have you looked at the Sweet Potatoes outlet on lower Solano? They occasionally have girly shoes in a variety of colors (you may be on your own in terms of sizing). And across the street and down a bit, still on Solano, is a great new consignment store called Solano Kids. They also have new shoes, and had some mary janes and boots in fun colors. Donna

Both garnethill.com and Hannaandersson.com have adorable shoes. If you can't find anything there, maybe you can get something plain and glue your own stuff onto them. You can buy/make little leather flowers (I don't know where or how), and little ''jewels'' (beads) and glue them to the shoes. anon

Online toddler shoes

Aug 2005

a while back, someone recommended an local (i think albany) online store to buy toddler/baby shoes. i can't find it referenced on the website. does anyone have the website? liz

I think the website you are looking for is http://www.livieandluca.com/.

Cute/affordable shoes for toddler

June 2005

Any recommendations out there for cute/affordable shoes for an active almost 2 year old? ellen

You can find many cute and cheap shoes for toddlers at Target/Sears/JCPenneys/Payless etc., but the question is, are they good for your toddler's feet? Because their feet are still so unformed and developing so quickly, I bite the bullet and buy more expensive and hence, well-made, shoes for my 19 mo. old son. I used to use Robeez, but he needs more support now that he is running and climbing. I have tried Preschoolians, but they did not have enough shape and made him move around awkwardly. I keep coming back to Stride-Rites, and you can find them on sale if you keep looking and sometimes they are very well-priced in Ross and Nordstrom Rack. Howard's Shoes for Children (in Walnut Creek)is expensive, but if you get on their mailing list, you can get $10 off a pair of shoes every 4 months or so. I have found that he really only needs 1 or 2 pairs of shoes at a time, as the best thing for toddlers this age is to be barefoot or in grippy-bottomed socks in the house. What I have done to cut costs is buy 1 expensive pair of shoes that he wears most of the time, and a couple ''cheapies'' that look really cute for special occasions when he is dressing up to ''show off'' to the relatives. Because his feet grow so quickly, he grows out of the good shoe before ever wearing it out. Hope that helps- Practical shoe mama

I recently had a fun shoe party by Mitzi! She came over during one of my Mom's group outings with tons of shoes and the babes tried on shoes. It was a lot of fun! She is great at finding the right sizes and answering any questions you may have. I highly recommend checking her site and contacting her. Her shoes can be found at: http://www.livieandluca.com/?%20Maybe Shoe Momma

I've bought shoes at cotton & co (nice, but very expensive). I recently went to a shoe party run by an East Bay mom and found a good alternative. Her stuff is online at www.livieandluca.com and is very cute and reasonable. I think she's also available to do shoe parties for groups. Noreen

 

Decent & Affordable Toddler Shoes?

Oct. 2003

We have looked high and low for decent shoes for our 3 year old son. We ended up going to Cotton and Co. and spending what seems like a fortune for shoes. Somehow $50 seems a preposterous price to pay for a 3 year old. Anyway, we've been to target and ross and they either don't have shoes in his size, no customer service or the shoes weigh more than a pair of barbells. Am I a scrooge to think a decent pair of toddler shoes could be as little as $20-30? Where in Berkely/albany/el cerrito can decent and reasonably priced shoes be found? All the recommendations involved driving to a different county (no thanks). thank you adrian

Too be honest I am a little bit of an amelda marcos when it comes to shoes for kids but here are a few suggestions. Payless Shoes. I know there is one in the rockridge shopping center next to Longs. Hannahs kids consignment store on Solano in Berkeley has cute shoes new and used. You could try exchanging some of your kids too small clothes for a pair of free shoes. anon

Try the Sketchers outlet at Cutting and San Pablo in El Cerrito. good luck

I've always gotten shoes from Rockridge Kids. Currently my 2.5 year old son is wearing their $24 ''Weeboks'' -- great little sneakers with normal sneaker soles. They also carry another brand (''Tumbler'', I think) which run about $15. We used this brand for over a year -- they're a good, easy shoe. Christine

I like the shoes at Rockridge Kids. They are all in the back room near the windows. They don't have as big a selection as Cotton and Co., but are more reasonably priced. Also, the Weeboks are great for my 3 year olds wide feet. Julie

Payless Shoe Source. Many locations including San Pablo Ave @ Central in El Cerrito. Janet

Hi Try Old Navy - I just bought a pair of sneakers for under $20 for my almost 3 year old daughter. Target is also good. Julie

I too agree that children's shoes should not cost $50+. However, I have two things to say about this. All the shoes with decent reputations and fairly large price tags (e.g. stride right etc.) I bought for my first child are in GREAT condition for my second child to wear. All the Target/Mervyen's shoes I had to throw away after my first son wore them. Secondly, I hardly EVER pay full price for my children's shoes...I hit the Nordstrom's half- yearly and anniversary sales and get them half price! Maya

Try Payless shows anywhere. They don't always have a large selection but often there will be one or two pairs of very nice shows. I'm not an expert on how important it is to have exclusive shows for kids, but after testing the ''hot'' names and trying to figure out what's so special about them, I think that if you find flexible shows with a good sole, it's really fine. anon

Two stores at the top of Solano sell reasonably-priced shoes for kids: A Child's Place (at the corner of The Alameda) and Hannah's (which mostly sells used clothing, but they have a limited selection of new shoes). Both carry Angel brand shoes, which fit our toddler well and cost about $15-20. Also, Rockridge Kids carries some shoes, including Angel sandals in the summer ($15). Nomi

I just bought two pairs of just about brand new Nikes from a used clothing store for children for a total of $8 (size 7). Everything in the store is just about new and they have a great play area for toddlers in the middle of the store. It is located on Fruitvale, just east of its intersection with MacArthur in the Dimond district of Oakland. It's called Making Ends Meet. Best of all, if you can't find anyone who needs your kids used clothes, they will buy them off of you and give you a store credit. David

try nordstrom rack in san leandro or san francisco - good brands at low prices. or tjmax often has better selection then most ross's but also located far away, only one i know of is in dublin by the babies-r-us. or the better ross stores, like the el cerrito plaza ross is better than the emeryville one. finally, shoe pavillion. w/ all these places though if you are shopper like me you know it's hit or miss. the best luck is to check back when you're in the area and grab the good ones when you can! with our 12 year old son we buy several pairs in larger sizes to take advantage of selection and sales when we can. good luck! bargain hunter

After reading the current posts for reasonably priced kid shoes, I couldn't resist where I've had great success in buying my 2 year olds shoes - eBay! I've bought name brands (Weebok and Stride Rite) shoes, both new and used, at incredible prices. Maybe a tad more expensive than used stores when you include the shipping charge, but the advantages are I don't have to waste time shopping and the selection is outrageous! I recently did a price comparison when my son outgrew his much beloved Stride Rite sneakers with lights. I found the exact same sneakers, brand new, in the next size up on eBay which I bought for $15 + $5 shipping. I compared them to the sneakers with lights at Payless for $19.99, which were NOT leather, and while I'm sure he'll outgrow them before wearing them out, I think the Stride Rite sneakers are much better quality for essentially the same price. I've bought adorable hiking boots and Weebok leather boots with lights for as little as $5-10! Happy bidding!

I have found a number of reasonably priced kids' shoes in the bins at Rockridge Kids; usually between $15-$25 for sneaker-type shoes. They don't always have all sizes, but they do reorder frequently. Karen

I always buy my son's shoes used at Childs Play or Lauren's Closet. He grows out of them so fast, I really don't want to buy new most of the time. I've also purchased Robeez and some simple tennis shoes for him at Baby Gap which I thought were reasonably priced. Susan