Summer sandals for children

No money in our house for such posh sandals ....don't recall what we had instead unless they were from the cheapest shop in town ! I do remember having to do a display for Princess Margaret once in which all of the Brownie packs in Ipswich had to represent a season ..ours was winter and instructions went forth to buy and wear white sandals !!!! my mum managed to find a pair of plastic ones in Woollies ,,,,,oh dear ! all my friends had white buckskin (if you remember them you are as old as me !) ..they had to be cleaned with a special fluid and left to dry overnight .......still, I came to no harm ! My daughter's school insisted on only navy blue sandals by Start-rite as part of their uniform ...she had very narrow feet and often I had to order them from the only shop in town to have a measuring machine (no online ordering then !) ......

I had these and so did my sisters I remember in the summer when we wore them without socks we ended up with a flower looking pattern on our feet

flippy

I had those Clark's sandals in red or blue and they always used to rub my heels and give me a blister until they were worn in. My dad used to cut the toes out of them too at the end of the summer to make them last until it was time for school shoes.

I don't think my DGD would like them now, they do have Clark's or Startrite but the open ones with two velcro straps over. They seem to wear black Mary Jane shoes for school all year round.

How I remember them. Later, there were navy ones too.

So glad that others had "cut-toes". I used to be mortified by that, it showed that we were "poor"!

Unfortunately I didn't have these sandals. Money was too tight to buy such luxuries as properly fitted shoes and my DM used to go to the local market and buy black ' sandshoes' (plimsoles) for us. Luckily, most of the kids in my class wore similar, but some of the boys wore black lace-up boots with metal 'segs' on the heels, which they used to rub along the ground and create sparks, showing off in front of impressionable girls. The only time I remember getting any new sandals was one Easter, when my DM bought me a pair of red ones from M&S. As soon as I was earning enough to buy my own footwear, the dreaded 'winklepickers' became essential. Needless to say, my feet are a mass of lumps and bumps!
My DDs always had their feet measured and decent quality shoes bought throughout their childhood, but as soon as they reached their teens, they insisted on fashionable footwear, just like their friends were wearing. Deja vue, or what?
Sorry for the nostalgic ramble.

sandals are the bane of my life ,I bought our 8 year old gd some with small cork wedge heels and her other granny has forbidden her from wearing them ,as heels are really bad for your back....well I've worn heels since I was about 9 and my back is just fine .Poor wee soul loves them too, and she wouldn't be wearing them all the time just for parties.I dont see a problem ....maybe I'm wrong

I remember those x ray machines - my children always had their feet measured with these and shoes fitted; the machines suddenly disappeared from the shops to be replaced by a measuring tape as I recall. I do get twitchy at times about any potential damage from unnecessary rays! I too wore the classic Clarks sandal as a child, but remember the excitement of having a RED pair one year; they must have started branching out from the standard brown at some point in the 50's/60s. Do I remember navy blue also, or am I having a sandal fantasy here? My DGD always has lovely sandals, with tiny leather flowers, or sparkly decorations, and in such pretty colours. How times have changed; I could never get anything really nice for my son to wear when he was very small, but boys seem to have much more to choose from now.

Ooh used to love my Clarks sandals..always got them around Eastertime..loved the x-ray machine too..probably would NOT be allowed now! Remember Tuf shoes too! ?

My parents were hard up too (post war). I wore my brother's.

Marks and Spencers used to make sandals for kids almost identical to the Clark's and one summer when my son was about 2 I bought 3 pairs in brown navy and red as I was celebrating getting a little job. Must have been mad - all the same size to go with different outfits! I think all kids sandals were that style then I can't remember kids having toeless sandals in those days - not even ones with the toes cut out!

Brown for school and white for Sunday

I hated when I had to get new Clarks ones as they were so uncomfortable until you had "worn them in". My dad used a small toffee hammer to pound the offending bits to make them softer. I can still remember him sitting on a stool, last between this thighs, tap, tap, tapping away. He used to heel and sole our shoes too. No it wasn't his trade, just something he took pride in being able to do to make the money stretch farther.

Oh my goodness I remember those sandals so well! I can even smell the leather.

We had white ones . I think my Mum called them Buckskin, and we got them at Easter and wore them all summer for best .

My Mum swore by Clarks shoes and we never had hand me down shoes , every September we all got new school shoes and they had to last till Easter.

I can't remember kids having toeless sandals in those days - not even ones with the toes cut out!
perhaps some parents could afford a new pair of sandals halfway through the school holidays in the 1950s because their DC's feet had grown.
My dad cut the toes out of my Clark's sandals with a Stanley knife (must have denoted that we were JAM!).
'You'll get a few more weeks out of those now'

I've looked at the Saltwater sandals and they do look a bit old fashioned. Perhaps they look better on 30 year old feet/legs but they would make me feel decidedly frumpy. No cushioning either, so every step would jar if walking on concrete psvements. I love my Rieker, Birkies or Merrells.

OMG yes! Every year from when I started infant school to when I went into the sixth form. I could do with some now - I bet they're very comfy.

They were called Clarks Joyance and cost 19/6
Happy days!

Tuf guaranteed that their shoes would last six months. I was heavy on shoes and they never lasted so mam would get them replaced with my current size. They were always basic brown lace ups. Then in summer she would get me those Clarks sandals which to be fair she had to scrimp and save to get me but because I had big wide feet I had to have the same pair year after year.

I used to cry because other girls had pretty shoes but I would never have dared to refuse to wear them.

Makes sense now. I think she got my winter shoes free for several years due to me wearing them out but at the time it was horrible.

Yes I had these! And do remember Clarks shop had an X-Ray machine in shop to check your feet fitted ok in shoes. An X-ray machine!!!

How I would have loved a pair of the Clarks sandals. I always thought it was the posh children who wore those and had to be satisfied with a pair of plimsolls, whitened every other night.

Yes - Brings back memories. Should be the new fashion today for children!

Toes cut out of mine also. We then played out in them after school.

I dreamt of having those sandals, but my parents wouldn't let me have them because my mother had 'bad feet' and was worried I would have the same problems, so I had to wear lace-ups year round at school. However, it was straight into black plimmies at home.

It was a big day when we were taken for our annual fitting of Clarks Sandals. At first we had to wear them with socks but during the holidays we wore them without and the sun made the Clarks pattern on our feet. My DSs had the same design when they were little but in red and blue rather than the standard brown of our childhood.