Sara started walking a few months ago, so to ensure her tiny feet grew properly I went on the search to find her perfect pair of walking shoes. I know with it being the summer I needed a pair that would be comfortable as well as stylish.

I must admit, there is now a lot more choice out there compared to when I was child, however after searching high and low, I found either shoes which were super stylish but so uncomfortable for her or ugly looking but comfy one. I thought I couldn’t find an inbetween until I came across a company called Petasil.

If you’ve never heard of them before then, their main factory is based in the heart of Portugal’s historic shoe industry in St Joao da Madeira. This fashion forward brand, appeals to not only mum’s like me but also has a large celebrity mummy following too.

As well as looking gorgeous, these shoes offer the flexibility and comfort. Every piece of footwear is crafted from leather, inside and out to allow young feet to breathe and develop healthily. Even the canvas shoes have a leather footbed as this offers the best combination of comfort and quality. Funky and functional. Music to my ears!

On paper, Petasil sounds fabulous, so when I was asked to try get my daughter to review a pair, I was very excited indeed!  With the shoes being made in Portugal, I thought what better time to test the shoes out but in their native country as we were going to attend a wedding there.

However, usually new shoes and Sara take a little getting used to so I thought I would see how she found them in the lovely UK.  Here are some pictures of Sara showing off her new shoes in the garden.  The photos have been taken by my lovely sister in law, Ammarrah (Check out some more of her fashion pics on her blog Ammarrah.com)…

Like always the British weather wasn’t amazing, and if you thought these canvas shoes are too summery then you can still wear these on a not so sunny day.  Here Sara is wearing shorts with tights, accompanied with the shoes.  Perfect! The look is quite versatile, because as soon as the sun is out the tights can come off and viola…you have a summer outfit in seconds!

Sara is Wearing…

T-shirt from H&M

Shorts from Next

Tights from Mothercare

Sunglasses from John Lewis

Sara decided to do a quick sprint across the garden and it was definitely a true test of the shoes.  Considering these were the first time she wore the shoes, she managed to charge across the garden without tripping!

Here is a close up shot of the shoes.  The t-bar style is perfect for kids with a high instep and the buckle fastening is easy to adjust and feel very hard wearing.

So as I said earlier in the article, we attended a wedding in Portugal recently (check out my article on what we wore).  After testing them out at home, it was time to put them under the radar on holiday.  A good pair of holiday shoes are important.  You want something lightweight and comfortable for your kids and Petasil doesn’t disappoint.  We decided to go sightseeing in the gorgeous town of Braga in Portugal, so comfy shoes for Sara was a must.    Check out her sporting the shoes on the cobbled pathways of Bom Jesus Do Monte in Braga…

 Sara makes a run from her father down the cobbled streets!

Sara is Wearing…

Dungarees from H&M

T-Shirt from Zara

Hairclip from Baby Hair

Socks from Asda

A close up shot of the shoes.  Sara had worn these a few times before the holiday, however they still looked great.  A few scuff marks adds character to the shoe..don’t you think?  If you like them clean though, you can clean these quite easily using a branded fabric shoes shampoo.

Lastly, in terms of sizing, try one size to what you normally buy as they seem to be a bigger fit than normal.  Sara is a size 4 but managed to fit into a size 3 very easily.

What do you think of the review?  Have you tried Petasil?  Have you been disappointed or pleased?  Have you got any tips on Kids shoes and do you recommend any other brand?  Leave us a comment below…

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