Find Me Sandals!
May 31, 2019 11:29 AM   Subscribe

Currently, I spend all summer wearing Saltwater Sandals to work, to go out, anything where Chuck Taylors seems inappropriate. It has been mentioned to me that they are the standard shoe for toddlers at the beach, and that they look like it. Except they're everything I want in a sandal! Can you point me at something that has all the same virtues but maybe looks slightly less preschool? Snowflakes about what I see as the virtues below.

What I want in a sandal, and I've had trouble finding: (1) Flat. Not just no heel, but minimal sole structure -- I don't want arch support, I don't want cushioning. The sole is to keep sharp things out of my foot, and other than that it should keep to itself. (2) Securely attached to my foot. Needs to have straps holding it in place, I'm going to be walking in these things. (3) Nothing between my toes -- I get intolerable blisters immediately. (4) Wide straps. Narrower than an inch is okay, but not much narrower, and when you get down below a half inch it's a hard no. (5) Nothing over the instep that isn't adjustable. I have weird stupid high arches, and a shoe that thinks I can slip into something that comes up over them is wrong.

I'm wearing these to work, so not sport-sandals. I mean, work doesn't really care, I work for the state, and I've managed to stake out a certain amount of eccentricity even within the already lax dress code around here, but I don't want to be showing up in shoes held together by velcro. Does this exist other than in the toddler shoes I already live in?
posted by LizardBreath to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (30 answers total) 7 users marked this as a favorite
 
Those shoes look great, who's calling them "toddler shoes?" Dang. Rude. I'm getting me some. (I, too, work for the state.)
posted by Don Pepino at 11:56 AM on May 31, 2019 [34 favorites]


I came in to say what Don Pepino said. They are adult sandals! They look perfectly adult-appropriate to me. I don't see them and think "toddler" at all. Even the picture on the website is of an adult woman wearing them.
posted by sunflower16 at 11:59 AM on May 31, 2019 [11 favorites]


Yeah, ignore that noise. Those are grown-lady shoes, it says so right on the screen. They make baby-size Air Jordans ... doesn't mean that all those guys playing ball at the Y need to buy different shoes.

You do you. Imma get me some new sandals for the summer!!
posted by mccxxiii at 12:01 PM on May 31, 2019 [3 favorites]


Ok, I'm thirding. I think that getting a colour that's vaguely similar to your skin tone makes them less noticeable / more appropriate. Or get Rose-gold because it's super pretty! Looking at the site, I think "The original" is the most grown-up . Don't get the flowered/ patterned ones, that will really read toddler.
posted by Valancy Rachel at 12:02 PM on May 31, 2019 [1 favorite]


Piling on here. I'm a guy, and I wouldn't ever think that a woman wearing those looked preschool-ish. I see similar things all the time, and they look pretty nice, honestly.
posted by kevinbelt at 12:08 PM on May 31, 2019


As the former parent to a sandal-wearing toddler, I can assure you that those are not toddler sandals. They are grownass woman sandals. Proof: there does not appear to be any velcro or neoprene anywhere on them.
posted by soren_lorensen at 12:08 PM on May 31, 2019 [2 favorites]


They're so cute! Given the unanimous voice of this thread, do you really WANT new shoes/recommendations? Or are you happy with them?
posted by fiercecupcake at 12:13 PM on May 31, 2019 [3 favorites]


Chiming in, I have a fancy sounding job and am wearing them right this minute.
posted by estlin at 12:14 PM on May 31, 2019 [5 favorites]


No no no, those sandals are amazing. I want some now. DTMF who told you they aren't for grown ups.
posted by Hermione Granger at 12:14 PM on May 31, 2019 [2 favorites]


I agree that there's nothing wrong with those particular sandals, but if you want to be passive aggressive about it, bc why not, you should get some crocs and be like HEY DO YOU LIKE MY NEW SHOES, SHOE JERK.
posted by poffin boffin at 12:15 PM on May 31, 2019 [15 favorites]


Further piling on as someone who is very picky about sandals that these don't look like toddler shoes. I looked up pictures of what they look like on an adult foot and they look like standard adult sandals to me - honestly a little hippy-dippy art teacher for my personal taste but not childlike. You could get them in a color like Rose Gold or one of the "Shiny" colors if you want to move them a little more towards trendy.
posted by wuzandfuzz at 12:16 PM on May 31, 2019


Best answer: I love Saltwater Sandals! I wear them all the time! At the same time, so does my preschooler. I think they are kind of supposed to look like kids shoes for grownups. That is great if that is the look you are going for (it is for me!) but I don't think people are wrong when they do say they look child-like. But if that's not what you're going for, I also love Sezane sandals like these. (Pricey though!)
posted by heavenknows at 12:32 PM on May 31, 2019 [2 favorites]


Best answer: Pretty much every lady I know is buying those these days. Whoever told you that is completely wrong.

Clarks would be your best bet I think. I have a few pair that I love

Born has a few that might work- but still somewhat the same aesthetic.

1

2

3
posted by Ftsqg at 12:34 PM on May 31, 2019


I wear Saltwaters everywhere, I've never heard this critique before and I get lots of compliments on my sandals (from adults)
posted by nuclear_soup at 12:37 PM on May 31, 2019 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: Thanks! I thought I wanted different sandals, but the uniform reassurance is working just fine for me.
posted by LizardBreath at 12:50 PM on May 31, 2019 [5 favorites]


Adding to the pile to say those sandals are super cute, and do not look like toddler shoes! You keep on rockin' them.
posted by sarcasticah at 1:17 PM on May 31, 2019 [1 favorite]


Softstar Shoes makes Solstice sandals that look like they fit your bill. Plus they are made in the USA.
posted by jillithd at 1:48 PM on May 31, 2019 [1 favorite]


I love saltwater sandals and have always wanted a pair. Those are the sandals that fit all of your requirements and then you just need to not listen to the person who told you they were toddler shoes anymore - problem solved!
posted by urbanlenny at 2:05 PM on May 31, 2019


Agree that saltwater sandals are fine for grownups but Madewell sandals are also excellent. (I too have high arches and like my shoes as sock like as possible. The Madewell Boardwalk sandal soles are a bit hard for me but they don’t try to like “support” or anything.)
posted by mskyle at 2:27 PM on May 31, 2019 [1 favorite]


I love my Saltwater sandals! I wear my navy ones most often, they seem more “mature” than my pink ones. But I wear them both frequently!
posted by sallybrown at 2:45 PM on May 31, 2019


I have multiple pairs of saltwaters that I too wear to my grown-up lady job all summer. I find the tan color particularly nice and neutral. When I want an alternative I find asos has decent similar options, particularly the new look brand.
posted by ch1x0r at 3:06 PM on May 31, 2019


This is the toddler version of your sandals and yes there's some resemblance with the adult model, but your sandals are completely awesome.
posted by yes I said yes I will Yes at 3:12 PM on May 31, 2019


I know several moms of toddlers, and they love Saltwater sandals for themselves.
posted by Metroid Baby at 3:48 PM on May 31, 2019


It sounds like you’re sticking with Saltwater, but if you want a second pair of sandals, I recommend these. They are appropriate pretty much everywhere I’ve tried to wear them. The middle criss-cross straps are stretchy, so fit shouldn’t be an issue there.
posted by juliapangolin at 9:28 PM on May 31, 2019 [1 favorite]


My style is something like aging hipster meets romper room, and I have a pretty good group of style buddies (professional women between 30 and 50 who work in creative-ish fields and are not patient with discomfort):

Avarcas
Sanuks
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 10:47 PM on May 31, 2019


Chiming in with everyone else! I read your question earlier today and was literally wearing my white pair of Saltwaters at the time (I have the red ones, too). They are the best. Enjoy!
posted by sucre at 11:15 PM on May 31, 2019


I work at a day care, and fill in at the toddler room at times. I think they look perfectly fine. If they were plastic or glittery or had velcro or had unicorns on them, I'd say they looked like they were for a toddler. Those do not. I hate wearing sandals (I have ugly toes) but I'd consider buying a pair of those.
posted by kathrynm at 6:42 AM on June 1, 2019


Jumping on the pile. I wouldn't look twice at an adult woman wearing those. Sounds like someone hates straps or something?
posted by praemunire at 10:31 AM on June 1, 2019


It's possible the people commenting on them are responding more to their own childhood experiences
and nostalgia than to anything about your shoes or how they look on you in particular; I wore light pink Saltwaters as a small child (going to Nordstroms for "this summer's sandals" was how I knew summer vacation was on its way) and remember the year my mom told me I was big enough to pick my own style of sandals instead of Saltwaters if I wanted to as a rite of passage. I absolutely associate them with early childhood and took my kid to buy some for her first birthday. At 6 she is rocking them in fuchsia patent this year.

It's nothing to do with how they look, but I'd feel very twee and funny wearing them as an adult; to me they're as emblematic of early childhood as footie pajamas. When I see adults wearing them I'm always like, "Aww!" I'd never comment, but I'll admit they don't scream "grown-up professional at the office" because I have a literal lifetime of associating that exact style of shoe with "preschooler building sand castle."

Feel free to keep them and wear them with pride! I agree they're classics, that's why I buy them for my kid! But I feel like this thread is pretty unanimous that the individuals reacting to your sandals this way are isolated eccentrics, and I don't feel that's necessarily so. It may not be universal to wear these shoes as a tiny child but it's definitely not uncommon, and in some families it's a multigenerational thing.
posted by potrzebie at 4:50 PM on June 1, 2019


Keep on wearing those awesome saltwater sandals, but may I also recommend these Right Nina Camper sandals? I've been wearing this style for several years now and they seem to fit your criteria: utterly flat, wide straps, nothing between the toes. The straps aren't adjustable, but the strap in front of the ankle is elastic. These are extremely comfortable for walking and standing, and a bit dressier. I adore them so much that I currently have them in 3 different colors.
posted by FamilyBand at 1:21 PM on June 3, 2019 [1 favorite]


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