We’ve all seen the countless ads on Pinterest, FaceBook and on at least three of the “cool moms” feet at school drop-off, but if you’re like me, you have questioned whether a pair of slip on ballet shoes can really be worth $200, am I right??? I spent so long debating on dropping that kind of cash on a pair of Tieks, and I felt like every review I read (and I read more than my fair share) seemed totally biased and not necessarily transparent. So when my hubby bought me a pair for my birthday I knew that I wanted to share my thoughts with you.
I was super excited when I opened the package.
The first thing that struck me was how great the teal color was. The packaging was very well done, to include a handwritten note tucked inside. I also loved the bags that came with the shoes. Both a small bag to carry around the folded up Tieks and a pretty fantastic carry all that folds up to next to nothing so you can throw it in your bag.
It’s designed so that when you are headed out for a night out on the town you can have your Tieks in your bag and then when your feet start hurting you can switch out and carry your heels home in the larger bag. Genius!
Then came time to put them on my feet. I guess that I had super high expectations because I had heard that it was like walking on clouds. I’ll be honest…it wasn’t like that at all for me. I was severely disappointed when I walked through my living room. They were tight on the heel, the toes felt like they were super bunched up and couldn’t move, and I just knew that my feet would be so stupidly sweaty in them. I was completely and entirely prepared to send them back after the first three minutes.
And then I took a second to think logically. I think that at first the price tag threw me for a loop because it would never occur to me to pay that much for a summer pair of shoes. Mainly because I live in flip flops and I love getting new pairs a couple of times per summer, so I don’t want to drop a ton of cash on them. But I do love to get a new pair of nice boots every winter and a $200 price tag would not stop me. In fact, that’s a pretty typical price for me. So if I was willing to invest that much into a pair of boots that need to be broken in, why not spend a little time breaking these beauties in?
So that’s exactly what I did. I was very careful to wear them only around my house for the next week or so, knowing that if they were still in “new” condition I could return them. The toes were still tight, but the heel started to feel like a better fit. Surprisingly my feet weren’t a puddle of sweat and I grew to really enjoy the way that they stayed on my feet like no other flat had before.
I decided that I would keep them and keep hoping that the toes would loosen a bit. I started wearing them to do quick errands around town and loved that I never felt any hot spots on the heel. The color seems to match pretty much everything, so I felt like they would be a good addition to my wardrobe. It was just that darn toe box being so tight that made me crazy.
Flash forward to a couple of months later and here I sit, typing this up in an airport while wearing my Tieks. And I can tell you that I have kicked them off, not because they are uncomfortable, but because I have a 10 hour layover and I am getting ready to take a nap. In fact, I’ll also say that I will more than likely buy another pair in the future. I don’t think that I will ever turn into one of those women who collects them and owns 35 pairs, but I am thoroughly enjoying the pair that I do own.
It took a modification (that I will share with you in my next post) and some time spent to break them in, but now they are a staple in my closet. I still cringe when my kiddos step on my toes or when I accidentally kick the shopping cart, thinking about the money I spent on them, but overall I feel like they are worth it and that they will last for years to come.
So if you’ve stuck with this never ending story for this long, my truly unbiased opinion would be that if $200 on a pair of shoes won’t make or break you…give Tieks a try. Just be sure to wear them around your house for awhile to make sure that they are the right shoes for you.
I’m a gal who loves colorful shoes and ballet flats. However, for more than a few years I have not been able to find anything that really fit mostly because of fit / cut across the top of my toes. After seeing an ad and reading their website thoroughly I was hoping these shoes would fit. I order the pink ones. Totally sastified. The bronze ones took a bit longer to break in. I am sure it is becasue of the color process. Worth every penny to me!
I guess I never would have thought that other colors might break in differently. Good thought, Linda! So glad you love your Tieks too!
Nice review -very honest and straight to the point. I had not found too much about these things (debating to myself as a gift for someone), but I found your review very enlightening. Thanks!
Glad it helped, Diana!
Great review. I too was skeptical with my first pair for many of the same reasons, but once they broke in they have become my preferred footwear.
Brenn recently posted…Review: Tieks Ballet Flats